The severe drought conditions that developed across parts of southeast Minnesota in October 2011 continued through March for Dodge and Mower Counties.
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 ARX wrote it up.
The severe drought conditions that developed across parts of southeast Minnesota in October 2011 continued through March for Dodge and Mower Counties.
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 La Crosse, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 29, 11:21 PM CST, 39 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI 1121 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 .SHORT TERM... 647 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 MUCH OF THE PRECIPITATION THAT OCCURRED THIS AFTERNOON HAS EITHER DIMINISHED OR SHIFTED OFF TO THE EAST. THE EASTWARD SHIFT IS A RESULT OF THE UPPER LOW NOW OVER EAST CENTRAL WISCONSIN PER 00Z WATER VAPOR LOOP AND RUC ANALYSIS. THE REST OF THE DIMINISHING PRECIPITATION IS MOST LIKELY DUE TO A COMBINATION OF THE ENTIRE SYSTEM FILLING...AS WELL AS THE LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING REDUCING INSTABILITY FROM THE COLD AIR CORE WITH THE UPPER LOW. STILL CANNOT RULE OUT A LITTLE DRIZZLE OR LIGHT SNOW MAINLY SOUTH OF I-90 WHERE A DEFORMATION ZONE IS DISSIPATING...BUT ONLY KEPT PRECIPITATION CHANCES THERE AT 20 PERCENT. IT IS ENTIRELY POSSIBLE NOTHING HAPPENS. ALSO...HAVE EXPERIENCED SOME FOG UP AT OUR OFFICE ON THE LA CROSSE RIDGE. THIS FOG APPEARS TO HAVE FORMED FROM LINGERING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE AND LIGHT WINDS. WITH THE SURFACE LOW NEAR WISCONSIN DELLS AND SHIFTING EAST...A NORTHWEST BREEZE WILL PICK UP. THIS BREEZE SHOULD HELP TO IMPROVE VISIBILITIES ON RIDGE TOPS WITHIN THE NEXT FEW HOURS. ADDED THIS FOG MENTION TO THE FORECAST. HAVE LET ALL HAZARDS EXPIRE AS SCHEDULED FOR 6 PM. NEXT FOCUS FOR PRECIPITATION WILL BE ON THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY. SEE PREVIOUS SHORT TERM DISCUSSION FOR MORE DETAILS. .LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY 353 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 ON TUESDAY...THE 29.12Z MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT THERE WILL BE STRONG WARM AIR ADVECTION AHEAD OF THE SYSTEM MOVING OUT OF THE NORTHERN PLAINS. BOTH THE ECMWF ARE SUGGESTING THAT TEMPERATURES ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE INTERSTATE 90 CORRIDOR WILL CLIMB INTO THE 50S. WHILE THESE TEMPERATURES LOOK REASONABLE...THERE IS SOME CONCERN ON HOW WARM TEMPERATURES WILL GET ACROSS THE AREAS WHICH RECEIVED THE DEEP SNOW PACK LAST NIGHT. THE ALL BLEND AND CONS BLEND WOULD SUGGEST TEMPERATURES IN THE UPPER 40S. HOWEVER THIS LOOKS TO BE TOO WARM WITH MUCH SNOW ON THE GROUND...SO COOLED THE TEMPERATURES DOWN INTO THE LOWER AND MID 40S. && .AVIATION...THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY 1121 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 STRATUS PERSISTS ACROSS THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY REGION IN THE WAKE OF A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM HEADING EAST THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES. CEILINGS HAVE FALLEN TO LIFR/IFR AT KRST...AIDED BY NIGHTTIME COOLING. MEANWHILE AT KLSE...A PATCH OF CLEARER SKIES MOVED THROUGH...TEMPORARILY SCATTERING THE MVFR CLOUDS OUT. THE MVFR CEILINGS HAVE SINCE MOVED BACK IN. ANTICIPATING THAT THE STRATUS WILL HOLD THROUGH MUCH OF THE MORNING WITH PERHAPS SOME SLIGHT RISE AS DRIER AIR OVER CENTRAL MINNESOTA WORKS IN. VISIBILITIES THROUGHOUT THE MORNING ANTICIPATING TO HOLD AT VFR...THOUGH IT IS POSSIBLE KRST DROPS BRIEFLY DOWN TO MVFR PRIOR TO 09Z. BETTER CHANCE FOR CEILINGS TO RISE COMES DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS WITH DAYTIME HEATING AND A SURFACE RIDGE CURRENTLY OVER THE DAKOTAS MOVING THROUGH. THERE ARE SIGNS THAT THE MVFR STRATUS MAY SCATTER OR CLEAR OUT AROUND 00Z IN MODEL DATA. HAVE FOLLOWED THIS IDEA...BUT AN ALTOSTRATUS DECK SHOULD QUICKLY COME IN. THIS ALTOSTRATUS IS ASSOCIATED WITH A TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE MOVING INTO WESTERN MINNESOTA. SOME LIGHT SNOW MAY BEGIN TO FALL OUT OF THIS ALTOSTRATUS AROUND 06Z AT KRST...WHICH WILL BE CONSIDERED IN THE NEXT TAF FORECAST. && .HYDROLOGY... 