Early on Tuesday, February 8th, a strong, Arctic cold front plunged south through southwest Kansas as a strong upper system swept through New Mexico and eastward across Oklahoma. These two weather features resulted in cold air being overrun by abundant low level moisture.
Every event with a place to put it; 23 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 DDC wrote it up.
Early on Tuesday, February 8th, a strong, Arctic cold front plunged south through southwest Kansas as a strong upper system swept through New Mexico and eastward across Oklahoma. These two weather features resulted in cold air being overrun by abundant low level moisture. Snow fell, heavy at times, through Wednesday morning before moving east of the area. From 10 to 13 inches of snow fell northeast of a line from northern Pratt County near Byers to southeastern Hodgeman County just southeast of Jetmore to near Beeler in Ness County. The highest amount reported from this event was 13 inches just east of Trego Center in Trego County. From 6 to 10-inches fell over a wide area basically east of a line from Scott City in Scott County to near Charleston in northwestern Gray County to around Meade State Park in Meade County. West of this line, 4-inches of less of snow fell.
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 Dodge City, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 7, 3:44 PM CST, 11 hours 16 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS 344 PM CST MON FEB 7 2011 .DISCUSSION... DAYS 1-2... THERE WAS VERY LITTLE OVERALL CHANGE IN THE FORECAST THINKING FROM YESTERDAY'S FORECAST. THE UPPER TROUGH IS NOW OVER THE UPPER MIDWEST AND EXTENDING DEEP INTO THE SOUTHERN PLAINS THIS AFTERNOON, WITH STRONG SHORTWAVE ENERGY REINFORCING THE FLOW ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST WHICH AS OF LATE AFTERNOON WAS MOVING INTO EASTERN OREGON AND IDAHO AS SEEN IN WATER VAPOR IMAGERY. THIS IS THE SHORTWAVE THAT WILL DIG SOUTHWARD ALONG THE WESTERN STATES FROM NEVADA INTO THE SOUTHWEST, ALLOWING THE JET ENERGY ACROSS OUR REGION TO BECOME ZONAL TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY. IN THE VERY NEAR TERM, INCREASING CLOUDS APPEAR TO BE THE MAIN WEATHER OF INTEREST THROUGH THIS EVENING AS TEMPERATURES THIS AFTERNOON MAX OUT IN THE UPPER 30S TO LOWER 40S FAR SOUTHWEST. AFTER THAT, AS WE MOVE TOWARDS THIS EVENING, BACKING LOW LEVEL WINDS AND INCREASING MID LEVEL BAROCLINICITY ACROSS OUR NORTHERN AND EASTERN PERIPHERY OF COUNTIES SHOULD AT LEAST BEGIN TO HAVE A CHANCE FOR DRIZZLE PRODUCTION, AND PROFILES BY THAT TIME CERTAINLY SUPPORT FREEZING DRIZZLE. FARTHER TO THE WEST, THE SOUNDINGS HAVE A SIGNIFICANTLY DRIER BOUNDARY LAYER WHICH WILL BE HARD TO GET TO THE POINT OF SATURATION (EVEN THE MORE MOIST GFS SHOWS ABOUT A 2 DEGREE DEW POINT DEPRESSION THROUGH THE LAYER) IN TIME BEFORE SNOW SHOULD BECOME THE PRIMARY PRECIPITATION TYPE WITH INCREASING ODDS OF ICE IN THE CLOUD LAYER BY MORNING. AS FAR THE MODEL SOLUTIONS FOR TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY, WE HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY DISCOUNTED THE MUCH MORE EVOLVED NAM/WRF MODEL'S SNOW OUTPUT SOLUTION (WHICH PRODUCES A FOOT OF SNOW ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST) AS THE POSITION OF THE LONGWAVE JET ENERGY IS NOT AS DEEP; THIS MAKES THE MODEL DEEPEN THE MID LEVEL HEIGHTS FAR MORE THAN THE GFS AND GEM MODELS. EMPLOYING AN ADJUSTED GFS QPF OUTPUT AND USING ROUGHLY 15:1 TO 18:1 RATIOS THROUGH THE LATE DAY ON TUESDAY, WE HAVE A SNOWFALL FORECAST STILL IN THE 1 TO 4 INCH RANGE. THE BEST CHANCE FOR BANDING