Kansas, 1997

Heavy Snow in Kansas, April 10 to 11, 1997

April 10 to 11, 1997 · NWS TOP · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

A late season moisture laden snow storm dumped 4 to 8 inches of accumulation across North Central and Northeast kansas generally north and west of Manhattan or along and north of a line from Abilene in Dickenson County to Baileyville in Nemaha County. Locally heavier amounts fell in some areas, especially near the Nebraska boarder where some locations received a foot or more.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 8 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
7
Injuries
0
Property damage
$207,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
8

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS TOP wrote it up.

A late season moisture laden snow storm dumped 4 to 8 inches of accumulation across North Central and Northeast kansas generally north and west of Manhattan or along and north of a line from Abilene in Dickenson County to Baileyville in Nemaha County. Locally heavier amounts fell in some areas, especially near the Nebraska boarder where some locations received a foot or more. Some specific accumulations in inches included Marysville with 8 to 12 , Axtell 11, Belleville 10, Hanover 10, Centralia 9 1/2, Frankfort 9 and Concordia 8.The storm resulted in several fatal traffic accidents. Two passengers of another pickup truck died when the vehicle collided head-on with a semi-truck 3 1/2 miles west of Wamego in Pottawatomie County on US Highway 24 at 545 PM CST on the 11th. A second fatal accident occurred when the driver of a car hit a truck after loosing control and sliding into the opposite lane. Numerous non-fatal accidents also resulted from snow and ice covered roads, including two semi-trucks overturning around 100 PM CST east of Manhattan along Interstate 70.The snow also produced scattered damage to power lines and trees and caused part of a building to collapse in Seneca in Nemaha County.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Clay

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Clay forecast zone
Deaths
3 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
39.350, -97.165 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Cloud

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Cloud forecast zone
Coordinates
39.480, -97.649 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Dickinson

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Dickinson forecast zone
Coordinates
38.867, -97.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Marshall

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Marshall forecast zone
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
39.784, -96.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Nemaha

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Nemaha forecast zone
Property damage
$20,000
Coordinates
39.784, -96.014 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pottawatomie

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Pottawatomie forecast zone
Deaths
3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$120,000
Coordinates
39.379, -96.342 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Republic

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Republic forecast zone
Property damage
$2,000
Coordinates
39.828, -97.651 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Riley

When
April 10, 5:00 PM CST to April 11, 11:00 PM CST
Where
Riley forecast zone
Property damage
$40,000
Coordinates
39.297, -96.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Heavy Snow, Clay1997-04-1140MaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Clay1997-04-1142FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Clay1997-04-1135FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Marshall1997-04-1135FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Pottawatomie1997-04-1028FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Pottawatomie1997-04-1142FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Heavy Snow, Pottawatomie1997-04-1140MaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect

What these are

Heavy Snow
Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kansas in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, April 1997

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5594274, 5594275, 5594276, 5594277, 5594278, 5594279, 5594280, 5594281.