353 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 A GOOD DEAL OF PRECIPITATION FELL LAST NIGHT AS THE MAIN SURGE OF MOIST AIR ARRIVED. MORNING PRECIPITATION REPORTS INDICATE BETWEEN A HALF-INCH AND THREE-QUARTERS OF AN INCH ACROSS NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN. SOME MINOR WITHIN BANK RISES ON TRIBUTARY CREEKS AND RIVERS HAS OCCURRED. FROM SOUTHEAST MN INTO CENTRAL AND NORTHERN WI...AMOUNTS WERE HIGHER WITH WIDESPREAD REPORTS BETWEEN 1 AND 1.5 INCHES. SOME SPOTS SAW JUST OVER 1.75 INCHES OF WATER. THE HIGHEST AMOUNTS WERE SEEN FROM THE ZUMBRO AND WHITEWATER WATERSHEDS...INTO THE TREMPEALEAU AND BLACK RIVER BASINS. SIGNIFICANT RISES ARE OCCURING IN THESE RIVER SYSTEMS...WITH SOME SPOTS GETTING CLOSE TO BANKFULL AND FLOOD STAGE. CURRENTLY...THE SYSTEM IS SPINNING OVERHEAD...DROPPING MORE SNOW AND DRIZZLE. THIS SHOULD NOT AMOUNT TO A GREAT DEAL MORE WATER CONTENT. SO THE FEELING IS WE WILL SEE THE MAJORITY OF RIVERS PEAK AND FALL TONIGHT...IF THEY HAVE NOT ALREADY DONE SO. THIS RAINFALL ON THE FROZEN SOIL ALSO LED TO WIDESPREAD PONDING OF WATER...AS IT COULD NOT SOAK IN. THE STORM DROPPED OVER 15 INCHES OF SNOW ACROSS THE UPPER BLACK RIVER BASIN...SO AS THIS MELTS...EXPECT THE BLACK TO CONTINUE RUNNING HIGHER THAN NORMAL INTO NEXT WEEK. WE ARE ALSO MONITORING THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM FOR THE END OF THE WEEK. ANY ADDITIONAL WATER COULD LEAD TO RENEWED RISES. && .ARX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... 647 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 WI...NONE. MN...NONE. IA...NONE. && SHORT TERM...AJ LONG TERM...BOYNE AVIATION...AJ HYDROLOGY...WELVAERT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI 607 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 IAZ008>011-018-019-029-030-MNZ079-086>088-094>096-WIZ017-029-032>034- 041>044-053>055-061-011200- ADAMS-ALLAMAKEE-BUFFALO-CHICKASAW-CLARK-CLAYTON-CRAWFORD-DODGE- FAYETTE-FILLMORE-FLOYD-GRANT-HOUSTON-HOWARD-JACKSON-JUNEAU-LA CROSSE- MITCHELL-MONROE-MOWER-OLMSTED-RICHLAND-TAYLOR-TREMPEALEAU-VERNON- WABASHA-WINNESHIEK-WINONA- 607 PM CST WED FEB 29 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PARTS OF SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA...NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHWEST INTO CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF SNOW THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY. DETAILS ON THIS STORM SYSTEM ARE UNCERTAIN...BUT TRENDS CURRENTLY FAVOR KEEPING MOST OF THE ACCUMULATIONS OVER WISCONSIN. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... PRECIPITATION REPORTS FROM THE RECENT WINTER STORM WOULD BE APPRECIATED. .EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COORDINATION... NO WEBINAR IS SCHEDULED. RIECK/JLR/AJ
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Between one and two inches of precipitation fell across Dodge County during March. This was not enough to alleviate the severe drought conditions that developed during October 2011. Fire danger conditions increased to very high by the end of the month and burning permits were required.
Between three quarters of an inch and a inch and a half of precipitation fell across Mower County during March. This was not enough to alleviate the severe drought conditions that developed during October 2011. Fire danger conditions increased to very high by the end of the month and burning permits were required.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, March 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: 363945, 363946.