Severe Thunderstorms and Heavy Rain in the Central Plains and Midwest; Heat Pushes into the South and East

Scattered severe thunderstorms capable of large hail in excess of two inches, strong tornadoes, and damaging wind gusts are likely across parts of the Upper Mississippi Valley and Midwest this evening. Heavy to excessive rainfall may bring a flooding threat to portions of the Central Plains to the Midwest through Thursday. The heatwave in the Central U.S. will begin to push South and East Thursday Read More >

Overview

Unlike many past major snowstorms across western and north central Nebraska, a deep upper low was not present in the central United States on March 7, 2024. Instead, a slow moving area of weak upper low pressure pushed eastward across the central Plains through the day. Anomalously high atmospheric moisture was in place for this time of year, along with a narrow corridor of converging winds aloft. This, along with the environment being moderately unstable, led to enhanced lift and a snow band developed in this narrow corridor around 3 PM CST in southwest Nebraska. The band lifted northward through the evening, reaching North Platte and stretching northeastward into Custer County. The band remained nearly stationary for almost 6 hours, with snowfall rates of 2-3" per hour observed. A daily snowfall of 15.3" (with 14.6" falling in the 6 hour period the band was stalled) occurred on March 7th in North Platte, setting a new all time single day snowfall record. A total of 15-18" of snow fell across the North Platte area and points north and east into Custer County, prompting numerous road closures.

I-80 & I-76 Junction on March 7th

Source: Nebraska 511

Photos
Radar
Snow Map
Environment

Photos


North Platte Airport source: Caleb Brown	east North Platte source: Caleb Brown	south of North Platte source: Darren Snively	south of North Platte source: Darren Snively