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Tuesday, February 4, 2014
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From blizzards and snow showers to freezing rain and sleet, the weather impact that winter storms bring can be both beautiful and deadly - The Weather Channel
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 ENews SourceUnified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas
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Special Winter Advisory Edition
The Unified Government Public Works Department prepares year-round to ensure that
residents are safe from snow, ice  and extreme cold. Help us by looking out for your neighbors, particularly the elderly and disabled. Follow the rules and guidelines on snow removal, parking and cold weather safety. Thank you for being patient as crews work in tough conditions to clear roads, ease traffic and collect trash and recycling.
Call us anytime if you have any questions or are in need to report a non-emergency snow or ice concern, please use the city's online reporting system at snowcomplaints@wycokck.org or call 573-8307.
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UG Offices Close Early
The Unified Government Offices will be closing at noon today due to the severe winter storm that has hit the greater Kansas City area today.
Please stay tuned to your local news for reports and updates related to the status of potential closings or delayed openings of UG offices on Wednesday.
If you have any questions or concerns related to the storm, please call the county's 3-1-1 Call Center (913-573-5311) for additional information.
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KCK Crews Prepared for Winter Blast
6-10 Inches of Snow Forecast
The National Weather Service has announced a Winter Storm Warning for the greater Kansas City area beginning Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 6 a.m. through Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 9 a.m., with heaviest snowfall between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Tuesday. The storm is expected to bring 6-10 inches of snow, along with east/northeast winds between 10-25 miles per hour, which may create whiteout conditions.
The Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Ks. urges residents to take precautions during this snow event and avoid driving in these hazardous conditions. In an effort to expedite snow removal, residents are advised that parking cars off-street during snow plow operations greatly enhances the ability of snow plows to remove snow, especially in cul-de-sacs and dead end streets.
Also, following these tips can help ensure your safety:
- Stay back at least 50' from the rear of a plow truck so the driver can see you. If you cannot see the motorist's mirrors, the driver cannot see you.
- Park your vehicles in your driveway whenever possible.
- Don't allow your vehicles to hang out into the street.
- Avoid passing or driving beside plow trucks. Some trucks are capable of plowing multiple lanes at one time.
- Avoid placing snow from your driveway back into the street. Less snow will be pushed into your driveway by passing plows.
- Remove portable basketball goals and any other structures from the street. This will enable snow plows to reach the curb and eliminate possible damage to the truck or portable structures.
- Maintain trimmed tree branches along the street.
- Property owners are responsible for maintenance of the sidewalks adjacent to their property. We ask that both business and residential owners maintain their sidewalks for safe pedestrian travel.
The Unified Government Public Works Department is responsible for the maintenance and snow removal for approximately 1,700 center lane miles of roadway. To keep traffic moving throughout the City during a winter weather event, the snow plan prioritizes plowing into three types of snow routes: Hot routes, secondary routes and residential routes.
Crews will plow and treat primary "hot" routes and continue with collector "secondary" routes to allow residents the safest passage to work, school or other destinations. Once these streets have been completed then crews will begin plowing and treating neighborhood routes. Depending on severity and timing of the storms, it may be necessary for crews to address the "hot" and "secondary" routes more than once before beginning neighborhoods.
Emergency Management is activated and personnel representing key City and County departments, as well as BPU, are working together to monitor the event and coordinate activities among departments providing snow and ice removal and emergency responders from the Police and Fire departments.
Residents wanting to report slick spots or missed streets to the City's 311 Call Center should wait until the next business day after snow has stopped falling. While crews are running assigned snow routes, it is assumed that all streets are slick. To report a non-emergency snow or ice concern, please use the city's online reporting system at snowcomplaints@wycokck.org or call 573-8307. Call 911 if you have police, fire or medical emergency. Requests for emergency snow and ice removal will be directed by emergency service personnel.
For media inquiries about the City's snow removal, please contact the Public Information Office at 913-573-5544 (office) or 913-217-5829 (cell).
