Wind chills below zero await KC commuters as temperatures plunge to near record low
Very cold temperatures hit Kansas City Tuesday as temperatures plummeted to a near record level, according to FOX4 meteorologist Karli Ritter.
The temperature at Kansas City International Airport had fallen to 8 degrees shortly before 6 a.m., close to the record low of 6 degrees set in 1911. Wind chills, meanwhile, have fallen below zero.
An arctic blast that shattered records across the county has sent Kansas City area temperatures tumbling 25 to 35 degrees below normal. The normal low for this time of year is the mid-30s, while highs are typically in the mid-50s.
“Later today we will be focusing on trying to get above freezing, but we’re not going to get there,” said Ritter, who provides weather updates to The Star. “Today’s high will be kept to the upper 20s to low 30s. If we’re lucky, we’ll try to get up to 32 (degrees) in some spots.”
The cold won’t be around for long as the Kansas City area will begin to see a warm up beginning Wednesday.
“It’s a gradual warm up, but we’re going to begin seeing the return of 50s as we head into the weekend and we’re going to stay in the 50s all the way into early next week,” Ritter said.
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The Star produced this weather update in partnership with the local FOX4 television station. The station’s meteorologists create forecast videos multiple times a day for the newspaper to include in its weather reports.
The National Weather Service in Pleasant Hill urged drivers to use caution as they headed out to work and errands Tuesday morning.
“Be careful this morning patchy slick spots on the roads and very cold temps and wind chills, bundle up!” the weather service said on Twitter.
This story was originally published November 12, 2019 at 6:35 AM.
