Winter Storm, Anoka
- When
- February 23, 10:00 PM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Anoka forecast zone
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 45.273, -93.246 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A strong upper level low pressure system moved from the Rockies on the 22nd, and across much of the Upper Midwest from the 23rd to the 25th. A large swath of heavy snow accompanied by sustained winds in the 15 to 20 mph range were noted across much of Central and South Central Minnesota.
Every event with a place to put it; 42 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS MPX wrote it up.
A strong upper level low pressure system moved from the Rockies on the 22nd, and across much of the Upper Midwest from the 23rd to the 25th. A large swath of heavy snow accompanied by sustained winds in the 15 to 20 mph range were noted across much of Central and South Central Minnesota. Some notable snow totals include: 17.5 inches at Hewitt (Todd County), 17.0 inches at New London (Kandiyohi County) and St. James (Watonwan County), 16.5 inches at 10 miles N of Mora (Kanabec County), 15.5 inches at Hutchinson (McLeod County), 14.0 inches at Albert Lea (Freeborn County), and 12.2 inches at Chanhassen (Carver County).
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 Twin Cities, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 23, 9:55 PM CST, 5 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
955 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007
.UPDATE...
SNOW FALLING GENERALLY NEAR THE -2 850 MB ISOTHERM AND 1540-1544
850-700 MB THICKNESS..WHICH ARCS FROM SW WI/SE MN TO NEAR THE MSP
AREA AND THEN INTO WEST CENTRAL MN. MAIN ISEN LIFT ON 295 SURFACE
WILL STILL BE FOCUSING OVER SE MN AND WEST CENTRAL WI
OVERNIGHT...BUT SOME REGENERATION A LITTLE FARTHER WEST LATER
TONIGHT. THIS WILL CUT BACK ON SNOW AMOUNTS OVER MN PART OF
CWA...BUT POSSIBLY A LITTLE MORE THAN EARLIER THOUGHT INTO CENTRAL
MN NORTHEAST OF KSTC. LOW LEVEL JET WEAKENING SLIGHTLY TOWARD
MORNING AS UPPER HEIGHT FALLS FORCE LOW LEVEL CIRC FARTHER SOUTH.
WILL EMPHASIZE MORE FREEZING PRECIP IN SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTH
WEST MN OVERNIGHT AND A LITTLE FATHER NORTH AS WELL. LATER
PERIODS SOMEWHAT OF A QUESTION...BUT LESS SNOW TONIGHT WILL CUT
BACK ON GRAND TOTALS. A QUICK LOOK AT 200 MB TEMP PATTERN SUGGESTS
HEAVY SNOW POTENTIAL STILL THERE WITH STRONG WARM ADVECTION INTO
SOUTHERN MN ON SATURDAY INTO SATURDAY NIGHT...ALTHOUGH 850 MB LOW
TRACK OFF 00Z WRF-NAM A TOUCH TOO FAR SE FOR MAX SNOWS IN EAST
CENTRAL MN.
&&
.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 608 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007/
UPDATE...FOR 00Z TAF CYCLE BELOW
PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 353 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007/
DISCUSSION...
LONG DURATION WINTER EVENT TO BEGIN THIS EVENING AND PERSIST INTO
SUNDAY EVENING. PUT MORE WEIGHT ON THE GFS TODAY WHICH WOULD FAVOR
12 TO 15 INCHES OVER THE TWIN CITIES AS WELL AS TO THE SOUTH AND
EAST. EVEN THE FAR WESTERN AND NORTHERN AREAS OF THE CWA SHOULD SEE
8 TO 12 INCHES BY THE TIME THE EVENT ENDS. MUCH OF THIS SNOW IS
EXPECTED SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING. IN THE MEAN TIME...THE
REAL CHALLENGE IS GETTING THROUGH TONIGHT AND SATURDAY. SOME
THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED JUST SOUTHWEST OF FAIRMONT AT MID
AFTERNOON. WILL INCLUDE A CHANCE OVER SOUTH CENTRAL THIS EVENING
IN ZONE OF STRONG THETA-E ADVECTION. AT THE SAME TIME...
