Winter Storm in Shawnee, Kansas

A winter storm bringing periods of freezing rain and moderate to heavy snow moved into Shawnee county on February 20. Reports from across the area indicated that around .10 inch of ice and around 6 inches of snow fell between February 20 and February 21. The highest total from Shawnee county came out of Topeka, Kansas where 6 inches fell. Blowing and drifting snow made travel through the area difficult. A fatality accident occurred just west of Topeka near Interstate 70 when a semi trailer slid off the road. As a result, the east bound lanes of the interstate were closed for about 8 hours. Another accident occurred just west of Maple Hill and involved a snow plow that was rear-ended by another semitrailer.

A storm system moved out of the Rockies and across the state of Kansas on Sunday, February 21. As this storm system approached from the southwest, a cold airmass with sub freezing temperatures had already moved south across much of the area. This provided the setup for a variety of wintry precipitation types as warm moist air moved north over the cold air at the surface. Across east central Kansas a mix of freezing rain, sleet and snow fell with some areas accumulating more than a 1/2 inch of ice on trees and power lines. A little further north of the ice, a swath of snow ranging from 5 to 8 inches fell across areas from Wabaunsee County through Shawnee, Jackson, and Jefferson Counties.