Name: High Wind in Wyoming, December 1, 2001
Start: 2001-12-01T11:51
End: 2001-12-01T18:51
Location: Wyoming

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
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Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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 UNR wrote it up.

An unusual high wind event occurred this day as strong southwesterly low-level winds combined with a strong surface pressure gradient to produce high winds. High wind events usually occur behind a cold front with strong northwest winds developing, southwest winds of this magnitude have not been noted over this area for several years.

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 Rapid City, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 1, 10:45 AM MST, 1 hour 6 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 1, 10:45 AM MST, 1 hour 6 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR WESTERN SD AND NORTHEASTERN WY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
1045 AM MST SAT DEC 1 2001

SOUTHWEST WINDS ACROSS NE WY AND PARTS OF THE HILLS HAVE BEEN
GUSTING TO ABOUT 30 MPH AND WILL CONTINUE INTO TONIGHT AS LOW LEVEL
JET STRENGTHENS ACROSS THE AREA. SLOW WARMING ACROSS W SD PLAINS
WILL LIKELY INHIBIT MIXING...ESPECIALLY TO THE N AND E OF THE HILLS.

ONLY MINOR CHANGES FOR THE UPDATE THIS MORNING. WILL BACK OFF A BIT
ON WINDS AND TEMPS ACROSS NW SD FOR TODAY. MID AND HI CLOUDS TO THE
WEST WILL BE SLOW TO MOVE EAST...SO WILL GO SUNNY ACROSS MOST OF
AREA.

.UNR...NONE.

ST

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, South Campbell

When: December 1, 11:51 AM MST to 6:51 PM MST
Where: South Campbell forecast zone
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 44.248, -105.548 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Gillette / N Campbell

When: December 1, 4:35 PM MST to 5:42 PM MST
Where: Gillette / N Campbell forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 44.248, -105.548 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Weston / Weston Except X Ne

When: December 1, 6:50 PM MST
Where: Weston / Weston Except X Ne forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 43.841, -104.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Wyoming in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Wyoming, December 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: 5275805, 5275804, 5275806.