SHAWNEE, Kan – Spending Christmas Eve with family was easier said that done on Thursday night. A holiday blizzard warning put some festivities on hold, and Christmas Day should prove to be even more challenging.
Before the wind started howling and snow began falling in the metro area, some drivers tried to beat the storm to spend time with friends and family.
Marc Wendling had planned to spend his Christmas Eve in Wichita. On Thursday morning, he hit the road with two friends, but said he literally drove into a wall of ice.
Southbound I-35 turned into a sheet of ice near Emporia, caking the windows and lights of Wendling’s car. He said speeds slowed to 15 miles per hour as other drivers flipped on their emergency flashers.
“The wind picked up and literally was pulling the car left and right and I felt like I had no more control of the car,” said Wendling, who decided with his friends it would be safest to turn around. “I had both hands gripped on the wheel. The car was kind of quiet so we were just happy to get home safe.”
Wendling spent an unanticipated evening alone at his Shawnee apartment watching movies. He will hit the road again next weekend to celebrate a belated Christmas in Wichita, and hopes the weather will cooperate.
