Blizzard batters U.S. heartland, spreads snowy mess into the Midwest

I'm posting this as a "more than General Chit Chat story" --
this is epic, and huge. And incredible to be in the middle of.
edition.cnn.com...

A brutal blizzard that whipped the southern Plains set its sights on Kansas, Missouri and Illinois, where it's expected to dump more than a foot of snow Tuesday.
The powerful storm system is a second straight punch to the gut for a region hit by record snowfall a week ago.
"We are very concerned about this storm," Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback said Monday. "We believe it may be worse than the last one."
He extended an early state of emergency as the storm approached.

Tens of thousands without power as winter storm blasts KC from local news coverage

By early Tuesday, local energy provider KCP&L reported more than 40,000 power outages in the Kansas City area. Westar Energy is responding to about 3,400 outages in Johnson, Wyandotte, Leavenworth and Douglas counties in Kansas. Kansas City Board of Public Utilities is reporting about 9,000 people without power.

All lanes of Gregory Boulevard about a half mile east of Oldham Road near the Swope Park area of Kansas City is blocked due to a fallen tree. It happened just before 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Kansas City Mayor Sly James declared a state of emergency, an unwanted encore just five days after a major snowstorm dumped nearly a foot of snow on his city. Schools, government offices and businesses across the region are also closed. James urged residents to stay home if they could.

This picture I took this morning, of our patio furniture and surrounding area:


There are several of us buried under this, folks. So far, we still have power at my house, but this isn't over yet. Just wanted to let you all know.....

if you're in the path of this second blizzard, stay home, be safe, and ..... WOW!

reply to post by wildtimes


That picture looks like a lot of fun! Stay safe, but enjoy!!!

Here in Tennessee we have not seen old man winter at all. It was in the 70's here yesterday and oh how we long to see the snow and play in it.

Do you think it will make it here?? Please say yes.

My four wheeler's and hot tub cannot be enjoyed until we see the white stuff!

Word is... we may get a few flurries on Saturday but thats about it. Its like spring never left.

reply to post by wildtimes


Thanks for the update

Waiting and watching for this storm to hit Ontario, Canada. Does not look to bad, depending on the mix of rain/snow. However, this storm's like the last one can certainly surprise many.

Take a little extra time to get to work all or just stay home and catch on some reading/movies.

My only problem with these types of storms is the weather networks go down on the coverage and certainly paint a dooms day like picture. SNOWMAGGEDON 2.0! and such.

Take more time and be more cautious and we will all be good. Maybe i should pick up a two-four of beer and write tomorrow off

reply to post by MamaJ


Oh, yeah, it's "fun" - in the sense of a once-in-a-lifetime (literally) double whammy - thundersnow twice in a week -
we've had huge storms before, ice storms, blizzards, but this is a combo of both...

there aren't even any kids out in it. (it's very heavy, wet, and messy - if I disappear from ATS it'll be due to power outage.

Emergency crews could no way get to my neighborhood in this mess....
it will probably be DAYS before a plow makes it to our quiet non-thru street at the top of our hill.

We just got shoveled out and the roads had dried out as of yesterday - then it hit again. They kept changing the forecast - first it was 3", then it was 6-12", then it was going to just rain/wintry mix, then it was maybe going south - maybe north - then finally as the afternoon wore on they settled on 12-18" more.

And it ain't over yet.
KC doesn't have all that much to offer in terms of spectacularness outdoors, but we DO GET WEATHER.
Deadly heat in summer, deadly cold in winter, tornadoes, microbursts, thundersnow, floods, lightning storms, wind gales.....
we are NOT in the middle of a wheat field, either. KC is very hilly and full of trees, mature trees, including in my neighborhood unimproved areas due to very rugged Loess hills - gulches that are deep and wide, thick forest, etc.

reply to post by MDDoxs


I went out yesterday and stocked up enough beer and food for probably a week.

Don't plan on going anywhere - even if we wanted to, there's no exit until city plows come by or we walk. We are within walking distance of a couple of food sources: Dollar General and a 'quicky-mart' - cigs and beer - bank and police. But it's literally up-hill both ways....
down then up then down......to get there.
Then up ..down ... up ...to get back.

It's pretty cool as long as you have shelter. But scary, too...when power goes down and all you can hear is trees cracking in half in the distance and everything's covered in 4" of ICE, it can be alarming.

Yeah, sock yourselves in, and be awed by the power of Earth!

Just checking in from the Springfield area of Missouri. We're still here, although it's a white world out there today. The College is open though, so evening classes are all set by all indications. That should be fun for the more rural students to make after this little storm.

I really hope they're wrong. At the end of this week, around the 2nd, I'll be driving my Mom back to Texas from Central Illinois. If the weather is that bad, I'm gonna just put her on a plane. I was planning to stay in Texas for about a week to visit my son, but driving in that kind of weather is dangerous and takes forever.

reply to post by DAVID64

If it's that bad, there won't be planes to put her on.