TEMPERATURES AT THE SURFACE ARE AT OR BELOW FREEZING. COBB BUFKIT
DATA FROM THE GFS SHOWS FREEZING RAIN DEVELOPING ALONG AND SOUTH
OF THE MINNESOTA RIVER THIS EVENING AND PERSISTING OVER FAR SOUTH
CENTRAL AREAS EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. SOME SLEET EXPECTED TO OCCUR
WITH THE SNOW FROM THE TWIN CITIES ON WEST TONIGHT. INCREASED POPS
FROM CHANCE TO CATEGORICAL AS THE NIGHT PROGRESSES. ICE AMOUNTS OF
A QUARTER TO A HALF INCH POSSIBLE FAR SOUTH. A LULL IN THE ACTION
EARLY ON SATURDAY AS THE FIRST ROUND OF THETA-E ADVECTION MOVES
EAST OF THE CWA AND A SECOND ROUND DEVELOPS OVER IA ASSOCIATED
WITH THE CLOSED LOW DEVELOPING TO OUR SOUTH. LATE SATURDAY AND
SATURDAY NIGHT THE DIFFERENTIAL DIVERGENCE INCREASES DRAMATICALLY
OVER US AND TO THE SOUTHEAST. THIS IS ALSO ALONG THE AXIS OF BEST
MOISTURE FLUX IN THE 850-700MB LAYER. HENCE...THIS PERIOD LOOKS
THE BEST FOR MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW. THE SNOW WILL DIMINISH OVER
WESTERN MN SUNDAY MORNING BUT WEST CENTRAL WI STILL LOOKS GOOD FOR
MORE ACCUMULATING SNOW BEFORE IT TAPERS OFF IN THE AFTERNOON.
BLOCKING THAT DEVELOPS TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM
WILL KEEP US IN CLOUDS AND LIGHT SNOW INTO MONDAY. LONGER
TERM...GFS/ECMWF SHOW ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM FOR LATE NEXT WEEK.
AVIATION...
PROLONGED WINTER WEATHER EVENT BEGINNING AT NOW AT 00Z. STRONG
LLJ...60+ KT NEAR FOUR TO SIX THOUSAND FEET ALOFT...IS GUIDING
MOISTURE FROM THE GULF UP OUR WAY. DESPITE GUSTY WINDS ALSO AT THE
SFC...THIS JET IN ITSELF MAY CREATE SOME WIND SHEAR JUST OFF THE
DECK. WITH DIFLUENCE ALOFT...THIS JET IS ANTIC PATED TO CREATE A
BLOSSOMING OF PRECIPITATION ACROSS SRN AND WRN MN BY LATE THIS
EVE. PRECIP HAS BEEN FREEZING RAIN FOR THE MOST PART IN NRN
IA...AND JUDGING BY CLOUD TOP TEMPS AND WARMER NAM PROGS EXPECT
FZRA TO BE THE CONCERN FOR RWF THROUGHOUT THE NIGHT. ONSET AT MSP
AND SATELLITE AIRPORTS MAY BRIEFLY BE FZRA WITH MODEL SOUNDINGS
INDICATING A LACK FOR MUCH IN ICE CRYSTALS. CHANCES ARE LOW ENOUGH
NOT TO HAVE MENTIONED IN MSP TAF AT THIS TIME. SATURATION WILL
QUICKLY LEAD TO A WET SNOW THERE AND OTHER CTRL MN AND WRN WI TAF
SITES INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. CONDITIONS ARE GENERALLY EXPECTED
TO BE MVFR WITH BRIEF IFR EPISODES. SFC WINDS WILL REMAIN QUITE
GUSTY TONIGHT AND SUSTAINED AT LEAST 15-25KT FROM THE ESE. LIGHT
SNOW MAY LINGER AT CTRL MN AND WRN WI AIRPORTS NEAR DAWN TO MID
MORNING...BEFORE A BREAK INTO EARLY AFTERNOON. MID AFTERNOON ON
BEGINS ROUND TWO...WHICH WILL BE MOST IMPRESSIVE BEYOND THIS TAF
PERIOD. THIS ROUND WILL CONSIST OF NOTHING BUT SNOW...AND IFR
CONDITIONS...WITH LIKELY LIFR AT TIMES ESPECIALLY AT
RWF...MSP...AND WI TAF SITES. AIRPORT WEATHER WARNING FOR MSP
SEEMS LIKELY FOR SOMETIME SAT EVE.
