Winter Storm in Nebraska, March 20 to 21, 2006

Name: Winter Storm in Nebraska, March 20 to 21, 2006
Start: 2006-03-20T03:00
End: 2006-03-21T03:00
Location: Nebraska

March 20 to 21, 2006 · NWS GID · 11 events in 11 counties and zones

11 winter storm, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 11 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $1.6 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 11

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 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 Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 19, 9:28 PM CST, 5 hours 32 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 19, 9:28 PM CST, 5 hours 32 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
928 PM CST SUN MAR 19 2006

.DISCUSSION...SOME LOCATIONS HAVE ALREADY RECEIVED IN EXCESS OF 8
INCHES THROUGH THIS EVENING...ESPECIALLY CENTRAL AND NORTH
LOCATIONS IN THE CWA. WITH THIS IN MIND...AND THE FACT THAT
HEAVIER AMOUNTS OF OVER A FOOT ARE LIKELY IN THE SOUTH MONDAY AND
MONDAY NIGHT...I SAW THE NEED TO BUMP UP SNOW TOTALS TO 2 FEET
ON THE HIGH END. BECAUSE OF THIS...ONE TO TWO FEET SEEMS
REASONABLE FOR STORM TOTALS AT THIS JUNCTURE. WITH VISIBILITIES
IN MANY LOCATIONS ALREADY BAD...STRESSED THE LOW VISIBILITIES AS
WELL. HEAVIEST SNOW SEEMS TO BE DELAYED AND PROBABLY WILL NOT
ARRIVE UNTIL ABOUT 3 AM OR SO FOR THE MOST PART. STILL EXPECT
PRECIPITATION TO INCREASE UNDER DIFFLUENT UPPER LEVEL. LARGE SCALE
LIFT IS INCREASING. THIS IS A VERY STRONG LOW MOVING INTO THE
CENTRAL PLAINS AND IT CONTINUES TO LOOK LIKE IT MEANS BUSINESS.

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... (ISSUED 226 PM CST SUN MAR 19 2006)

SHORT TERM...MAIN PROBLEM IS SNOWFALL AMOUNTS. KUEX WSR-88D
CONTINUES TO SHOW SNOW ACROSS THE NORTHEAST PORTION OF THE
FORECAST AREA WITH MORE RAIN SHOWERS DEVELOPING SOUTHWEST OF THE
FORECAST AREA. THERE WAS A BIT OF A BREAK IN THE SOUTHWEST PORTION
OF THE CWA...HOWEVER THINK THAT PRECIPITATION WILL AGAIN RAPIDLY
SPREAD NORTH TONIGHT AS MORE WAVES LIFT NORTH IN ADVANCE OF THE
MAIN UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM. THE UPPER LOW THEN TRACKS ACROSS KANSAS
LATE TONIGHT AND MONDAY. CROSS SECTIONS ACROSS THE AREA SHOW
STRONG MODEL GENERATED VERTICAL MOTION...ALONG WITH STRONG MID-
LEVEL FRONTOGENETIC FORCING AND MID-LEVEL INSTABILITY. AGAIN THE
BOTTOM LINE TO THIS IS THAT QPF WILL BE PLENTIFUL AND MUCH OF THAT
WILL FALL IN THE FORM OF SNOW. WILL CONTINUE TO CARRY A MIX IN THE
FAR SOUTH UNTIL THE FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE THE COLDER AIR
ARRIVES AND SWITCHES THE ENTIRE AREA TO SNOW LATER TONIGHT. WHEN IT
COMES TO AMOUNTS...ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS AROUND A FOOT APPEAR
LIKELY...ESPECIALLY IN THE SOUTH...WHICH WILL TAKE MANY LOCATIONS
INTO THE 12 TO 18 INCH RANGE.

LONG TERM...00Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. MAIN CONCERNS CONTINUE TO
BE CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION FOR WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY AND
TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE PERIOD.

ANOTHER SHORT WAVE MOVES INTO THE FORECAST AREA ON WEDNESDAY. THIS
WILL SET OFF ANOTHER ROUND OF PRECIPITATION FOR WEDNESDAY THROUGH
THURSDAY MORNING. EXPECT THAT THIS SHOULD BE MOSTLY SNOW WITH THE
EXCEPTION OF PARTS OF THE KANSAS COUNTIES. THIS AREA COULD SEE SOME
RAIN AND SNOW MIX...ESPECIALLY DURING THE DAY.

