Kansas City welcomed the new year with a rare blizzard. Residents in the metro area began preparations for the winter storm in earnest on Friday and by Saturday afternoon freezing rain left roads coated with a slick of ice.
Sunday blizzard conditions built, bringing sleet and snow to the region, according to a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
The Star asked readers to share photos and videos of the snow in their neighborhood while our photojournalists and reporters ventured out to show one biggest winter storms in Kansas City’s history. These are some of what we saw:
Snow blankets Kansas City metro
A RideKC bus was stuck in the snow near the KC Wheel during whiteout conditions on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Buses continued to operate during the snowstorm. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A leftover holiday decoration that reads “SNOW” in large letters seemed fitting amid the blowing snow and blizzard-like conditions during the winter storm that swept through Lenexa on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
Kansas City experienced whiteout conditions on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Travel routes were heavily impacted with major highways shut down due to ice and snow packed roads. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Snow-packed roads and blizzard conditions were slowing a driver heading westbound Kansas 10 Highway on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in western Lenexa. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
The Scout overlooks a wall of snow in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
David Sims and other Power & Light workers spread ice melt in downtown Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Windblown snow engulfs Izzy Licos while he uses a snow blower to clear a drift from the sidewalk of a business Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in downtown Overland Park. Blizzard conditions hit the Kansas City metro crippling transportation and shutting down several businesses. Chris Ochsner cochsnser@kcstar.com
Steve Stegall shovels snow outside The Blue Line in the River Market in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. The Blue Line is one of few Kansas City establishments open in the area. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Vehicles sit stranded along southbound U.S. Highway 69 as a tow truck drives by Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in Overland Park. Chris Ochsner cochsnser@kcstar.com
A person walks near the Roasterie Coffee shop during heavy snowfall on Sunday. Kansas City saw over five inches of snow fall in a matter of hours on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Travel routes were heavily impacted with some people opting to travel by foot. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A pedestrian walks their dog down the middle of Main Street in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Snow tops the sign at Tiki Taco Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in downtown Overland Park. Chris Ochsner cochsnser@kcstar.com
Snow-packed roads and blizzard conditions were slowing drivers who headed west on Kansas 10 Highway on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in Johnson County. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
A pedestrian steps off a RideKC bus near Crown Center in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5th, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A few downtown Kansas City buildings are seen from Columbus Square Park during a snowstorm on Sunday, Jan. 5. Chandler Boese cboese@kcstar.com
Pedestrians run to catch the KC Streetcar near Crown Center in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A snow plow runs on 47th Street through the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A crew member from Green Lawn, a landscape company in Shawnee, plowed snow from a shopping center parking lot at 10064 Woodland Rd., in western Lenexa on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
Izzy Licos turns to protect himself from windblown snow while he was clearing a drift from the sidewalk of a business Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025, in downtown Overland Park. Blizzard conditions hit the Kansas City metro crippling transportation and shutting down several businesses. Chris Ochsner cochsnser@kcstar.com
Three to four inches of snow had accumulated in south Overland Park the morning of Sunday, Jan. 5. Contributed Cindy Obenhaus
Snow day fun
Jordan Simpson works out in the snow at Mill Street Park in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Simpson was in town visiting from Dallas, Texas and said “we don’t get snow like this down there.” Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Arnold Ressin of Westwood walks back from a closed Walmart location during a snowstorm on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Ressin wanted a few ingredients for a chili he was making before the Chiefs game. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
A pedestrian with a sled walks through Country Club Plaza in Kansas City on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Two women do some ‘cross country’ skiing at Wassmer Park in Prairie Village on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
At least one Kansas Citian is enjoying the snow. Violet the dog dug up a treat she had buried in the yard during the snowstorm on Sunday, Jan. 5. Contributed Barry Bertram
Travel is not advised
Some Johnson County residents were driving back from Colorado on Saturday, Jan. 4, as the winter storm set in. They had to stop multiple times to scrape ice from the windshield, wipers, and headlights. Contributed Chris Armer
A lone truck drives northbound on a snow packed I-35 on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. Dominick Williams dowilliams@kcstar.com
Kansas City prepares for winter storm
A snowplow driver waits as a front-end loader fills his truck with salt at the Kansas City Public Works Department on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. The city is ready for one of its biggest winter storms in years, with 40,000 tons of salt, 8,000 tons of IceBan, 36,000 gallons of calcium chloride, 300 snowplows, and 400 drivers. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
John Oh of Leavenworth, Kansas, looked on from the warm of his car as a large crowd of customers waited to enter the Costco upon opening on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, in midtown Kansas City. The winter storm forecast is driving people to stock up on supplies. The storm is expected to bring heavy snow, rain, ice and wind to the to the area. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
Ahead of the incoming storm, shoppers loaded up on essentials at Costco on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, in midtown Kansas City. The storm is expected to bring heavy snow, rain, ice and wind to the to the area. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
An employee of the Kansas City Public Works Department readied the salt for the snowplows as the city prepared for a major winter storm Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, at the departments’ salt dome in northeast Kansas City. The city is prepared for one of its largest winter storms in recent years with 40,000 tons of salt, 8,000 tons of IceBan, 36,000 gallons of calcium chloride, 300 snowplows, and 400 drivers ready to keep roads clear. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
This story was originally published January 5, 2025 at 10:35 AM.
Hannah Wise is The Kansas City Star’s Managing Editor. She oversees the newsroom’s digital strategy, content and audience engagement efforts. Previously, she worked at The New York Times and Dallas Morning News.