WILL BE ACROSS CENTRAL KANSAS, AND THAT IS WHERE HIGHER SNOW TOTALS GENERALLY FALL. SNOWFALL SHOULD CEASE WEDNESDAY EVENING ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST SECTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA. BY TUESDAY EVENING, THE FORECAST AREA WILL STILL BE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF STRONG NORTHEAST WINDS OVER THE AREA AND DEPENDING ON THE AMOUNT OF SNOWFALL ACTUALLY RECEIVED, SOME BLOWING AND DRIFTING COULD BE ONGOING. COLD TEMPERATURES AND WIND SPEEDS WILL PRODUCE WIND CHILL INDICES COLDER THAN 15 BELOW ZERO TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING. MR DAYS 3-7... DID NOT MAKE MUCH CHANGES TO THE EXTENDED PERIOD. A DRY FORECAST WILL CONTINUE AS UPPER LEVEL RIDING DOMINATES THE CENTRAL PLAINS. TEMPERATURES FROM THE ARCTIC AIR INVASION IN THE SHORT TERM PERIOD WILL SLOWLY MODERATE THROUGH THE REST OF THE BUSINESS WEEK. INCREASING 500 HPA HEIGHTS AND EXPANSION OF THERMAL FIELDS IN THE LOWER LEVELS SHOULD ALLOW FOR HIGHS ACROSS SOUTHWESTERN KANSAS TO BE IN THE 50S BY THE WEEKEND. FOR WEEK TWO, RETAINED THE SAME FORECAST WILL BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION AND NEAR NORMAL TEMPERATURES DUE TO MODEL UNCERTAINTY AND WANTING TO KEEP THE FORECAST CONSISTENT WITH CPC. ONE THING THAT WILL HAVE TO BE MONITORED IS THE OVERALL HINT AT A SYNOPTIC PATTERN CHANGE ACROSS THE WESTERN UNITED STATES THAT WILL EVENTUALLY FAVOR STORMY WEATHER ACROSS THE PLAINS. BOTH OPERATIONAL RUNS OF THE GFS AND ECMWF WERE SUGGESTING THIS PATTERN CHANGE. THE EC ENSEMBLE MEMBERS ARE ALSO IN GOOD AGREEMENT AND ARE FAIRLY CLUSTERED WITH BROAD SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT ACROSS THE WESTERN US. -SUGDEN .AVIATION... VFR CIGS EXPECTED ACROSS THE TERMINALS FOR THE REST OF TODAY AND INTO THE EVENING HOURS. CIGS WILL DROP TO LIFR/IFR BY TOMORROW MORNING AS SNOW DEVELOPS. AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW WILL BE LIKELY TOMORROW AFTERNOON...HOWEVER...THIS IS OUTSIDE OF THE TAF FORECAST PERIOD. -SUGDEN && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... DDC 37 22 24 2 / 0 50 100 90 GCK 38 20 22 2 / 0 50 100 80 EHA 40 25 27 5 / 0 20 90 90 LBL 40 25 27 4 / 0 20 100 90 HYS 34 9 11 1 / 0 90 100 80 P28 39 23 23 5 / 0 50 100 90 && .DDC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT CST /11 PM MST/ TONIGHT TO NOON CST /11 AM MST/ WEDNESDAY FOR KSZ030-031-043>046-061>066- 074>081-084>090. && FN33/36
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS 442 AM CST MON FEB 7 2011 KSZ061>064-074>081-084>090-081045- HAMILTON-KEARNY-FINNEY-HODGEMAN-STANTON-GRANT-HASKELL-GRAY-FORD- EDWARDS-KIOWA-PRATT-MORTON-STEVENS-SEWARD-MEADE-CLARK-COMANCHE- BARBER- 442 AM CST MON FEB 7 2011 /342 AM MST MON FEB 7 2011/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT LIGHT SNOW IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP AFTER MIDNIGHT. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND 6 AM TUESDAY WILL TO BE LIGHT WITH LITTLE IF ANY ACCUMULATION EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CONTINUE TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. THE SNOW MAY EVEN BECOME STEADIER AND HEAVIER AT TIMES LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON OR TUESDAY NIGHT BEFORE STARTING TO TAPER OFF. ALTHOUGH EXACT SNOW TOTALS ARE STILL UNCLEAR...IT CURRENTLY APPEARS THAT MOST LOCATIONS WILL RECEIVE BETWEEN TWO AND FOUR INCHES...