Here’s how much snow Wichita and Kansas got. And could more be on the way?
Snow blanketed much of Kansas over the weekend, closing many schools, businesses and government offices on Monday.
But how much fell?
Wichita recorded 3.6 inches of snow at the Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport, according to data from the National Weather Service Monday. The forecast had called for 2 to 6 inches.
“Winds are pretty light and if you’re out there in an exposed area you might see some real minor blowing, but we’re done with this event,” NWS Wichita meteorologist Mick McGuire said.
Snowfall amounts generally ranged from 4 to 6 inches in the Wichita metro area, with the amounts steadily increasing north of town.
“If you draw a line say from Hutchinson to Emporia, that’s the line where we see greater snowfall amounts in the eight to 12 range,” McGuire said. “The area that was hit the hardest was up there in northeast Kansas, you know from the Junction City area over toward Topeka, with reports of 14 to 18 inches.”
The highest recorded snowfall in the state was 18 inches in an area between Abilene and Junction City. The second highest was 16 inches in northeast of Topeka, over by Valley Falls, McGuire said.
In the Wichita area, Derby had 4.5 inches, Maize 4 inches, Augusta 3 inches, Whitewater 9 inches and Hutchinson 5 inches, an NWS snowfall report map shows.
Another round of snow could hit Wichita starting late Thursday night into Friday, but the forecast is still tentative. An AccuWeather weather alert calls for snow in Wichita starting as early as Wednesday and lasting into Friday.
Multiple state highways were closed Sunday in central, south central and northeastern Kansas. The Kansas Department of Transportation is clearing snow and reopening highways Monday, but urges drivers to slow down and use caution.
Sedgwick County Emergency Communications recorded 186 crash-related calls over the weekend, with 123 on Saturday (23 with injuries) and 63 on Sunday (5 with injuries).
This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 1:10 PM.