&&
.MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MN...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 PM CST SUNDAY FOR BLUE EARTH-BROWN-
CARVER-CHIPPEWA-DAKOTA-FARIBAULT-FREEBORN-GOODHUE-KANDIYOHI-
LAC QUI PARLE-LE SUEUR-MARTIN-MCLEOD-MEEKER-NICOLLET-
REDWOOD-RENVILLE-RICE-SCOTT-SIBLEY-STEELE-SWIFT-WASECA-
WATONWAN-YELLOW MEDICINE COUNTY(IES).
WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 PM CST SUNDAY FOR ANOKA-BENTON-
CHISAGO-DOUGLAS-HENNEPIN-ISANTI-KANABEC-MILLE LACS-MORRISON-
POPE-RAMSEY-SHERBURNE-STEARNS-STEVENS-TODD-WASHINGTON-
WRIGHT COUNTY(IES).
WI...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 PM CST SUNDAY FOR BARRON-CHIPPEWA-
DUNN-EAU CLAIRE-PEPIN-PIERCE-POLK-RUSK-ST. CROIX
COUNTY(IES).
&&
JPRHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN 904 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007 MNZ041>045-047>070-073>078-082>085-091>093-WIZ014>016-023>028- 241200- DOUGLAS-TODD-MORRISON-MILLE LACS-KANABEC-STEVENS-POPE-STEARNS- BENTON-SHERBURNE-ISANTI-CHISAGO-LAC QUI PARLE-SWIFT-CHIPPEWA- KANDIYOHI-MEEKER-WRIGHT-HENNEPIN-ANOKA-RAMSEY-WASHINGTON- YELLOW MEDICINE-RENVILLE-MCLEOD-SIBLEY-CARVER-SCOTT-DAKOTA- REDWOOD-BROWN-NICOLLET-LE SUEUR-RICE-GOODHUE-WATONWAN-BLUE EARTH- WASECA-STEELE-MARTIN-FARIBAULT-FREEBORN-POLK-BARRON-RUSK- ST. CROIX-PIERCE-DUNN-PEPIN-EAU CLAIRE- 904 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA...AND WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT FREEZING RAIN AND SLEET ARE LIKELY IN SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA FOR THE REMAINDER OF TONIGHT. LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOW IS LIKELY OVER WESTERN WISCONSIN AND CENTRAL MINNESOTA. HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. SEE THE MOST RECENT WINTER WEATHER STATEMENT FOR THE LATEST DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY FREEZING PRECIPITATION AND SNOW ARE POSSIBLE ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE MINNESOTA RIVER VALLEY DURING THE DAY SATURDAY. WINTER STORM CONDITIONS WILL BECOME ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS AND WIDESPREAD BY LATE SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON. MODERATE TO HEAVY ACCUMULATING SNOW IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE ENTIRE OUTLOOK AREA BY SATURDAY NIGHT...WITH BLOWING SNOW ALSO BEING A THREAT. HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS ARE LIKELY DURING THIS TIME. SEE THE MOST RECENT WINTER WEATHER STATEMENT FOR THE LATEST DETAILS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS AND SNOWFALL OBSERVERS ARE URGED TO REPORT SNOWFALL AMOUNTS TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
945 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2007
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0930 PM SNOW MENOMONIE 44.89N 91.91W
02/23/2007 M1.3 INCH DUNN WI TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
MTFThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
42 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2007Every state in 2007This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, February 2007
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: 18818, 18822, 18824, 18830, 18829, 18820, 18826, 18827, 18831, 18836, 18847, 18848, 18851, 18855, 18864, 18865, 18819, 18832, 18838, 18843, 18859, 18837, 18833, 18817, 18823, 18834, 18839, 18850, 18866, 18825, 18842, 18845, 18852, 18853, 18854, 18840, 18821, 18835, 18841, 18844, and more.