Biting cold will hit Kansas on January 23, with the state expected to be one of the first to be hit by a winter storm expected to affect 150 million people.
Snowfall totals in northeastern Kansas are expected to range from 1 to 4 inches between January 23 and 25, with a 10 percent chance of 4 to 6 inches south of Interstate 70, the National Weather Service’s Topeka office said on its website.
Meanwhile, the wind chill index is expected to drop below zero for four consecutive days.
The storm is expected to bring ice and snow to 2,000 miles across the country.
It will bring swaths of heavy snow, sleet and dangerous freezing rain from the southern Rockies/Plains and south-central regions and reach the East Coast on January 25.
A car was driving on Interstate 70 when it snowed last January. Snow is expected to fall in Kansas later this week.
Here’s how much snow to expect in Kansas
Earlier on January 21, the weather service issued a winter storm warning for 10 counties in south-central and southeastern Kansas, including the city of Wichita, from the afternoon of January 23 to the evening of January 24.
Total snowfall amounts could be as high as 6 inches, the report said, with the state’s highest amounts occurring near the Oklahoma border.
The weather service predicts the chances of 2 inches or more of snow falling as follows:
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Ottawa and Manhattan are at 44%.
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Hiawatha and Kansas City, Kansas, are at 23%.
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St. Joseph, Missouri, 18%.
The weather service predicts the chances of 4 inches or more of snow falling as follows:
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Lawrence, Holton and Hiawatha are at 4%.
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Kansas City, Kansas, and St. Joseph, Missouri, are at 1%.
This is how cold it’s expected to be in Kansas
On January 23, forecasters predict that wind chill levels will drop to -15 in Marysville, -14 in Hiawatha and Concordia, -13 in Abilene and Garnett, and -11 in Emporia and Topeka.
Wind chill index expected to bottom out:
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On January 24, the temperature was minus 19 degrees in Hiawatha, minus 18 degrees in Garnett, minus 16 degrees in Marysville and Emporia, minus 15 degrees in Abilene and Concordia, and minus 8 degrees in Topeka.
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On January 25, the temperature was minus 14 degrees in Garnett, minus 12 degrees in Abilene, Concordia, Hiawatha and Marysville, minus 10 degrees in Emporia, and minus 6 degrees in Topeka.
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On January 26, the temperature was minus 10 degrees in Hiawatha, minus 9 degrees in Marysville, minus 7 degrees in Garnett and Concordia, minus 5 degrees in Abilene and Emporia, and minus 4 degrees in Topeka.
Please contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.
This article originally appeared in the Topeka Capital Journal: How snowstorm expected to affect 150 million people will affect Kansas