Winter Storm in Kansas, February 8 to 9, 2001

Name: Winter Storm in Kansas, February 8 to 9, 2001
Start: 2001-02-08T20:00
End: 2001-02-09T11:00
Location: Kansas

February 8 to 9, 2001 · NWS TOP · 23 events in 23 counties and zones

A winter storm spread snow across the area and resulted in power outages in some areas. Several colleges in the area were closed for a time and a number of activities cancelled.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 23 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: 23

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 winter storm spread snow across the area and resulted in power outages in some areas. Several colleges in the area were closed for a time and a number of activities cancelled. Several roads were closed from the drifting of snow. Roads that remained open were slick and resulted in a number of accidents. Blizzard conditions (discussed separately) occurred in parts of the area. Snowfall amounts varied from as much as 15 inches in Republic county down to 4 inches in Emporia. Some actual amounts include: 12 inches in Seneca, 8 inches in Concordia and Manhattan, 7 inches in Junction City, 6 inches in Abilene, and 5 inches in Topeka. The heavier amounts were over northern counties while lesser amounts were to the south.

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 Topeka, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 8, 3:33 PM CST, 4 hours 27 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 8, 3:33 PM CST, 4 hours 27 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
333 PM CST THU FEB 8 2001

CHANGOVER FROM RAIN TO FREEZING RAIN IN THE FAR NORTHEAST AND EAST
CENTRAL IS SHORT TERM CONCERN...THEN CHANGE OVER TO SNOW OVER THE
CWA AND AMOUNTS INTO FRIDAY MORNING.

GOING MORE WITH ETA SOLUTION.  ONE PIECE OF SHORTWAVE ENERGY
EJECTING EAST OVER CWA AT THIS TIME...STEADIER PRECIP PUSHING TO THE
EAST.  MAY SEE JUST SOME ON AND OFF PRECIP FOR EARLY EVENING HOURS.
FREEZING LINE AS BEEN SLOW TO SAG SOUTH SLOWLY SO MAY HAVE TO WORD
WITH JUST RAIN FOR PARTS OF THE EVENING.  APPEARS AFTER THE "WARM"
RAIN ENDS...TEMPERATURES ARE FOLLOWING SOME.  BY EVENING WOULD
EXPECT READINGS TO FALL BELOW FREEZING OVER ALL BUT FAR SOUTHEAST
PART OF CWA.  MODELS INCREASING Q-VECTOR AND MID LEVEL LIFT 06Z-12Z
AS SOUTHWEST SYSTEM BEGINS TO EJECT EAST.  WOULD EXPECT PRECIP TO
FILL IN AGAIN BY THE LATE EVENING HOURS.  HAVE CONTINUED THE WINTER
STORM WARNING FOR OVERNIGHT OVER MUCH OF CWA.  THICKNESS VALUES SHOW
MIXED PRECIP CHANGING TO ALL SNOW BY AROUND MIDNIGHT OVER THE NORTH
CENTRAL.  AFTER MIDNIGHT VALUES QUICKLY COOL BY MORNING OVER THE
REST OF CWA...THUS WILL CHANGE TO SNOW IN THESE AREAS.  MODEL QPF'S
ARE IN THE 0.5 TO AROUND 1 INCH RANGE OVERNIGHT.  MENTIONED SOME
LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN FOR PARTS OF THE EAST CENTRAL...AND CONTINUED
SOME MENTION OF THUNDER.

ON FRIDAY...CONCERN SHIFTS TO DEFORMATION ZONE...WRAP AROUND
PRECIPITATION.  HAVE EXPANDED THE WARNINGS INTO THE MORNING.
CONCERN HERE WOULD BE SNOW FALLS OF 2 TO 5 INCHES...AND GUSTY
WINDS.  THIS COUPLED WITH OVERNIGHT GLAZE ACCUMULATIONS WOULD CAUSE
SOME POWER PROBLEMS AND CONTINUED HAZARDOUS TRAVEL.
BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON...UPPER SYSTEM OVER TROUGH BEGINNING TO EJECT
QUICKLY EASTWARD...SNOW DIMINISHES TO FLURRIES.  DECREASING CLOUDS
NORTH CENTRAL.

FRIDAY NIGHT...CLEARING SKIES AND SNOW COVER...WILL GO CLOSER TO THE
COLDER MAV NUMBERS FOR LOWS.  MODELS SHOWING SOME RETURN FLOW IN THE
LOW LAYERS BY SATURDAY INTO SATURDAY NIGHT.  WILL INCREASING THE
CLOUDS OVER THE NORTH CENTRAL SATURDAY OVER REST OF CWA SATURDAY
NIGHT.

TEMP WISE COMPROMISE ON FAN/MAV NUMBERS MOST OF THE PERIODS...AGAIN
FAVORING THE COLDER MAV FRIDAY NIGHT.  SIMILARLY FAVORING COLDER MAV
HIGHS ON SATURDAY OVER THE NORTH CENTRAL WITH CLOUD COVER.
COMPROMISE OF MID 30S OVER THE EAST.

.TOP...WINTER STORM WARNINGS FOR MNORTH CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST TONIGHT
       THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING.
       WINTER STORM WARNINGS...EAST CENTRAL...MAINLY ALONG AND SOUTH
       OF INTERSTATE 35...AFTER 10 PM THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING.

PF

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

23 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Anderson

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Anderson forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 38.214, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Brown

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Clay

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.350, -97.165 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Cloud

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Cloud forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.480, -97.649 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Coffey

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Coffey forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 38.237, -95.734 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Dickinson

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Franklin

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 38.565, -95.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Geary

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Marshall

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Marshall forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.784, -96.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Morris

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Nemaha

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Nemaha forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.784, -96.014 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Osage

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Ottawa

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Ottawa forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.133, -97.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Pottawatomie

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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, Republic

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Republic forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.828, -97.651 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Riley

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 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: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Wabaunsee forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 38.953, -96.205 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Washington

When: February 8, 8:00 PM CST to February 9, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 39.784, -97.087 (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: 5231734, 5231735, 5231736, 5231737, 5231738, 5231739, 5231740, 5231741, 5231742, 5231743, 5231744, 5231745, 5231746, 5231747, 5231748, 5231749, 5231750, 5231751, 5231752, 5231753, 5231754, 5231755, 5231756.