Kansas, 1999

Winter Storm in Kansas, December 4 to 5, 1999

December 4 to 5, 1999 · NWS TOP · 13 events in 13 counties and zones

A low pressure system moved from Oklahoma to Missouri and spread wintry weather across much of Northeast and East central Kansas. Cold rain changed to sleet then to snow during the evening of the 4th and continued through mid morning on the 5th.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 13 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
13

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 low pressure system moved from Oklahoma to Missouri and spread wintry weather across much of Northeast and East central Kansas. Cold rain changed to sleet then to snow during the evening of the 4th and continued through mid morning on the 5th. The heaviest snow fell in a 70 mile wide corridor centered along a line from near Council Grove to near Valley Falls. Some of the reported amounts include: Eskridge 12"; Nortonville 10"; Alta Vista 9"; White City 9"; Auburn 8"; Council Grove Resevoir 8"; Holton 6.5"; Herington 6". Amounts across Topeka ranged from 4 to 8". Three to 4 foot drifts were reported on U.S. Highway 56 west of Council Grove. Tree limbs were downed in Council Grove as well as a light pole. Power lines were downed near Auburn. Around 11,000 homes in the storm area had power outages some of which lasted into the evening hours of the 5th. Many wrecks occurred throughout the area but fortunately there were no serious injuries.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

13 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Brown

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Brown forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.827, -95.564 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Dickinson

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Dickinson forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.867, -97.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Douglas

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Douglas forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.885, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Geary

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Geary forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.002, -96.752 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Jackson

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Jackson forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.417, -95.794 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Jefferson

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.236, -95.383 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Lyon

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Lyon forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.456, -96.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Morris

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Morris forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.687, -96.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Osage

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Osage forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.652, -95.727 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Pottawatomie

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Pottawatomie forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.379, -96.342 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Riley

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Riley forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.297, -96.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Shawnee

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Shawnee forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
39.042, -95.756 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Wabaunsee

When
December 4, 8:00 PM CST to December 5, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Wabaunsee forecast zone
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
38.953, -96.205 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Storm
A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Kansas in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, December 1999

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5720809, 5720810, 5720811, 5720812, 5720813, 5720814, 5720815, 5720816, 5720946, 5720947, 5720948, 5720949, 5720950.