Up to 4 inches of snow hits Kansas City area as weather closes COVID test site Saturday

The National Weather Service in Kansas City is advising people to stay home Saturday morning as two to four inches of snow blanketed the metro.

“We don’t really recommend traveling. Roads are still covered and the road crews are out clearing out roads but travel is still hazardous,” said Brent Pesel, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Kansas City office. “However, if people do have to travel, remember to be cautious, take it slow, leave extra stopping distance. The snow is blowing around so it’s difficult to see.”

Pesel also suggested drivers have a winter weather kit in the car with them.

Snow began falling early Saturday morning, with some areas in rural Missouri seeing more than five inches. Most of the area is under a winter weather advisory until noon. Wind gusts could be as high as 40 mph.

The weather has also impacted COVID-19 testing in the metro: The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said that its testing location in the parking lot of Teamasters Local #955, at 4501 Emanuel Cleaver II Boulevard, is closed Saturday.

Just before 2 p.m., a crash involving a semi-truck blocked all lanes of northbound Interstate 35 at the intersection of Missouri Route 152 in Clay County, the Missouri State Highway Patrol announced.

Earlier in the day, around 8:45 a.m., highway patrol said more crashes and slide offs were reported, including a semi-truck that jack-knifed on Interstate 49 in Cass County. The northbound lanes were closed at 291 Highway for about 40 minutes.

Snow will continue coming down until the early afternoon and then it will start clearing up, Pesel said. It will stop snowing on the north side of the metro by late morning.

Once the storm system moves out, it will leave behind bitter cold and wind chills at or below zero degrees Sunday morning.