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More Closures and Cancellations
Wyandotte County District Court
The Wyandotte County District Court and all District Court Offices are closed today, Tuesday, February 4th.
Kansas City, Kansas Municipal Court
Municipal Court will close at noon today. Any hearings scheduled today for tickets or fines will be taken next Tuesday, February 11, 2014.
Board of Public Utilities
The BPU will be closing their business offices at 1:00 p.m. this afternoon.
United Way at Culvers
The LIVE UNITED NIGHT event scheduled today, February 4th at Culvers as been rescheduled.
The fundraiser to benefit the United Way of Wyandotte County as part of the Unified Government's 2014 Workplace Campaign will be held on Tuesday, March 25, 2014 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
So make sure you mark your calendar and plan to join us and LIVE UNITED NIGHT at Culvers. Contact Cathy Spicer at 913-573-8443 or cspicer@wycokck.org or Kimberley Holm at 913-573-2896 or kholm@wycosheriff.org.
Metropolitan Ave. Public Meeting
Due to the potential of a severe winter storm forecast for the metro-area, the public meeting scheduled today, February 4th, 2014 regarding intersection improvements at Metropolitan Ave. and 24th St. has been rescheduled.
The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 11th, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. at the South Branch Library located at 3104 Strong Ave, Kansas City, KS.
Please contact the Lideana Laboy at 913-573-5771 if you have any questions relating to this meeting.
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Trash and Recycling Collection
In preparation for the winter weather, Deffenbaugh ran normal routes earlier today than usual in the Kansas City  metro. Trash pick-up began an hour early at 6:00 a.m. instead of the regular time at 7:00 a.m.
Deffenbaugh is making every effort to service as many customers as possible before the road conditions become too hazardous. If Deffenbaugh is unable to complete some of the routes today, attempts to collect residential customers will be made the following day on Wednesday, February 5th. Drivers will be taking it slow and putting safety first.
The Unified Government and Deffenbaugh appreciate your patience and understanding during these unpredictable weather conditions.
For all residential customer service questions, please call 800-631-3301 during our normal office hours, Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
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Public Transit Service
The KCATA and UG Transit have been operating on a regular bus schedule and no weather delays have been reported. 
However, delays can be expected and buses may have to take alternate routes if conditions worsen due to the major winter storm forecast to blanket the area today.
The KCATA has a list of common problem spots on their website during inclement weather. For updates on bus service or to find out whether snow reroutes are in effect visit:
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BPU Electrical Outage Advisory
The Board of Public Utilities line crews brace for the powerful winter storm forecast to hit the Kansas City metro area. BPU line crews are ready to respond to outages that may result from the storm, which is expected to produce heavy snow and high winds. The winter storm is expected to hit Tuesday through Wednesday morning with another possible storm Friday and Saturday.
Customers, who experience an electrical outage, are reminded to call the electric outage hotline number directly at 913-573-9522 or online at www.bpu.com or via our Facebook page.
BPU's web site features a "live" real-time electrical outage map that covers the utility's entire service area. Customers and news media can see if an outage has been reported in their area, a summary of affected/restored customers, as well as the number of outage calls reported. To see this map, click on the "report outage" button on our home page and the outage map is located on the next page. We will also be sharing information on our social media sites.
For additional information, news media are asked to contact the BPU Chief Communications Officer, David Mehlhaff on his cell at 913-231-9399.
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Be Prepared: Severe Winter Weather
Winter storms also can be deceiving. Even a small amount of precipitation can cause problems, especially in areas where snow is an unusual occurrence. Many fatalities from car accidents occur as a result of slippery roads. And downed trees and power outages can be caused by ice storms or heavy, wet snow.
Watches and Warnings
When winter storms are approaching, play special attention to these weather alerts:
Winter weather advisory - issued when a significant winter storm or hazardous winter weather is occurring, imminent, and is an inconvenience.
Winter storm warning - issued when a significant winter storm or hazardous winter weather is occurring, imminent, or likely and is a threat to life and property.
