Snowfall expected to be more than Wichita has seen in a while. Here are details on storm
The snowstorm moving across Kansas on Tuesday and lingering into Wednesday will drop more snow on the Wichita area than any storm has in over a year, according to National Weather Service meteorologists.
The last time Wichita saw this much snow in one storm was Jan. 1, 2021, Wichita-based meteorologist Chris Jakub said. That set a New Year’s Day record with 6.5 inches of snow.
Wichita is expected to see between 4 and 7 inches of snow that will start Tuesday evening and continue into Wednesday night.
“We haven’t had a whole lot of big snowstorms around here lately,” he said. “Pretty sparse.”
He expected sleet and possibly freezing rain, with a mix of snow, to start after 6 p.m. Tuesday and change to snow after 9 p.m., when the temperature started to drop.
When people wake up Wednesday morning, between 2 and 4 inches of snow should be on the ground, he said. Light snow should linger throughout the day.
Wichita’s Feb. 1 record snowfall was 6.1 inches set in 1983. It was 5.2 inches on Feb. 2, set in 1913. Record keeping dates back to 1888.
Snow treatment and removal
Wichita officials usually try to pre-treat the roads a day before the snow falls, but the possible freezing rain would negate its effectiveness. Plowing progress on city roads can be checked at wichita.gov/snowremoval.
A spokesperson for the Kansas Department of Transportation said it would pre-treat highways in the Wichita area with a mix of brine and salt because of the anticipated rain.
The department has a shortage of snowplow operators, forcing highways to go unplowed for longer periods of time. In November, the department said it was 30% understaffed for snowplow operators. Highway conditions can be monitored at kandrive.org.
Rain needed
Most of Kansas is in a drought.
Wichita is currently in a moderate drought, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Wichita’s last measurable precipitation was 0.06 inches on Jan. 14. Before that it was 0.01 inches on Dec. 15. The last time Wichita saw over a quarter-inch of rain was Oct. 28. There were 1.7 inches of rain on Oct. 27.
Jakub estimates the expected snowfall will equate to around a half an inch of rain.
Future forecast
Thursday morning is expected to see the coldest temperatures of the week, with a wind chill of minus 10 degrees. Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be slightly below normal temperatures. Monday and Tuesday will be above normal, with daytime highs in the mid to upper 40s.
This story was originally published February 1, 2022 at 2:14 PM.