South Dakota, 2009

Winter Storm in South Dakota, March 9 to 10, 2009

March 9 to 10, 2009 · NWS ABR · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

A strong low pressure system tracking across the panhandle of Oklahoma into the Great Lakes region produced heavy snow across north central South Dakota. The heavy snow and strong north winds created low visibilities and travel problems.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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
5

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.

A strong low pressure system tracking across the panhandle of Oklahoma into the Great Lakes region produced heavy snow across north central South Dakota. The heavy snow and strong north winds created low visibilities and travel problems. Snowfall amounts included; 6 inches in Pollock; 7 inches near Hosmer and Eureka; 8 inches 6 miles southeast of McIntosh; 9 inches in Artas; and 10 inches in McLaughlin.

Bitter cold air filtered in behind the low pressure system bringing record cold to the area. Timber Lake and Mobridge broke their record low highs for the date when they only reached 1 below zero and zero, respectively, by the late afternoon. Mobridge also set a record low of 17 degrees below zero in the early morning hours of the 11th.

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 Mar 9, 2:52 PM CST, 2 hours 8 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 9, 2:52 PM CST, 2 hours 8 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 9, 4:46 AM CST, 12 hours 14 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
546 AM CDT MON MAR 9 2009

MNZ039-046-SDZ003>011-015>023-033>037-045-048-051-101100-
TRAVERSE-BIG STONE-CORSON-CAMPBELL-MCPHERSON-BROWN-MARSHALL-
ROBERTS-WALWORTH-EDMUNDS-DAY-DEWEY-POTTER-FAULK-SPINK-CLARK-
CODINGTON-GRANT-HAMLIN-DEUEL-STANLEY-SULLY-HUGHES-HYDE-HAND-JONES-
LYMAN-BUFFALO-
546 AM CDT MON MAR 9 2009 /446 AM MDT MON MAR 9 2009/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL
MINNESOTA...CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA...NORTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA AND
NORTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

ONE ROUND OF BANDED SNOW AFFECTS EXTREME NORTH CENTRAL SOUTH
DAKOTA TODAY...PRODUCING 1 TO 4 INCHES OF SNOW WITH BLOWING SNOW
ACCOMPANYING IT.

THEN...A STRONGER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM LIFTS OUT ONTO THE PLAINS
LATE TONIGHT...INTRODUCING A MUCH LARGER AREA OF MODERATE TO
OCCASIONALLY HEAVY SNOW TO PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND NORTH CENTRAL
SOUTH DAKOTA. SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW ARE EXPECTED LATE TONIGHT
ACROSS THIS AREA.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

THE LARGE AREA OF SNOW THEN SHIFTS INTO NORTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA AND
WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA DURING THE DAY ON TUESDAY...DROPPING
SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW HERE AS WELL. HOWEVER...THE BIGGEST
CONCERN ACROSS NORTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT IS GOING TO BE THE STRENGTH OF NORTH-
NORTHWEST SURFACE WINDS WHILE THE SNOW IS FALLING TUESDAY
AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY EVENING. THE POTENTIAL IS DEFINITELY
INCREASING THAT THE COMBINATION OF FALLING AND BLOWING SNOW WILL
PRODUCE WHITE OUT OR BLIZZARD CONDITIONS DURING THIS TIME.

ALSO...TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT...ARCTIC COLD AIR IN PLACE WILL
COMBINE WITH THE STRONG SUSTAINED WINDS TO PRODUCE DANGEROUSLY
COLD WIND CHILLS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS REQUESTED FOR SNOWFALL REPORTS FROM THIS
AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT...AND POOR VISIBILITY IN SNOW AND
BLOWING SNOW TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 9, 1:53 PM CST, 3 hours 7 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
253 PM CDT MON MAR 09 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0245 PM     SNOW             MCLAUGHLIN              45.81N 100.81W
03/09/2009  E3.0 INCH        CORSON             SD   TRAINED SPOTTER

            STILL SNOWING. BLOWING AND DRIFTING AS WELL.

0245 PM     SNOW             MCINTOSH                45.92N 101.35W
03/09/2009  E1.5 INCH        CORSON             SD   TRAINED SPOTTER

            STILL SNOWING. SOME BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW.

0245 PM     SNOW             POLLOCK                 45.90N 100.29W
03/09/2009  E2.5 INCH        CAMPBELL           SD   TRAINED SPOTTER

            STILL SNOWING. SOME BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW.

&&

NWS

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Corson

When
March 9, 5:00 PM CST to March 10, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Corson forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.709, -101.197 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Dewey

When
March 9, 5:00 PM CST to March 10, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Dewey forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.157, -100.872 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Campbell

When
March 9, 6:00 PM CST to March 10, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Campbell forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
45.771, -100.052 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Edmunds

When
March 10, 5:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
Edmunds forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
45.419, -99.215 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, McPherson

When
March 10, 5:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
McPherson forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
45.766, -99.221 (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

More

Every storm in South Dakota in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, March 2009

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 158178, 158179, 158181, 158182, 158183.