12:28 a.m.

Keep those hats and gloves handy because winter is settling in to stay.

Douglas County isn’t expected to see temperatures rise above 20 degrees until next Saturday. And between now and then snow is in the forecast.

The National Weather Service described today’s temperatures as bitterly cold with a high of 17 degrees and wind around 5 mph. The nighttime low is predicted to be 5 degrees.

Up to 3 inches of snow is expected to accumulate before the snowfall ends today, and more snow is anticipated in the middle of the week.

“We aren’t going to see snow melting or going away anytime soon,” National Weather Service meteorologist John Woynick said.

The snow that began falling Saturday evening caused slick road conditions throughout Douglas County. An injury accident on the Kansas Turnpike near the East Lawrence interchange blocked traffic for about 45 minutes.

In preparation for the storm, street maintenance crews in Lawrence began working 12-hour shifts Saturday. The city urges residents to move vehicles off of the street to keep roadways clear for plow trucks.

With such cold temperatures and the possibility of blowing snow, Woynick reminded people to dress for the weather and for motorists to carry extra blankets, kitty litter to help with tire traction, and well-charged cell phones in case vehicles become stuck.

“In these kind of temperatures, it doesn’t take long to get frostbite or even hypothermia,” he said.

–Christine Metz

9:08 p.m.

Lawrence street division manager Tom Orzulak said in a media release that as snow continues to fall throughout northeast Kansas, Lawrence street crews were in the process of treating the city’s streets.

Crews have been treating streets with a mixture of salt and sand since 5:00 p.m. this evening and they will continue to treat roads throughout the night.

6 p.m.

As more accidents are reported on city streets around Lawrence, one accident has been cleared.

Crews reopened the Kansas Turnpike to eastbound traffic after a rollover accident just west of milepost 204, the East Lawrence interchange.

City crews are out and working 12-hour shifts to treat roads as snow continues to accumulates.

Counties south of Douglas County are under a winter weather advisory, but for the moment Douglas County and points north, east and west are not under any severe weather warnings.

5:30 p.m.

As snow falls across Lawrence, emergency crews were responding to a rollover accident on the Kansas Turnpike.

According to an alert put out by the Kansas Turnpike, eastbound traffic is blocked just west of the East Lawrence interchange, or milepost 204.

There was no immediate word as to the severity of the accident.

2:08 p.m.

City street maintenance crews started work Saturday in anticipation of snow showers that could last until late Sunday.

Weather reports stated Lawrence could receive snow showers and some accumulation Saturday and Sunday, with the heaviest snowfall coming overnight Saturday. The city asks residents to move vehicles off of the street, if possible, to allow plow trucks room to operate.

According to the National Weather Service, Lawrence could see anywhere from one to three inches of accumulation overnight tonight, followed by a 50 percent chance of snow Sunday.

City snow removal crews will follow their policy of clearing major streets first, followed by residential and smaller streets.