Winter Storm, Traverse
- When
- April 22, 5:00 AM CST to April 23, 8:00 AM CST
- Where
- Traverse forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 45.772, -96.472 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm in Minnesota, April 22 to 23, 2001
Heavy snow of 6 to 12 inches fell across Big Stone and Traverse counties. Along with the heavy snow came some freezing rain and heavy icing across parts of Big Stone county.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS ABR wrote it up.
Heavy snow of 6 to 12 inches fell across Big Stone and Traverse counties. Along with the heavy snow came some freezing rain and heavy icing across parts of Big Stone county. As a result of the heavy snow and icing, significant travel problems occurred on the 22nd and 23rd across Big Stone and Traverse counties. Also, schools on the 23rd were either delayed or closed. Some snowfall amounts included, 10 inches at Wheaton and 12 inches at Browns Valley.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Aberdeen, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 22, 3:05 AM CST, 1 hour 55 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Apr 22, 3:05 AM CST, 1 hour 55 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR CENTRAL/NORTHCENTRAL AND NORTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD 1345 AM CDT SUN APR 22 2001 DIFFICULT FORECAST DUE TO AMOUNT OF PRECIP POTENTIAL AND TYPE/CHANGE OVER. NO REAL GROSS DIFFERENCES IN AVN/ETA...BUT SUBTLE DISAGREEMENT WITH SNOW AMOUNTS AND AXIS OF HEAVY RAIN. IMPRESSIVE SURFACE LOW MOVES JUST SOUTHEAST OF CWA THROUGH EARLY PERIODS. TAKE YOUR PICK...QG DYNAMICS...ISENTROPIC LIFT...POTENTIAL VORTICITY DYNAMICS...ALL POINT TO THE IMPRESSIVE UVV ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM. COPIOUS MOISTURE AVAILABLE. SOME CONVECTION COULD BREAK OUT IN ELEVATED LAYERS ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN CWA THIS MORNING. I AM ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT FREEZING RAIN CHANCES IN THE EXTREME EASTERN CWA. SURFACE TEMPS BLO 0C...AND LOTS OF MOISTURE INBOUND. ETA PRECIP TYPE...BUFR SOUNDINGS...AND LAPS SOUNDINGS ALL POINT TO FREEZING PRECIP. WITH AMOUNT OF MOISTURE...IT COULD BE SIGNIFICANT...SAVE FOR GROUND TEMPS AOA 37F. WILL MENTION IN ZONES...BUT WILL HOLD OFF ON ADVISORY. DUE TO THE PRETTY GOOD BET FOR 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAIN HERE...WILL ISSUE ESF TO FOREWARN. NOW FOR THE SNOW OUT WEST. EARLY SHOT THIS MORNING WITH A SMALL BREAK LATE MORNING BEFORE IT PICKS UP IN EARNEST THIS AFTERNOON WEST RIVER. SOME MORNING CONVECTION COULD ALSO SNEAK IN BEFORE WE GET REALLY STARTED THIS AFTERNOON. 10 INCH AMOUNTS NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION...BUT WARM GROUND WILL BE SAVING FACTOR. STILL WITH 30 MPH WINDS...AND MDT TO HEAVY SNOW...WILL GO WINTER STORM WARNING FOR SOUTHWEST COUNTIES...AND THIS MATCHES WELL WITH UNR/FSD. WILL SURROUND WARNING AREA WITH SNOW ADVISORY. MIGHT NOT ACTUALLY GET ACCUMULATIONS MEETING ADVISORY BECAUSE OF WARM GROUND...BUT THOUGHT PRUDENT TO MENTION SNOW INSTEAD OF WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY. WILL ALSO PUT UP WINTER STORM WATCH EAST CENTRAL CWA. BOTH ETA AND AVN GIVE CLOSE TO OR ABOVE WARNING SNOW AMOUNTS. ETA/RSM ENSEMBLES ALSO AGREE ON SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF PRECIP. WITH SURFACE TEMPS ALREADY MUCH LOWER THAN MODELS INDICATED...REMOVED A LOT OF THE RAIN CHANGING TO SNOW AND MIXED WORDING. .ABR...WINTER STORM WARNING FAR SOUTHWEST TODAY. SNOW ADVISORY NORTHWEST AND WESTERN CWA TODAY. WINTER STORM WATCH CENTRAL AND NORTHCENTRAL CWA TONIGHT. HARDING
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Storm, Big Stone
- When
- April 22, 5:00 AM CST to April 23, 8:00 AM CST
- Where
- Big Stone forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 45.426, -96.411 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Winter Storm
- A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flooding in Minnesota, April 22 to 23, 2001
- Ice Storm in Minnesota, April 22 to 23, 2001
- Tornado in Nebraska, April 22, 2001
- Lightning Strike in Nebraska, April 22, 2001
- Tornado and Hail in Texas, April 22 to 23, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, April 22, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, April 22, 2001
- Lightning Strike in South Dakota, April 22, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, April 22, 2001
- Winter Storm in South Dakota, April 22 to 23, 2001
- High Wind in Texas, April 22, 2001
- Winter Storm in South Dakota, April 22 to 23, 2001
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, April 2001
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5243752, 5243753.