Heavy snow warning - issued if significant snowfall is expected; criteria vary depending on location
Blizzard warning - when winds that are at least 35 mph or greater, blowing snow that will frequently reduce visibility to a quarter-mile or less for at least three hours, and dangerous wind chills are expected in the warning area.
Wind chill index - the calculation of temperature that takes into consideration the effects of wind and temperature on the human body. (This is not the actual air temperature.)
Be WeatherReady
Learn more about protecting your home and family before a winter storm occurs and avoiding hazards after a winter storm.
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22nd Annual Black History Banquet
Dr. Mildred Edwards, Executive Director, Kansas African American Affairs Commission, will be the guest speaker. This  year's theme, "African Americans; loving yourself in an era of diversity."
The event will be held on Saturday, February 8, 2014 from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm at the Jack Reardon Convention Center located at 500 Minnesota Ave. in Kansas City, Kansas. Tickets are $40.00 per person or $320.00 for a table of 8. A portion of the ticket purchase goes to the funding of scholarships presented to local college institutions to support and enhance student academic achievement.
The annual event will be hosted by KCK's own local comedian,
B-Rich. The program also includes special live music performances by the Leon Brady Percussion Academy, the soulful and electrifying soulful music group Karma and gospel selections by the talented Tifani Portley.
We invite you to join us for this Black History Month celebration and support our local college students through your ticket purchase. To purchase a ticket please contact Jerilene Lewis at 913-573-5506 or email at jlewis@wycokck.org.
B-Rich Leon Brady
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Road Closures
Based on information provided by both the UG's Public Works Department and the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT), we are able to provide motorist living in Wyandotte County an update on road and highway projects.
This information can be useful to prepare individuals, commuting to and from work, with early warnings on minor delays. This also encourages motorists to use alternate routes due to land and ramp closures.
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Kansans Urged to be Prepared
With a major winter storm system forecast to hit the state today, state officials are urging all Kansans to make sure they are prepared.
"This storm is looking to be the largest winter storm we have had in 2014," said Governor Sam Brownback. "Although the storm will hit most of the state, the most affected areas will be the northeast, north central and south central regions. We urge motorists to be prepared for snowy road conditions and limited visibility due to blowing snow."
"Our State Emergency Operations Center is ready to activate at a moment's notice to assist local authorities should they need our help," said Maj. Gen. Lee Tafanelli, the adjutant general and director of the Kansas Division of Emergency Management. "We ask Kansans to make sure your home emergency kit is stocked with enough water and nonperishable food for everyone in the household for a minimum of three days. Have a safe alternate heat source, blankets, flashlights and batteries, a battery-operated weather radio, medications and other essentials to remain safely at home."
"We advise postponing travel plans, if possible, however, if you must be on the road, make sure your vehicle's emergency kit is stocked, your gas tank is full and your cell phone and charger are with you and someone knows your travel plans," said Col. Ernest Garcia, Kansas Highway Patrol superintendent. "Also, be mindful of all emergency response personnel out on Kansas roadways and give them space to do their jobs to ensure their safety and that of our citizens."
"If you must travel, please give the snow plows plenty of room to do their work," said Mike King, secretary of Kansas Department of Transportation. "Plowing snow can be dangerous work and fewer vehicles on the road make it easier and safer for the plow operators to do their jobs."
Snowfall amounts expected:
Currently, much of the state is under a winter weather watch, advisory, or warning for snow and blowing snow, making travel difficult.
Most snowfall will occur late tonight through early tomorrow morning in the western portion of the state; and between 4 a.m. and 6 p.m. in the central and eastern portion of the state.