The airports are closed. Hundreds of flights cancelled. Better to put her in a spare room or hotel. Sorry....
weather is ALWAYS a contingency for plans in this part of the country.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Hey Wrabbit,

Nice photos. Are the roads alright in the area? Is it work as per usual for most.

Reason I ask, as I need to contact a client in MO today, but have not been able to get through as of yet. Thanks in advance for any info.

Isn't the internet awesome? So simple to share information on weather and business

Yeah, I'm cross-posting this from the OT Gen Chit Chat thread that goou11 started last week: www.abovetopsecret.com...

Yesterday as it first hit:


same view this morning:


other part of yard:

reply to post by MDDoxs

I'll do you one better than describe it. Here is another photo.




( I came back to add this second picture. This is I-44 at Highway 65. Also current at 09:27 for a time stamp and looking West down I-44 from the interchange. There isn't much moving, but the roads are in decent shape. )

That first pic is current and on the right, if you look hard and are familiar with the chain, you can see the Flagship store for the Bass Pro Shops chain. That's the Springfield store. Time stamp on that is 09:23, Feb 26th.

Hope that helps!

*That is a wet, not icy street. They've been working them during the storm and what looks clear right now is clear for this area. Many secondary streets have slush as you could see on my residential street on the above photos. The main avenues are all clear though and have been since I got up at around 06:30.

reply to post by wildtimes


Looks like my backyard, if you add a little more snow. Is this unusual where you are? It is exactly what I have been getting in southern Saskatchewan.

reply to post by superman2012


Well, it's not unusual to get snow, no. Some years we get more than others. But, to have TWO BLIZZARDS on top of one another, and thundersnow in both, with massive accumulation, is rare, yes.

It's record-setting, although it's not like we hardly ever see snow.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


Thank you very much.

lol sorry...as a Colorado native I just to laugh at the going on here...

When you can walk up to your roof from a snow-drift and build a tunnel complex from your front door to your "mail-box" .....THAT is snow...until then its "dusting"...

I'd imagine when it rains in the dessert people native to that land would be a bit concerned while people in the amazon would get a good chuckle from the hilarity.

Just as Californian's got a good laugh at us Colorado folks when we had a 5.0 EQ a couple years ago...and lost our cool

its gonna be ok.

reply to post by Sly1one


Yes, I know, friend. I lived in Summit County, Colorado for years, and this was routine stuff. For months at a time.

There it was no big deal - it was great for ski traffic, and just "the way it is." And the infrastructure handled it without problems. Here, though, it's unusual, and yes, the city goes spastic. People don't know how to drive in it around here, and we don't have the same kind of huge curled-blade plows and snow management equipment as required in the mountains.

It's relative to "usual" that makes this epic. In fact, yesterday I texted my brother and my ex - both of whom lived there in Summit County as well, with me; and we all were reminded of there. (We are all here now).

Just sayin'. What's "normal" in some areas is "epic" in others. It's the community's ability to cope that makes it chaotic. Plus, here it is WET snow, not the nice dry cold and snowfall of mountains. Different climate altogether.

just woke up and wow lol

winter wonderland snf

Originally posted by wildtimes
reply to post by Sly1one

 

Yes, I know, friend. I lived in Summit County, Colorado for years, and this was routine stuff. For months at a time.

There it was no big deal - it was great for ski traffic, and just "the way it is." And the infrastructure handled it without problems. Here, though, it's unusual, and yes, the city goes spastic. People don't know how to drive in it around here, and we don't have the same kind of huge curled-blade plows and snow management equipment as required in the mountains.

It's relative to "usual" that makes this epic. In fact, yesterday I texted my brother and my ex - both of whom lived there in Summit County as well, with me; and we all were reminded of there. (We are all here now).

Just sayin'. What's "normal" in some areas is "epic" in others. It's the community's ability to cope that makes it chaotic. Plus, here it is WET snow, not the nice dry cold and snowfall of mountains. Different climate altogether.

Well yes "wet" snow does tend to be significantly more dramatic on power lines and structures for sure. I know its relative to perception...as EVERYTHING is relative to perception. The power lines should be of the biggest concern but I do understand the "panic" from the "never seen this before perspective" I'm just saying I find it quite comical...not in a judgmental type of way.

This is the eagles club roof in Belton

reply to post by Sly1one


Thanks, I quite know what you're talking about.
Yeah, downed power lines are treacherous...and so is a sheet of black ice under a foot of slushy wet snow.
Entirely different "species" than a mountain powder dump.

We're not PANICKING, either, though. Please don't exaggerate. I can say "wow" as an inhabitant of this place without panicking. (ETA: But, being STUPID in it is a whole 'nuther thing....and we get LOTS of stupid here during these events.)

Panicking is what happens when somewhere say, like, Phoenix, gets snow during a golf tournament.
Still, thanks for your input.