Editor’s note: This story was updated to add that Briarwood Elementary in Prairie Village is closed for the day Wednesday.
Johnson County schools will start late Wednesday morning as the worst effects of an overnight winter storm move out of the Kansas City area.
The region was pummeled with gale-force winds starting late Tuesday, and forecasters say the high winds are expected to continue throughout the day Wednesday.
The National Weather Service’s Kansas City field office in Pleasant Hill, Missouri, reported up to 2 inches of snow had fallen by early Wednesday morning, though final measurements were forthcoming with light snow expected through at least 9 a.m.
In the Shawnee Mission School District, Briarwood Elementary in Prairie Village was without power before dawn Wednesday. School officials said a crew from utility Evergy was on site trying to restore power. The school is closed for the day.
Johnson County’s biggest public school districts, including Blue Valley, Olathe, Shawnee Mission, and USD 232 in De Soto, all announced two-hour delayed starts Wednesday. This means most students wouldn’t be going to school until around 10 a.m.
As of 6:30 a.m., Evergy’s online outage map reported about 3,800 Johnson County customers without power, with more than 1,000 of those in Overland Park, roughly 900 in Olathe and another 400 in Prairie Village.
The National Weather Service downgraded a blizzard warning to a winter weather advisory Wednesday morning, which will stay in effect until 9 a.m.
Melissa Kreller, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said a high wind warning is also in effect until 6 p.m. Wednesday. She said they still expect sustained winds of 35 to 40 mph throughout the day Wednesday, with gusts of up to 50 mph still possible.
Wind gusts overnight in Johnson County topped 60 mph in some areas.
Here’s a look at some of our highest measured wind gusts overnight:
Jarbolo: 70 mph
St. Joseph: 66 mph
Pleasant Hill: 65 mph
Olathe/Gardner: 63 mph
Kansas City International: 62 mph
Cameron: 58 mph
Lee’s Summit: 53 mph
Kirksville: 53 mph
Chillicothe: 52 mph— NWS Kansas City (@NWSKansasCity) March 5, 2025
The Kansas Department of Transportation’s online KanDrive road map showed most area highways partially covered with snow.
Johnson County announced earlier this morning that the county’s Paratransit and Micro Transit services will begin at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. Trips before 9 a.m. have been canceled, while fixed-route service is planned to run at this time with delays expected.
A stretch of Interstate 435 from State Line Road in Leawood to Nall Avenue in Overland Park was shut down early Wednesday after a truck reportedly snagged a low-hanging power line, bringing down several utility poles.
Multiple crashes on both sides of the highway resulted from the downed power line. By 3:30 a.m., Johnson County Med-Act ambulances had transported one person to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries from one of the crashes.
By 5:30 a.m., the westbound lanes of I-435 were back open. Overland Park Police officials said they expected closures on the eastbound side to last through at least 6 a.m.
In Overland Park, fire crews responded to a house fire that started after a power line came down in the backyard of a single-family home.
Fire officials said an elderly woman who lives at the home was awoken by her fire alarm just after midnight and was able to get out of the house with no injuries.
