Still cold after arctic blast sent temps tumbling, but KC to climb above freezing
After seeing temperatures plunge to near record low as an arctic blast gripped the country, Kansas City will see its high temperature climb back above freezing Wednesday, according to FOX4 meteorologist Karli Ritter.
“Later on today, clouds will be increasing and we are expecting our temperatures to end back above freezing,” said Ritter, who provides weather updates to The Star. “By the lunch hour, in fact, we will be closer to 40 degrees at that time. Eventually, when all is said and done, we will top out in the low 40s to maybe mid-40s if we’re lucky.”
That’s a big change from Tuesday, where Kansas City fell to 8 degrees, just missing the record low of 6 degrees set in 1911.
The National Weather Service in Pleasant Hill said on Twitter that two cities in the region set record lows for Nov. 12 — St. Joseph fell to 6 degrees, breaking the record of 8 degrees set in 1986, and Kirksville dropped to 2 degrees, breaking the record of 11 degrees set in 1968.
Temperatures started out much warmer Wednesday, although it was still cold. At 6 a.m., it was 26 degrees at Kansas City International Airport. The wind chill, however, was 12 degrees.
As clouds stream in later in the morning, areas north of Kansas City may have a few spits or sprinkles or maybe even little wintry mix, she said.
“Here in town, we can’t rule out a little drizzle as a cold front pushes through,” Ritter said.
Behind the cold front, temperatures will get a little cooler, with highs in the upper 30s to near 40 degrees on Thursday, she said.
BEHIND THE STORY
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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 weather service said Kansas City’s taste of early winter will end as temperatures rebound on Friday becoming more fall-like as they climb into the 50s. The warmer weather will last into the weekend.
This story was originally published November 13, 2019 at 6:58 AM.
