Heavy Snow in Southwest and South Central North Dakota, March 5, 2023

A band of heavy snow fell across portions of southwest and south central North Dakota on Sunday, March 5, 2023. Snow developed early in the morning across the far west and south central, with conditions quickly deteriorating under moderate to heavy snow. A band of heavy snow slowly moved north along the Interstate 94 corridor, impacting generally the Dickinson to Bismarck area. Dry air limited the northward extend of snow, with much lower amounts from the Hazen to Jamestown area, and lesser amounts north of that. 

What was interesting about this event is how the placement of the band led to a wide range of snow totals across the Bismarck/Mandan area. Almost a foot of snow fell in the area from South Mandan to the University of Mary, while areas north of 1804 in Bismarck only received a few inches of snow.

This storm put Bismarck's seasonal total snow up to 82.1", which is the 7th most all time. Jamestown's seasonal snow total is also up to 7th most all time, at 63.5", and Dickinson's seasonal snow total of 68.2" is 4th highest on record.