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS. IN ADDITION, GUSTY NORTH WINDS IN THE 20 TO 30 MPH RANGE MAY ALSO RESULT IN BLOWING OR DRIFTING SNOW LATE TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT AS WELL AS BITTER COLD WIND CHILLS. TUESDAY NIGHT AND EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING WIND CHILL INDICES ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 15 BELOW ZERO TO 24 BELOW ZERO. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SNOWFALL AMOUNTS. && FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT OUR WEBPAGE AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/DDC KSZ030-031-043>046-065-066-081045- TREGO-ELLIS-SCOTT-LANE-NESS-RUSH-PAWNEE-STAFFORD- 442 AM CST MON FEB 7 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL...SOUTH CENTRAL AND WEST CENTRAL KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT LIGHT SNOW WILL DEVELOP AFTER MIDNIGHT MONDAY NIGHT. THE A BRIEF PERIOD OF FREEZING DRIZZLE WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND 6 AM TUESDAY ARE EXPECTED TO BE LIGHT WITH MAINLY A DUSTING EXPECTED IN MOST LOCATIONS. ISOLATED AREAS ALONG AND NORTH OF INTERSTATE 70 COULD SEE UP TO ONE INCH OF NEW SNOW BY EARLY TUESDAY MORNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CONTINUE TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. THE SNOW MAY EVEN BECOME STEADIER AND HEAVIER AT TIMES LATE TUESDAY AFTERNOON OR TUESDAY NIGHT BEFORE STARTING TO TAPER OFF. ALTHOUGH EXACT SNOW TOTALS ARE STILL UNCLEAR...IT CURRENTLY APPEARS THAT MOST LOCATIONS WILL RECEIVE BETWEEN TWO AND FOUR INCHES...WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS. IN ADDITION, GUSTY NORTH WINDS IN THE 20 TO 30 MPH RANGE MAY ALSO RESULT IN BLOWING OR DRIFTING SNOW LATE TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT AS WELL AS BITTER COLD WIND CHILLS. TUESDAY NIGHT AND EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING WIND CHILL INDICES ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 15 BELOW ZERO TO 24 BELOW ZERO. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. SPOTTER ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SNOWFALL AMOUNTS. && FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT OUR WEBPAGE AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/DDC 18
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
23 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Snowfall of 11.0 inches fell at a location 4 miles northwest of Cedar Bluff Reservoir.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell at a location 5 miles east of Toulon.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Wakeeney.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Loretta.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Healy.
Snowfall of 6.0 fell in Hays.
Snowfall of 6.0 fell in Larned.
Snowfall of 6.0 fell in Ness City.
Snowfall of 9.0 in Pratt.
Snowfall of 9.0 fell in Stafford.
Snowfall of 8.0 fell in Medicine Lodge.
Snowfall of 6.0 fell in Coldwater.
Snowfall of 10.0 fell in LaCrosse.
Snowfall of 9.0 fell in Hays.
Snowfall of 11.0 fell in Ness City.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Jetmore.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Scott City.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Scott City.
Snowfall of 7.0 fell in Meade.
Snowfall of 8.0 fell in Alexander.
Snowfall of 7.5 fell in Ashland.
Snowfall of 10.0 fell in St. John.
Snowfall of 6.5 fell in Kinsley.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, February 2011
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: 287242, 287243, 287244, 287245, 287246, 287247, 287248, 287249, 287250, 287251, 287252, 287253, 287254, 287255, 287256, 287257, 287258, 287259, 287260, 287261, 287262, 287263, 287264.