Harsh weather prompts State of Disaster Emergency in Kansas

A State of Disaster Emergency has been issued in Kansas due to wind chill warnings and stress on utility and natural gas providers in the region.

Kansas residents have been asked to conserve energy as utility companies began imposing rolling power outages in response to exploding frigid temperatures and wind chills.

The declaration authorizes the use of state resources and personnel to assist with response and recovery operations in affected counties that meet certain criteria.

“As the extreme cold temperatures continue to affect the region, we are urging Kansans to conserve energy in order to help ensure a continued supply of natural gas and electricity and keep their own personal costs down,” Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said.

Southwest Power Pool Inc., which oversees power distribution across several states including Kansas and Missouri, announced Monday it had exhausted its available reserve energy and directed its member utilities to implement controlled outages to prevent uncontrolled ones.

French said the commission would investigate what caused the blackouts in the coming months.

French and Gov. Laura Kelly urged residents to cut back on electricity use over the next 24 to 72 hours to prevent supply problems and reduce higher gas and electric bills.

Kelly declared the state of disaster for Kansas on Sunday as frigid temperatures and life-threatening wind chills continued.

Wind chills dropped as low as minus 30 F in some areas overnight Sunday, and temperatures will struggle to be above zero, according to The National Weather Service.