Winter Storm in North Dakota, February 24, 2006

Name: Winter Storm in North Dakota, February 24, 2006
Start: 2006-02-24T08:00
End: 2006-02-24T13:00
Location: North Dakota

February 24, 2006 · NWS BIS · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Heavy snow and blowing and drifting snow caused travel problems during the morning and into early afternoon. Wind speeds were 20 to 30 mph with visibilities around a half mile for a time.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 6

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 BIS wrote it up.

Heavy snow and blowing and drifting snow caused travel problems during the morning and into early afternoon. Wind speeds were 20 to 30 mph with visibilities around a half mile for a time. The highest snow amounts were 8 inches three miles west of McHenry, 7 inches at Carrington and nine miles northeast of Drake, 6 1/2 inches at Minot, and 6 inches at Garrison, McClusky, and Harvey.

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 Bismarck, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 24, 4:05 AM CST, 3 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 24, 4:05 AM CST, 3 hours 55 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
ISSUED BY NWS EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA
405 AM CST FRI FEB 24 2006

.SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT.
SFC LOW AT THE BORDER OF MONTANA AND ND WITH AREAS OF SNOW OVER
NORTHEASTERN MT INTO WESTERN AND CENTRAL ND. HEAVIEST SNOW WILL
TRACK TO THE NORTH OF SFC LOW...AND IS ON THE MARK WITH CURRENT
CONDITIONS. EMBEDDED HEAVIER SNOW BANDS ARE EVIDENT ON RADAR...AND
WILL PERSIST TODAY WITH 2 TO 5 INCHES...WITH LOCALIZED HIGHER
AMOUNTS. THIS IS HANDLED WELL IN PREVIOUS FORECAST. MAIN CONCERN IS
STRENGTH OF NORTH WINDS ON BACKSIDE OF VIGOROUS SHORTWAVE. THERE
WILL BE AREAS OF SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW...WITH WINDS GUSTING TO 30
MPH AT TIMES TODAY. SNOW WILL TAPER OFF TO FLURRIES THIS AFTERNOON.
WILL KEEP SNOW ADVISORY GOING THROUGH NOON...ALTHOUGH THIS MAY NEED
TO BE EXTENDED OR EVEN UPGRADED TO A WARNING.

.LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
MAIN PROBLEM IN THE LONG TERM WILL BE MAINLY TEMPERATURES. THE GFS
HAS COME AROUND TO THE ECMWF SOLUTION AND IS MUCH WARMER THAN THE
00Z RUN 24 HOURS AGO. THEREFORE...WILL LEAN HEAVILY ON THE ECMWF AND
WARM TEMPS. MINOR ADJUSTMENTS OTHERWISE.

&&

.BIS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
SNOW ADVISORY UNTIL NOON CST /11 AM MST/ TODAY FOR NDZ001-NDZ002-
NDZ003-NDZ004-NDZ005-NDZ009-NDZ010-NDZ011-NDZ012-NDZ013-NDZ017-
NDZ018-NDZ019-NDZ020-NDZ021-NDZ022-NDZ023-NDZ025-NDZ031-NDZ032-
NDZ033-NDZ034-NDZ035-NDZ036-NDZ037-NDZ046-NDZ047-NDZ048-NDZ050-
NDZ051.

&&

JV/TWH/DK

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Foster

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: Foster forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 47.457, -98.883 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, McHenry

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: McHenry forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 48.235, -100.636 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Sheridan

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: Sheridan forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 47.575, -100.346 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Ward

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: Ward forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Winter Storm, Wells

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: Wells forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 47.588, -99.661 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, McLean

When: February 24, 8:00 AM CST to 1:00 PM CST
Where: McLean forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

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 North Dakota in 2006 Every state in 2006 This day in weather history Warnings in North Dakota, February 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: 5492545, 5492546, 5492547, 5492548, 5492549, 5492550.