Kansas, 2001

Winter Storm in Kansas, January 28, 2001

January 28, 2001 · NWS EAX · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

A storm system moved across northeast Kansas on January 28th and 29th, bringing a wintry mix of precipitation. Light snow began early on the 28th, changing quickly to freezing rain.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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
7

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 EAX wrote it up.

A storm system moved across northeast Kansas on January 28th and 29th, bringing a wintry mix of precipitation. Light snow began early on the 28th, changing quickly to freezing rain. Snow accumulations ranged up to an inch with ice accumulations reaching 1/4 to 1/2 inch. The combination of snow and ice resulted in numerous traffic accidents, and a few school closings on the following Monday.

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 Kansas City, MO wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 27, 11:45 PM CST, 2 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 27, 11:45 PM CST, 2 hours 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KANSAS CITY/PLEASANT HILL MO
1145 PM CST SAT JAN 27 2001

...UPDATED WINTER STORM WATCHES TO BEGIN LATE TONIGHT FOR ALL BUT
FAR NORTHEASTERN ZONES...

MORNING MODEL RUNS ARE SIGNIFICANTLY FASTER ADVECTING MOISTURE INTO
THE AREA. STRONG ISENTROPIC LIFT IS PROGGED TO DEVELOP THROUGH
CENTRAL OKLAHOMA INTO EASTERN KANSAS LATE TONIGHT. ETA TEMPERATURE
AND DEWPOINT FIELDS AT 850 MB INITIALIZED WELL AND FORECAST
SOUNDINGS FROM THAT MODEL INDICATE THE POSSIBILITY OF A SIGNIFICANT
ICING EVENT FOR THE MAJORITY OF NE KS AND NRN MO DURING THE DAY
TOMORROW. SOME CHANGE OVER TO RAIN IS LIKELY FROM PAOLA TO
HARRISONVILLE TO SEDALIA DURING THE AFTERNOON TOMORROW SO WILL KEEP
WATCH WORDING THROUGH SUNDAY FOR SRN TIER OF COUNTIES...BUT WILL
CONTINUE WATCH THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT ELSEWHERE.

WILL KEEP EYE ON POSSIBILITY FOR SIGNIFICANT SNOW FOR MONDAY AS
UPPER SYSTEM PULLS INTO THE PLAINS.

.EAX...
KS...WINTER STORM WATCH LATE TONIGHT THRU SUN NIGHT KSZ025-102>105
     WINTER STORM WATCH LATE TONIGHT AND SUN KSZ057-060.
MO...WINTER STORM WATCH LATE TONIGHT THRU SUN NIGHT
     MOZ001>005-011>014-020>022-028>031-037-038
     WINTER STORM WATCH LATE TONIGHT AND SUN
     MOZ032-033-039-040-043<046-053-054
     WINTER STORM WATHC SUN AND SUN NIGHT
     MOZ006>008-015>017-023>25

KOCH

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Linn

When
January 28, 2:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Linn forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.212, -94.843 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Miami

When
January 28, 2:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Miami forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.564, -94.838 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Atchison

When
January 28, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where
Atchison forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.532, -95.313 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Doniphan

When
January 28, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where
Doniphan forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.788, -95.147 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Johnson

When
January 28, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where
Johnson forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.884, -94.822 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Leavenworth

When
January 28, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where
Leavenworth forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.199, -95.038 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Wyandotte

When
January 28, 3:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
Where
Wyandotte forecast zone
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
39.115, -94.764 (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 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, January 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: 5231452, 5231453, 5231448, 5231449, 5231450, 5231451, 5231454.