Current snowfall forecasts are:
- Northwest Kansas - three to six inches; six to eight inches in Greeley County Monday night through Tuesday morning
- Southwest Kansas - three to six inches, with the heaviest amounts near the Colorado border Monday night through mid-day Tuesday
- North Central Kansas - approximately seven inches Monday night through Tuesday
- South Central Kansas - six to nine inches; three to six inches in southeast portion of the region Monday night through Tuesday
- Northeast Kansas - four to nine inches Monday night through Wednesday morning
- Southeast Kansas - four to six inches Tuesday morning through Tuesday evening
- KC Metro - six to eight inches early Tuesday through Wednesday morning
Information on making a home or vehicle emergency kit can be found online at http://www.ksready.gov/default.asp?PageID=3&Tab=3 or http://www.ready.gov/build-a-kit.
Outdoor pets are especially vulnerable to bitter cold and extreme wind chills. Bring outdoor pets inside if possible or ensure that they have a draft-free enclosure with straw type bedding that is large enough to sit and lie down, but small enough to hold their body heat if they must remain outside. Always make sure that your pets have access to food and non-frozen water.
For additional pet safety information, go to www.redcross.org.
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Winter Driving Tips from Kansas Highway Patrol
If you must travel in the upcoming winter storm, the Kansas Highway Patrol offers the following tips to prepare your vehicle: Check the fluids, ensuring that the radiator is winterized, the gas tank is over half-full, and there is plenty of windshield washing fluid. Check belts, hoses, and brake systems for excessive wear. Have the exhaust system checked; small leaks can allow carbon monoxide to enter the passenger compartment. Check tire treads for adequate traction, and replace windshield wiper blades if they are ineffective.
Keep an emergency kit that includes at least the following:
- An ice scraper and shovel
- Jumper cables
- Flashlights
- Sand or kitty litter for traction
- Extra blankets or clothing
- Non-perishable food
- A first aid kit
- Matches and candles or flares
- Tow rope or chain
- On the road, remember the following:
- o Allow extra time for delays and slower traffic speeds.
- o Buckle up and properly secure children in safety seats.
- o Increase the distance between your vehicle and the vehicle ahead of you. Ice and snow significantly increase your stopping distance.
- o Accelerate and brake gently. A light foot on the gas is less likely to make wheels spin on ice and snow. Braking is best accomplished by pumping the pedal. If your vehicle has an anti-lock braking system, it is very important that you understand how to use it. Read the owner's manual or check with a dealership for more information, and practice using it correctly.
- o Make turns slowly and gradually, especially in heavily traveled areas (e.g. intersections that may be icy from snow that melted and refroze).
- o Visibility is very important. You must be able to see out, and other drivers must be able to see your vehicle. Clean frost and snow off all windows, mirrors, and lights. Use headlights as necessary.
If your car loses traction and begins to slide, steer into the swerve, or in the direction you want to go. Anticipate a second skid in the opposite direction as the car straightens out.
If you are stranded in a winter storm, do not panic. Stay in the vehicle, keep fresh air circulating through a downwind window, run the motor sparingly, turn on the dome light, and stimulate circulation and stay awake by moving arms and legs. If you leave the car, walk slowly in the snow to avoid over-exertion and the risk of a heart attack. If you have a cell phone, call a Kansas Highway Patrol by dialing *HP (47), or *KTA (582) while on the Kansas Turnpike.
Road Conditions Available from the Kansas Department of Transportation
Road conditions are available through the Kansas Department of Transportation. Check conditions and view road conditions before travel by going to www.kandrive.org or on a mobile device, go to http://511mm.ksdot.org. You may also call 5-1-1 from any phone.
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Daily Lane Closure 
Remember, you can always go to the KDOT website for up to the minute road closures and traffic information. |
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Board of Commissioners
Commission Meeting
on Thursday,
February 6, at 7:00 pm
Commission Chambers
Planning and Zoning
on Thursday,
February 27, 7:00 pm
Commission Chambers
Agendas and Minutes
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| Trash Collection Schedule |
List of the holidays where residential
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Improving the Quality
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Kansas City, Kansas |
The Code Enforcement Division of the UG brings you this message monthly to encourage voluntary citizen compliance to reduce blight and beautify the appearance of our city.
Please click on the target to access information on the Code Enforcement for the month. You may contact Code Enforcement.
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