A traffic tie-up on Highway 71 south from Kansas City snarled traffic Saturday evening involving a reported 200 vehicles and more than 70 accidents.
Law enforcement and safety officers across Kansas were warning motorists to stay off of highways and basically all other roads Saturday night as a sweeping ice storm pushed Winter Storm Blair across Kansas causing havoc with traffic, airports and electrical systems.
By midnight Evergy was reporting 30 active power outages affecting some 3,500 State residents in various locations across Kansas. The company serves over 1.6 million customers statewide.
Icy precipitation began to fall Saturday afternoon in eastern Kansas, quickly turning paved roadways into treacherous ribbons of ice. I reported 200 car back up on Highway 71 South near Kansas City totaled more than 70 accidents According to some social media reports.
The National Weather Service Wichita station forecast through 4 AM called for freezing rain and sleet gradually transitioning to sleet and snow from the northwest, with mostly rain in far southern Kansas. Embedded thunderstorms were expected to enhance ice, sleet, and snow accumulations.
All travel conditions were reported treacherous, and emergency responders across Kansas reported having trouble getting to accidents and emergencies due to icy conditions.
A blizzard warning was in effect for central Kansas from 3 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday evening, with sun returning Monday and a high of 18 with a low of 3.
Dane Hicks is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and the United States Marine Corps Officer Candidate School at Quantico, VA. He is the author of novels "The Skinning Tree" and "A Whisper For Help." As publisher of the Anderson County Review in Garnett, KS., he is a recipient of the Kansas Press Association's Boyd Community Service Award as well as more than 60 awards for excellence in news, editorial and photography.
