Winter Storm in Kansas, February 27, 2001

Name: Winter Storm in Kansas, February 27, 2001
Start: 2001-02-27T05:00
End: 2001-02-27T15:20
Location: Kansas

February 27, 2001 · NWS ICT · 10 events in 10 counties and zones

10 winter storm, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 10 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: 10

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 forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Wichita, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 27, 3:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 27, 3:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
345 AM CST TUE FEB 27 2001

SYNOPSIS:
SIGNIFICANT WINTER WX THAT'S BEEN SLATED FOR ALL CWA TAKING ON SLGTLY
DIFFERENT COMPLEXION ACRS SCNTRL & SE KS, ESPECIALLY FOR TODAY. LAST
NGT'S SOUNDINGS FOR KICT & KCNU PAINTED A SN (& TO LESSER EXTENT PL)
PICTURE THESE AREA, WITH SN COMMENCING SCNTRL EARLY THIS MRNG WITH
CNTRL ARND 18Z. TONIGHT'S SOUNDINGS PAINTING A MORE OMINOUS PICTURE
THAT'LL REALLY MAKE THIS A TERRIFIC TUESDAY. PER 07Z LAPS SOUNDINGS,
STRONG INVERSION IN PLACE ACRS ALL CWA THRU ABOUT 800-750MB WITH 850
MB TEMPS OVER SCNTRL & SE 5-6C RESPECTIVELY. FAIRLY STEEP LAPSE RATES
EXIST & CONT TO BE PROGGED BY EACH OF THE "BIG 3" MODELS WITH 850MB
TEMPS OVER KICT 2-3C THRU 12Z & KCNU THRU 18Z & PER 1000-850MB & 850-
700MB THKNS FZRAPL TO BE WINTRY THREAT BOTH SXNS. WITH FAIRLY TIGHT
NE GRADIENT AM UPGRADING SCNTRL & SE TO WINTER STORM WRNGS WITH SIG-
NIFICANT ICE ACCUM MENTIONED. AS DISCUSSED WITH TOP AM EXTENDING WIN-
TER STORM WRNG SE INTO TNGT AS WELL.

TODAY:
CATEGORICAL POPS A NO BRAINER ALL AREAS WITH SN HIT HARDEST CNTRL &
WITH FZRAPL STILL A THREAT EARLY THIS MRNG (ESPECIALLY E OF I-135)
WINTER STORM WRNG RETAINED. WITH ARCTIC HIGH SURGING S TOWARD KS
BULK OF SN TO OCCUR THIS PERIOD WITH ACCUM LOWERED (SLGTLY!) TO 4-6"
ACRS CNTRL KS AS PERIODS OF +SN LIKELY AS THIS REGION POSITIONED BE-
NEATH RIGHT REAR QUAD 100-110KT UPR JET. STRONG COLD ADVECTION DOWN-
STAIRS WARRANTS "FALLING TEMP" DESCRIPTOR ALL AREAS.

TNGT:
AS DISCUSSED WITH TOP AM EXTENDING WINTER STORM WRNG SE INTO TNGT AS
WELL (ESPECIALLY SE WHERE FZRAPL COULD EASILY CONT BEYOND 00Z).
ONSET OF ARCTIC HIGH TO PLAY KEY ROLE IN DIMINISHMENT TO FLRYS ACRS
CNTRL KS. TEMPS ACRS CNTRL KS TO BE V-E-R-Y TRICKY AS ARCTIC HIGH'S
ARVL COULD SCOUR OUT SC DECK & IF SO MINS WL SAIL OUT OF BALLPARK.
AS SUCH LOWERED MINS ACRS CNTRL TO 10-15F WITH KRSL ON COLDER END OF
SPECTRUM. MINS IN 20-25F RANGE LOOK KOSHER ELSEWHERE.

WED:
WITH ARCTIC HIGH CONT'G SWD THRUST INO KS AXIS OF GREATEST PCPN LIKE-
WISE SHIFTS S THEN SW OF CWA. THEREFORE WL RUN GENERIC 30-40% POPS
ACRS SCNTRL & SE WITH SE ON LOWER END OF SPECTRUM. BIASED TOWARD COL-
DER FAN SOLUTION ON MAXES WRN 1/2 CNTRL (LWR 20S) WITH COLDER MAV UN-
DERCUT ERN 1/2 CNTRL (MID 20S). MAV MAXES ALSO APPEAR ON TARGET ELSE-
WHERE (ARND 30F).

COORD: TOP(3), DDC(2), SGF.

FCSTID = 4
ICT   32  23  30  21 / 100  60  40  30
HUT   24  17  28  20 / 100  40   0  30
EWK   25  17  28  20 / 100  40   0  30
EQA   26  20  30  21 / 100  60  40  30
WLD   32  25  30  21 / 100  60  40  30
RSL   19  11  23  15 / 100  40   0  30
GBD   19  12  25  15 / 100  40   0  30
SLN   22  13  27  20 / 100  40   0  30
MPR   22  15  28  20 / 100  40   0  30
CFV   38  26  31  20 /  90  70  30  30
CNU   38  25  30  20 /  90  70  30  30
K88   36  24  30  19 /  90  70  30  30

.ICT...
KS...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TODAY FOR ZONES KSZ032>033...
KSZ047>048.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TODAY FOR ZONES KSZ049>053...KSZ067>068.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TODAY FOR ZONES KSZ069>070...KSZ082>083...
KSZ091>093.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TODAY AND TONIGHT FOR ZONES KSZ071>072...
KSZ094>096...KSZ098>100.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

10 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Russell

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Russell forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.915, -98.762 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A shallow, fast-moving arctic front swept across central Kansas on the morning of the 27th. Knifing under much warmer air aloft, especially in the 1,000-4,000 foot layer where temperatures warmed to as much as 38-40F, the resulting rain fell onto surfaces where temperatures were generally in the lower to mid 20s. Highways quickly froze, turning into skating rinks. With upper level low pressure anchored over the Desert Southwest ejecting numerous disturbances northeast across Kansas, the freezing rain was prolonged and occasionally mixed with sleet.As the morning progressed, the freezing rain and sleet quickly changed to snow which was occasionally heavy. Snow accumulations were only in the 3-6 inch range over most of the warned area, but with a layer of ice beneath, travel was treacherous with numerous accidents resulting. Trained spotters, cooperative observers and area newspapers contributed greatly to this report.

Winter Storm, Lincoln

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Lincoln forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 39.045, -98.208 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Barton

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Barton forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.479, -98.756 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Ellsworth

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Ellsworth forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.697, -98.205 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Saline

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Saline forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.784, -97.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Rice

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Rice forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.347, -98.201 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, McPherson

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: McPherson forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.392, -97.648 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Marion

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Marion forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.359, -97.097 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Chase

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Chase forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 38.302, -96.594 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Reno

When: February 27, 5:00 AM CST to 3:20 PM CST
Where: Reno forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 37.953, -98.086 (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

Every storm in Kansas in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Kansas, February 2001

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: 5228393, 5228394, 5228395, 5229390, 5229391, 5229392, 5229393, 5229394, 5229395, 5229396.