From a marginal severe weather risk to near-blizzard conditions — it’s all part of a roughly 12-hour swing ahead for the KVOE listening area later Tuesday.
In a classic Kansas weather case of “hold my beer,” we will go from temperatures in the 60s and a low-end risk of hail and wind during the afternoon hours to light snowfall and near-whiteout conditions after sunset. TV-13 meteorologist Doug Meyers says the late-night and overnight travel conditions will be downright bad, even with an inch or two of snowfall at most.
All area counties are in a high wind warning from noon Tuesday to noon Wednesday, reflecting wind gusts as high as 50-70 mph. Those winds will likely cause blowing, drifting and near-blizzard conditions, leading to a winter weather advisory almost areawide from 8 pm Tuesday to 3 am Wednesday. Wabaunsee County is the exception, listed in a blizzard warning from 8 pm to 4 am.
The high winds could well lead to additional power outages, downed tree limbs and scattered Polycarts. Already Tuesday morning, elevated wind speeds have led to power outages initially affecting over 2,300 Evergy customers in places like Emporia, BETO Junction, Eureka, Hartford, Neosho Rapids, Reading and Waverly. Outage numbers briefly dropped considerably since the peak around 4 am Tuesday, only to go up to over 800 shortly before 7 am. Evergy Senior Communications Manager Courtney Lewis says high winds downed a wire and pole east of Emporia, causing several outages for parts of the area. Waverly, including Waverly High School, and 4 Rivers Electric Cooperative will be offline until repairs are finished.
Be sure to stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for updates.
