Snow produced generally light accumulations in the area north of Interstate 90, but accumulated up to 5 inches in Lyon County Minnesota at Marshall.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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 FSD wrote it up.
Snow produced generally light accumulations in the area north of Interstate 90, but accumulated up to 5 inches in Lyon County Minnesota at Marshall.
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 Sioux Falls, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 22, 8:20 PM CST, 1 hour 40 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR SOUTHEAST SD/SOUTHWEST MN/NORTHWEST IA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD 920 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011 .DISCUSSION... PRECIPITATION SHIELD SLOWLY LIFTING NORTHEAST AND BEGINNING TO FIZZLE OUT. SHOULD SEE MOST OF THE CWA PRECIPITATION FREE BY 3Z...ALTHOUGH MAY SEE PRECIPITATION HANG ON TOWARD HIGHWAY 14 FROM AROUND BROOKINGS TO MARSHALL MN. THE RAIN WHICH HAS FALLEN THUS FAR WILL CERTAINLY NOT HELP THE FLOODING SITUATION BUT NOT EXPECTING MAJOR IMPACTS ON THE RIVERS EITHER. SOME RIVERS WILL CREST A BIT HIGHER THAN PREVIOUSLY FORECAST DUE TO THE RAINFALL. PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN TO CHANGE OVER TO SNOW ACROSS THE NORTHERN CWA THIS EVENING. MAY SEE SNOW FALL AMOUNTS OF A FEW INCHES TOWARD BROOKINGS AND HIGHER TERRAIN IN SW MN TONIGHT. SNOW WILL SLOWLY SHIFT SOUTH LATE TONIGHT AND THEN INTO THE DAY TOMORROW AS AN ELEVATED TROWAL OVER NE SD MOVES INTO SE SD AND SW MN. TROWAL IS VERY NOCITABLE AT 600 AND 500 MB. SNOW AMOUNTS TOMORROW SHOULD BE MINIMAL WITH MUCH OF THE SNOW MELTING AS IT HITS THE GROUND. && .AVIATION... MOST OF THE HEAVIER PRECIPITATION NOW NORTH AND EAST OF THE AREA WITH IFR TO LOW END MVFR CEILINGS FILLING IN BEHIND AND EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN THROUGH TOMORROW. AS A NORTHWEST WIND BECOMES ESTABLISHED ACROSS THE AREA...VISIBILITIES SHOULD REMAIN VFR THROUGH MOST OF THE NIGHT. KHON WILL SEE THE EARLIEST CHANCE FOR REDUCED VISIBILITIES IN SNOW AFTER ABOUT 10Z WHERE SOME MVFR VISIBILITIES WILL BE POSSIBLE. THIS ACTIVITY COULD ALSO DROP TO AROUND THE KFSD AREA AFTER ABOUT 15Z. && .PREV DISCUSSION... IN THE NEAR TERM...THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL ARE A CONSIDERABLE THREAT ACROSS NW IA AND IMMEDIATE ADJACENT AREAS. ML CAPES IN THOSE AREAS ARE NEAR 500 J/KG...WITH PARCELS LIFTING FROM NEAR 850MB. THEREFORE BELIEVE THAT THE STRONG WIND SHEAR BELOW THE 1KM LEVEL WILL NOT BE TAPPED INTO...BUT THERE IS STILL ENOUGH ELEVATED SHEAR AS WITNESSED IN THE TOTAL EFFECTIVE WIND SHEAR FIELD...THAT HAILERS WILL OCCUR ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE COLD TEMPERATURES INHIBITING MELTING. THE BEST CHANCES FOR SEVERE HAILERS ARE STILL CLOSELY HELD TO THE SIOUX CITY AREA ITSELF...WHERE WARMING HAS OCCURRED ALLOWING SOME INSTABILITY TO DEVELOP. AFTER EARLY EVENING...THE THUNDERSTORM CONDITIONS SHOULD MOVE OFF TO THE EAST OF OUR FORECAST AREA... LEAVING THE INVERTED TROUGH TO PINWHEEL AROUND OUR NORTHERN AND EASTERN ZONES. SURFACE AND TEMPERATURES ALOFT GET COLD ENOUGH TONIGHT TO LIKELY CAUSE SOME LIGHT ACCUMULATING SNOW ALONG THE HIGHWAY 14 CORRIDOR...WITH LIQUID AMOUNTS RAPIDLY DROPPING OFF SOUTH OF THERE. TROWALING IS BACKING INTO EAST CENTRAL SD THROUGH THE NIGHT...BUT AS IT HEADS SOUTHWARD LATE TONIGHT...THE TROWALING IS PROGGED TO SIGNIFICANTLY WEAKEN. FINALLY FOR TONIGHT...THE WNW WINDS WILL BECOME RATHER BREEZY ACROSS OUR MO RIVER VALLEY COUNTIES WHERE FUNNELING IS LIKELY TO OCCUR. /MJF BY WEDNESDAY MORNING THE UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL BEGIN TO PUSH TO THE EAST OF OUR CWA...WITH A MID LEVEL VORT MAX SWINGING SOUTHWARD ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE LOW. THIS WILL KEEP SOME LINGERING PRECIPITATION ACROSS OUR NORTH AND EAST...AND THERMAL PROFILES WILL BE COLD ENOUGH BY THAT POINT TO SUPPORT SNOW...WITH PERHAPS UP TO AN INCH OF ACCUMULATION IN OUR NORTHERN MOST COUNTIES. EVEN SO...MAY STILL SEE MORE OF A RAIN/SNOW MIX IN OUR FAR SOUTH WHERE SURFACE TEMPERATURES WILL STILL REACH THE UPPER 30S. TEMPERATURES WILL MOVE LITTLE DURING THE DAY WITH COLD AIR ADVECTION AND SLOWLY FALLING 925 MB TEMPERATURES...AND HIGHS WILL ONLY BE AROUND 30 IN THE NORTH TO CLOSE TO 40 IN PORTIONS OF NORTHWESTERN IOWA...THOUGH READINGS MAY FALL A BIT IN OUR NORTH DURING THE DAY. TO AGGRAVATE THE MISERY...WIND CHILLS WILL FEEL LIKE THE