An upper level storm system moved east across the plains on Sunday night, December 30th, and crossed Western Kansas during the day Monday, December 31st. This was the largest snow producing system of the season, thus far.
Every event with a place to put it; 12 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.
An upper level storm system moved east across the plains on Sunday night, December 30th, and crossed Western Kansas during the day Monday, December 31st. This was the largest snow producing system of the season, thus far. The highest snowfall report was 10 inches, from 10 miles east-northeast of Richfield in Morton County. There was a 45 mile wide swath of 6 to 9 inches from southern Stanton County through Garden City in Finney County to Hays in Ellis County. From 4 to 5 inches of snow fell in a 30 to 50 mile wide strip from Liberal in Seward County through Dodge City in Ford County to near Larned in Pawnee County. There was an area of 2 to 3 inches of snow which fell from Meade in Meade County to Coldwater in Comanche County to St. John in Stafford County. The snow dwindled to flurries during the evening of New Year’s Eve.
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 Dec 31, 5:23 AM CST, 37 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS 523 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 ...UPDATED FOR AVIATION... .SHORT TERM...(TODAY THROUGH TONIGHT) ISSUED AT 355 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 IMMEDIATE FORECAST ISSUE IS THE CURRENT EVENT THAT STARTED SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. THE MAIN QUESTION IS JUST HOW MUCH SNOW WILL FALL. THE MOST GLARING ELEMENT ON THE OVERNIGHT U/A ANALYSIS WAS THE 130KT UPPER JET IN THE VICINITY OF EL PASO, PLACING MUCH OF MY CWA IN THE LEFT EXIT REGION. PRECIPITATION STARTED SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT MOST LIKELY IN THE REGION OF UVV ASSOCIATED WITH THIS EXIT REGION. DURING THE NIGHT IT WOULD APPEAR THAT ISENTROPIC LIFTING WAS COMMENCING ALONG WITH FRONTOGENETIC FORCING DEVELOPING BISECTING MY FORECAST AREA. THE MAIN UPPER SHORT WAVE THAT WAS OVER SOUTHERN ARIZONA WAS BEGINNING TO EJECT EAST AND NORTHEAST SO THERE SHOULD BE AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF PRECIPITATION ALTHOUGH THERE MAY BE A BRIEF LULL LATER THIS MORNING. THERE WAS A BRIEF PERIOD OF LIGHT SLEET BEFORE QUICKLY TRANSITIONING TO ALL SNOW WITH WET BULBING TAKING PLACE...EXCEPT FOR AREAS ALONG THE OKLAHOMA BORDER WHERE THE COLUMN HAD NOT COOLED ENOUGH TO FLIP OVER. THE NAM CONTINUES IT'S TREND OF EXCESSIVE SNOWFALL OF 6 TO 8 INCHES ACROSS THE NORTHWEST HALF OF MY AREA AND SOME OF THE HIGH RESOLUTION MODELS ARE IN AGREEMENT. I DID BUMP AMOUNTS UP A TAD BUT I'M NOT CONFIDENT IN THE BULLISH AMOUNTS BY THESE MODELS AND WANT TO PLAY THIS CONSERVATIVELY. IF TRENDS DURING THE EARLY MORNING SUPPORT THE HIGHER AMOUNTS THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT CAN BE UPGRADED BUT FOR NOW THE AMOUNTS FORECAST OF 3 TO 5 INCHES SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT. SURFACE WINDS SHOULD NOT BE MUCH OF AN ISSUE WITH THIS EVENT. DURING THE LATE MORNING AND INTO THIS AFTERNOON THE MODELS INDICATE THE HEAVIEST PRECIPITATION SHOULD LIFT NORTH AND BY THIS EVENING MOST OF THE SNOW SHOULD BE TAPERING OFF. .LONG TERM...(TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY) ISSUED AT 355 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 FOR TUESDAY, CLOUDY SKIES WITH A FEW SNOW FLURRIES WILL BE ENDING IN THE MORNING AS RESIDUAL SHORTWAVE ENERGY EXITS TO THE EAST. SKIES LOOK TO BECOME PARTLY CLOUDY LATE. A SECONDARY SHOT OF COLD AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE PLAINS ON WEDNESDAY WITH A NORTHERN BRANCH UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH MOVING IN FROM THE NORTHERN PLAINS. THIS FEATURE MAY PRODUCE SOME MID LEVEL CLOUDINESS BY WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON WITH SOME ARCTIC AIR STAYING MAINLY TO THE EAST AND NORTHEAST. THE SHORTWAVE TROUGH THEN MOVES SOUTHEAST INTO THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN PLAINS INTO THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. FOR THE WEEKEND