This Day in Weather History: March 29th

On This Day In

                   Weather History

March 29th

Local and Regional Events:

March 29, 1982:

An early season Tornado briefly touched down at Swett, South Dakota (11 miles west of Martin). The tornado overturned and heavily damaged a mobile home. One person was slightly injured, and another barely escaped injury, as he left the trailer just seconds before the storm struck.

March 29, 1998:

A supercell thunderstorm produced 13 tornadoes across southern Minnesota. The strongest tornado was an F4. Two people died during this tornado event.

Tracks of 13 tornadoes caused by one supercell across southern Minnesota. The image is courtesy of the NWS in the Twin Cities.

A house blew off its foundation near Hanska, Minnesota as a result of an F4 tornado.

Local Climate Information:

Click HERE for daily climate information for Aberdeen, Mobridge, Pierre, Sisseton, and Watertown.

Click HERE for daily climate information for Sioux Falls, Huron, Mitchell, and Sioux City.

U.S.A and Global Events for March 29th:

1848: Niagara Falls eased to a trickle during the late afternoon and then became "silent" for 30 hours. Most people noticed the silence on the morning of the 30th. This is the only time in recorded history that both Falls stopped flowing. An ice jam at the neck of Lake Erie and the Niagara River entrance between Fort Erie, Ontario Canada, and Buffalo, NY, was caused by the wind, waves, and lake currents. People even ventured into the gorge, discovering relics like weapons from War of 1812. Click HERE for more information from Niagara Parks.com

1886: Rainfall amounts of 6-12 inches occurred over northwest Georgia in a 3-day period from March 29 through April 2. This caused record flooding on the Oostanaula and Etowah Rivers that merge to form the Coosa River. Floodwaters up to 11 feet deep covered portions of Broad Street in Rome with extensive record flooding. The stage height reached 40.3 feet. Flood stage is 25 feet. This record flood and another major flood in 1892 prompted the citizens of Rome to raise the town by 12 feet. This feat was accomplished by bringing in thousands of wagon loads of dirt. An official rainfall amount of 7.36 inches was recorded on this day in Atlanta. The 7.36 inches is the most Atlanta has seen in one day since record keeping began in 1878.

The Google Map above is Rome, Georgia. The Etowah River is on the right, and the Oostanaula is in the top center. These two rivers merge to form the Coosa River on the left side. The red Rome in the center of the map is also Broad Street.

Downtown Rome during the Flood of 1886. The image is from RoadsideGeorgia.com

1942: A slow-moving low-pressure system brought 11.5 inches of snow to the nation's capital on March 29, 1942. It still stands as the highest March snowfall on record in Washington, D.C. on a single calendar day. Also, Baltimore, Maryland recorded a very impressive total of 21.9 inches of snow on the same day. On the flip side, eight days later, the temperature in D.C. soared to 92 degrees on April 6, 1942, and it remains the highest temperature on record for April 6. Click HERE for a video about the weather conditions during this event from the Weather Prediction Center.

Carroll County, Northwest of Baltimore Maryland, received 33 inches of snow on Palm Sunday 1942. By the time this image of West Main Street at the intersection of Liberty Street was taken, most of the snow had been removed. The image is courtesy of the Historical Society of Carroll County.

2007: If thunder is heard, one should go to a lightning safe area. A high school athlete was struck and killed by lightning at a track meet in Carbondale, Illinois. A bolt or 2 had been seen miles away, and a distant rumble of thunder was heard before the deadly strike.

Click HERE for more This Day in Weather History from the Southeast Regional Climate Center.