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Extreme Heat and Tropical Storm Bertha Impacts

Dangerous heat will expand from the Gulf Coast into the Southern Plains and Desert Southwest through week's end. Additional extreme heat impacting the Pacific Northwest will shift to the northern Plains by the weekend. Tropical Storm Bertha is expected to continue to impact portions of the northwestern Gulf Coast from south central Louisiana to the upper Texas coast today. Read More >

Overview

On Wednesday, December 15, 2021, a potent weather system crossed the northern plains. In our area, this resulted in some very strong northwesterly winds behind the cold front. The strongest wind gust was 79 mph at Wasta. These damaging winds caused numerous high-profile vehicles to be blown over, including a house that was being moved. Bands of snow accompanied the wind, which caused blowing snow and reduced visibility at times. A more significant band over south central SD resulted in the issuance of our first and second ever Snow Squall Warnings, where the high winds combined with falling snow to produce hazardous conditions. This was part of the same weather system that produced severe thunderstorms and tornadoes across portions of Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota. Image
Hazardous conditions that prompted our first Snow Squall Warnings.
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