TEENS AND 20S WITH NORTHWESTERLY WINDS BLOWING AT 20 TO 30 KTS. DYNAMICS PULL AWAY ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT WITH ANY LIGHT PRECIPITATION ENDING IN OUR NORTHEASTERN ZONES EARLY...THEN DECREASING CLOUDS...WITH DYING WINDS IN A WEAKENING GRADIENT. LOWS WILL DROP INTO THE MID TEENS THROUGH THE HURON/BROOKINGS/MARSHALL CORRIDOR TO THE LOWER 20S ALONG THE SOUTHERN MISSOURI RIVER CORRIDOR. RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE SWINGS ACROSS THE NORTHERN PLAINS ON THURSDAY...WITH WINDS TRANSITIONING TO A SOUTHEASTERLY DIRECTION IN OUR WEST BY AFTERNOON AS THE HIGH MOVES EAST. WITH THIS...HIGHS WILL REACH CLOSE TO 40 FROM CHAMBERLAIN TO SIOUX CITY...THOUGH COLD AIR WILL REMAIN ENTRENCHED IN OUR NORTHEAST...WITH HIGHS IN THE UPPER 20S OVER PARTS OF SOUTHWESTERN MINNESOTA. IS NOW LOOKING LIKE A BETTER CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION FOR LATER ON THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY AS STRONG MIDLEVEL WARM AIR ADVECTION AND ISENTROPIC LIFT OVERSPREAD THE AREA. WHILE TEMPERATURES MAY WARM A TAD ON FRIDAY OVER THURSDAYS HIGHS...WILL GENERALLY BE THE SAME WITH A COOL EASTERLY LOW LEVEL FLOW IN PLACE AND HIGHS MAINLY IN THE 30S. FOR THE WEEKEND INTO THE BEGINNING OF NEXT WEEK...REMAINING MUCH BELOW NORMAL WITH REGARD TO TEMPERATURES UNDER AN EASTERLY/NORTHEASTERLY LOW LEVEL FLOW THROUGH THE PERIOD...WITH HIGHS IN THE 30S AND LOWS PRIMARILY IN THE 20S. WHILE CANNOT RULE OUT SOME VERY LIGHT PRECIPITATION OVER THE WEEKEND...NO MAJOR SYSTEM IS IN SITE. /JM && .FSD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IA...NONE. MN...NONE. NE...NONE. SD...NONE. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD 756 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011 SDZ038>040-050-052>071-MNZ071-072-080-081-089-090-097-098- IAZ001>003-012>014-020>022-031-032-NEZ013-014-231200- AURORA-BEADLE-BON HOMME-BROOKINGS-BRULE-BUENA VISTA IA- CHARLES MIX-CHEROKEE IA-CLAY-CLAY IA-COTTONWOOD MN-DAKOTA NE- DAVISON-DICKINSON IA-DIXON NE-DOUGLAS-GREGORY-HANSON-HUTCHINSON- IDA IA-JACKSON MN-JERAULD-KINGSBURY-LAKE-LINCOLN-LINCOLN MN- LYON IA-LYON MN-MCCOOK-MINER-MINNEHAHA-MOODY-MURRAY MN-NOBLES MN- OBRIEN IA-OSCEOLA IA-PIPESTONE MN-PLYMOUTH IA-ROCK MN-SANBORN- SIOUX IA-TURNER-UNION-WOODBURY IA-YANKTON- 756 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA... SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...NORTHWEST IOWA...AND NORTHEAST NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT FLOODING... FLOODING WILL CONTINUE OVER MUCH OF THE JAMES RIVER...VERMILLION RIVER...BIG SIOUX RIVER...LITTLE SIOUX RIVER...ROCK RIVER...REDWOOD RIVER...AND THE DES MOINES RIVER FOR MUCH OF THIS WEEK. ADDITIONAL LOCALIZED FLOODING WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE OVER MUCH OF THE AREA...ESPECIALLY EAST OF A DE SMET TO SIOUX CITY LINE WHERE RAINFALL LAST NIGHT THROUGH EARLY THIS EVENING HAS PRODUCED AREAS OF A QUARTER TO A HALF AN INCH OF RAINFALL. ONE AREA OF CONCERN WILL BE OVER SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA WHERE A QUICK HALF AN INCH TO AN INCH OF RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE BEFORE MIDNIGHT. WINTER WEATHER... SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF AN INCH OR TWO WILL BE POSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING ALONG THE HIGHWAY 14 CORRIDOR. WIND AND FOG... WINDY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE OVER SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...BUT GRADUALLY TAPER OFF BEFORE MIDNIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NORTHWEST WINDS OF 25 TO 35 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE DOWN THE MISSOURI RIVER VALLEY WEDNESDAY INTO EARLY WEDNESDAY EVENING. THERE IS SOME THREAT OF SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WITH WEAK SYSTEMS MOVING INTO THE AREA FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. HEAVY SNOW IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY AND TONIGHT. && FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SIOUXFALLS. THIS INCLUDES THE GRAPHICAL HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK. 08
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Snow accumulated 2 to 4 inches, with the heaviest amounts along the eastern edge of the county.
Snow accumulated 2 to 5 inches, including 5 inches at Marshall.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, March 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: 289717, 289718.