ONCE THIS SYSTEM MOVES THROUGH AN UPPER RIDGE BUILDS TO THE WEST AND
SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE IS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA LATE IN THE WEEK.
THE UPPER RIDGE MOVES INTO THE PLAINS OVER THE WEEKEND.

HAVE SHAVED A COUPLE OF DEGREES FROM TEMPERATURES MOST PERIODS. WITH
SNOW FROM LAST NIGHT AND MORE EXPECTED TONIGHT THERE WILL BE COOLER
TEMPERATURES. EXPECT THAT THERE WILL BE WARMER TEMPERATURE BY NEXT
WEEKEND...BUT THAT THE MODELS ARE TOO WARM CONSIDERING THE
SIGNIFICANT SNOW ON THE GROUND.

&&

.GID WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NE...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 AM CST TUESDAY FOR NEZ039-NEZ040-
     NEZ041-NEZ046-NEZ047-NEZ048-NEZ049-NEZ060-NEZ061-NEZ062-
     NEZ063-NEZ064-NEZ072-NEZ073-NEZ074-NEZ075-NEZ076-NEZ077-
     NEZ082-NEZ083-NEZ084-NEZ085-NEZ086-NEZ087.

KS...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 AM CST TUESDAY FOR KSZ005-KSZ006-
     KSZ007-KSZ017-KSZ018-KSZ019.

&&

HEINLEIN

Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 19, 9:06 PM CST, 5 hours 54 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
906 PM CST SUN MAR 19 2006

KSZ005>007-017>019-NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087-
201200-
PHILLIPS-SMITH-JEWELL-ROOKS-OSBORNE-MITCHELL-VALLEY-GREELEY-NANCE-
SHERMAN-HOWARD-MERRICK-POLK-DAWSON-BUFFALO-HALL-HAMILTON-YORK-
GOSPER-PHELPS-KEARNEY-ADAMS-CLAY-FILLMORE-FURNAS-HARLAN-FRANKLIN-
WEBSTER-NUCKOLLS-THAYER-
906 PM CST SUN MAR 19 2006

...EXTREMELY DANGEROUS WINTER STORM THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND
PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW IS EXPECTED LATE TONIGHT. EXPECT UP TO 6
INCHES OF SNOW.

IN ADDITION TO THE HEAVY SNOW...STRONG EAST TO NORTHEAST WINDS
WILL CREATE AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW LATE TONIGHT AND
WILL PRODUCE TERRIBLY LOW VISIBILITIES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

12 TO 18 INCHES OF SNOW IS EXPECTED DURING THE DAY ON MONDAY AND
WILL TAPER OFF MONDAY NIGHT. ONE TO TWO FEET OF STORM TOTAL SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT ARE EXPECTED.

IN ADDITION TO THE HEAVY SNOW...STRONG EAST TO NORTHEAST WINDS
WILL CREATE AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW MONDAY AND MONDAY
NIGHT AND WILL PRODUCE TERRIBLY LOW VISIBILITIES DURING THIS TIME
PERIOD.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT.

&&

MORE INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED AT THE FOLLOWING WEB PAGE:
   HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/HASTINGS  (ALL LOWERCASE)

HEINLEIN

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

11 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Adams

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Adams forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.525, -98.501 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Buffalo

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Buffalo forecast zone
Property damage: $200,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.855, -99.075 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Clay

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.524, -98.051 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Dawson

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Dawson forecast zone
Property damage: $150,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.870, -99.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Fillmore

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Fillmore forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.525, -97.596 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Gosper

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Gosper forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.515, -99.831 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Hall

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Hall forecast zone
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.873, -98.502 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Hamilton

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Property damage: $200,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.874, -98.023 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Kearney

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Kearney forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.507, -98.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Phelps

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: Phelps forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.511, -99.414 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, York

When: March 20, 3:00 AM CST to March 21, 3:00 AM CST
Where: York forecast zone
Property damage: $200,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.873, -97.597 (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

Every storm in Nebraska in 2006 Every state in 2006 This day in weather history Warnings in Nebraska, March 2006

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: 5498338, 5498339, 5498340, 5498341, 5498342, 5498343, 5498344, 5498345, 5498346, 5498347, 5498348.