Lawrence is forecast to receive 1 to 3 inches of additional snow, but unlike the weekend blizzard, it’s not expected to be accompanied by freezing rain and strong winds, according to a National Weather Service meteorologist.
It may begin snowing in Lawrence between around 4 and 7 p.m. Thursday and stop by sunrise Friday, NWS meteorologist Nathan Griesemer said.
“It’s gonna be a lot tamer of a system than what we saw this last weekend,” Griesemer said. “Probably not a ton of really gusty winds with the snow. It’s probably just gonna be one of those prettier snows that’s just kind of falling — heavier rates at times.”
After the winter snow storm hit this past Saturday and Sunday, the most snow had accumulated in North Lawrence — nearly 12 inches. Douglas County on Saturday was on the edge of an upgraded blizzard warning.
“Snow totals have slightly shifted a little bit further east, and the higher snow totals have shifted a little bit further to the north,” Griesemer said. “So for Lawrence, I think it’s pretty safe to assume getting around at least an inch. If it gets up at the heavier snow band kind of later, or early this evening, you could maybe get up to 3 inches or so.”
Griesemer said he cautions people that streets and sidewalks will likely freeze overnight into Friday.
“You know, me living in Lawrence, I know that not all the streets are perfectly cleared yet,” Griesemer said. “And it’s really not gonna take a lot of snow to make things slick again, so just make sure to give yourself some extra time and just make sure to prepare for some slick conditions tomorrow.”
Lawrence Municipal Services and Operations has been working to treat and plow city roads and infrastructure. Michael Leos, a spokesperson for MSO, said Tuesday that a thick layer of ice underneath all the snow has made it difficult for plowing crews and delayed their processes. He said MSO will dispatch crews if additional snowfall is on the way.
Wind gusts are expected to remain mostly calm, except for a bit of gustiness early Friday morning, according to Griesemer. Thursday is most likely going to be the coldest day for the rest of the week, with morning wind chills that were at around 0°. Friday morning’s lowest wind chill is expected to be around 10°.
The forecast for Friday includes a high of 29° and a low of 11°.
See links to more severe weather resources and information below. See this page for more weather coverage.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
Severe weather resources
Get warm in Lawrence:
• See this page for locations to get warm during the day and overnight, where to get help for pets and more.
National Weather Service local office (Topeka):
• Find the latest weather forecast info and severe weather advisories for the Lawrence area at this link.
• In the event of rapidly changing severe weather, such as tornadoes, the NWS posts frequent updates on Twitter, @NWSTopeka. You do not need a Twitter account to see tweets from NWS.
• NWS is also on Facebook, facebook.com/NWSTopeka.
• Call 785-234-2592 to hear the forecast.
City of Lawrence snow info:
• The city has snow information and a map at lawrenceks.org/snow that shows information about road conditions and where snowplows have been. The city typically begins snow and ice control for residential roadways when 2 or more inches of snowfall or icing occurs.
Douglas County Emergency Management:
• Follow @DgCoEM on Twitter or Douglas County, KS- Emergency Management on Facebook, facebook.com/dgcoem.
• Sign up to receive emergency alerts at dgcoks.org/emalerts.
• Find lots of tips on severe weather and other emergency preparedness on DgCoEM’s website at douglascountyks.org/emergency-management.
• Report storm damage (for non-emergencies only, and after storm danger has passed) by calling the nonemergency dispatch line at 785-843-0250 or 785-832-7509.
Evergy outages:
• Check the status of power outages on the Evergy outage map, outagemap.evergy.com.
• Report a power outage at evergy.com/report-outage, or call 800-544-4857.
• For down powerlines, call Evergy’s emergency line, 800-383-1183, if above-ground lines are arcing or making contact with trees or vegetation. Call 911 immediately if overhead power lines are on the ground or a fire starts.
Air quality:
• Check the current air quality index in Lawrence and elsewhere through AirNow, airnow.gov.
Latest Lawrence news:
Tom Harper/Lawrence Times