THE GFS AND CANADIAN MODELS SHOW ANOTHER NORTHERN BRANCH UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE TROUGH MOVING FROM THE INTERMOUNTAIN WEST AND INTO THE CENTRAL AND NORTHERN PLAINS ON SATURDAY THEN EXITING SUNDAY WITH DRY NORTHWEST FLOW IN THE WAKE. NO PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED WITH THIS NORTHWEST FLOW SHORTWAVE. OVERNIGHT LOWS ARE FORECAST TO BE IN THE SINGLE DIGITS TO LOW TEENS ON WEDNESDAY MORNING THEN IN THE TEENS INTO THE WEEKEND. DAYTIME HIGHS WITH SOME SNOW PACK ARE FORECAST TO BE IN THE MID TO UPPER 20S INTO THURSDAY, THEN WARM INTO THE 30S TO AROUND 40 INTO THE WEEKEND. && .AVIATION...(FOR THE 12Z TAFS THROUGH 12Z TUESDAY MORNING) ISSUED AT 514 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 EXPECT IFR CONDITIONS TO CONTINUE WITH SNOW AS AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH CONTINUES TO MOVE INTO WESTERN KANSAS TODAY. A VORT MAX WILL MOVE RAPIDLY NORTHEASTWARD AHEAD OF THE LOW AND SHOULD EXIT SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS BRINGING MVFR TO VFR CONDITIONS WITH LIGHT SNOW OR FLURRIES BY AROUND 21Z AT KGCK AND KDDC AND AROUND 00Z AT KHYS. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL BE FROM 10 TO 15KT TODAY. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... DDC 28 13 26 7 / 90 40 10 0 GCK 26 11 27 5 / 90 50 10 0 EHA 27 10 27 11 / 80 30 10 0 LBL 29 11 27 6 / 90 20 10 0 HYS 26 13 25 6 / 90 70 10 0 P28 34 17 28 14 / 90 40 10 0 && .DDC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 10 PM CST /9 PM MST/ THIS EVENING FOR KSZ030-031-043>046-061>066-074>081-084>090. && SHORT TERM...HUTTON LONG TERM...KRUSE AVIATION...KRUSE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS 445 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 KSZ030-031-043>046-061>066-074>081-084>090-011045- TREGO-ELLIS-SCOTT-LANE-NESS-RUSH-HAMILTON-KEARNY-FINNEY-HODGEMAN- PAWNEE-STAFFORD-STANTON-GRANT-HASKELL-GRAY-FORD-EDWARDS-KIOWA- PRATT-MORTON-STEVENS-SEWARD-MEADE-CLARK-COMANCHE-BARBER- 445 AM CST MON DEC 31 2012 /345 AM MST MON DEC 31 2012/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL...SOUTH CENTRAL...SOUTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL KANSAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY WILL BE IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM THIS MONDAY EVENING. AN UPPER LEVEL STORM MOVING INTO THE HIGH PLAINS WILL PRODUCE WIDESPREAD 3 TO 5 INCH SNOW AMOUNTS BY THE TIME THE SNOW DIMINISHES THIS EVENING. HOWEVER, AMOUNTS WILL BE LESS IN THE PRATT AND MEDICINE LODGE AREAS. FOR DETAILS PLEASE SEE THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE. SPOTTERS AND WEATHER OBSERVERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PROVIDE SNOWFALL AMOUNTS BY CONTACTING OUR OFFICE THROUGH TWITTER, FACEBOOK OR CALLING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... && FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT OUR WEBPAGE AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/DDC
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
12 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Six inches of snow fell at Trego Center with 8 to 9 inches across southeast Trego county.
Seven inches of snow fell at Scott City.
Six inches was reported from a spotter 7 miles west-southwest of Dighton.
Snowfall of 5 1/2 inches was reported from a spotter 10 miles south of Beeler.
Snowfall of 7 inches was reported in Lakin.
Snowfall of 6 inches was reported in Garden City.
Snowfall of 7 inches was reported in at a location 4 miles northwest of Hickock.
Snowfall of 6.2 inches was reported in at a location 7 miles west-southwest of Sublette.
Snowfall of 7 inches was reported in at a location 1 mile southwest of Richfield.
Snowfall of 9 inches was reported in at a location 4 miles south of Big Bow.
Snowfall of 7 inches was reported in Ellis.
Snowfall of 6 inches was report 5 miles south of Ingalls.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kansas in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, December 2012
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: 431959, 431960, 431961, 431962, 431963, 431964, 431965, 431966, 431967, 431968, 431970, 431971.