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Heat the Southwest; Fire Weather in the Central U.S.; Kona Low Impacting Hawaii

A rare March heat wave is ongoing with much above-normal temperatures over the Southwest U.S. through this weekend. Periods of critical fire weather will persist from the central Rockies to the central and southern Plains through the weekend as gusty winds and low relative humidity continue. A Kona low will continue to bring several rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall to Hawaii through Sunday. Read More >

Overview

The year of 2018 closed with a blast of snow, wind, and cold across northeastern WY and western SD. A strong winter storm brought heavy snowfall and blizzard-like conditions to much of the area on December 30th and 31st. Snow began across northeastern WY on the afternoon of the 30th before gradually spreading across the entire area. Rain preceded the snow across portions of western SD, providing a glaze of ice beneath accumulating snow as temperatures plummeted through the night of the 30th into the morning of the 31st. Hazardous travel conditions caused by a combination of slick roads, heavy snow, and wind gusts of 40 to 60 mph led to the closure of I-90 across portions of WY, and later, closure of both the Gillette-Campbell County Airport and Rapid City Regional Airport.

Heaviest snowfall amounts occurred across northeastern WY and portions of the northern and southern Black Hills, where 8 to nearly 14 inches of snow were reported. Blizzard conditions were observed in Rapid City and the surrounding plains and foothills for several hours on the morning of the 31st. Additionally, downtown Rapid City set a new record daily snowfall for New Year's Eve, with 2.5" of snow breaking the previous record of 2.4" in 1924.

Belle Fourche, SD
Belle Fourche, SD
Courtesy Brian J.
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