The drought that began in June and expanded to become an Exceptional (D4) Drought in 2012 continues into January 2013. While the weather in January was characterized as progressive the storm track provided little relief or recharge to the depleted soil moisture.
Every event with a place to put it; 31 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 LBF wrote it up.
The drought that began in June and expanded to become an Exceptional (D4) Drought in 2012 continues into January 2013. While the weather in January was characterized as progressive the storm track provided little relief or recharge to the depleted soil moisture. Short term impacts are expected to hit agriculture and grasslands, while the long-term impacts to hydrological and ecological interests are expected to linger. In January some rainfall did occur although departures remain over four inches that keep fire dangers and potential impacts at the forefront and in the news.
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 North Platte, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 31, 11:40 PM CST, 20 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE 1140 PM CST MON DEC 31 2012 .AVIATION... ...FOR THE KLBF AND KVTN TERMINALS THROUGH 06Z WEDNESDAY... FOR THE KLBF TERMINAL...EXPECT LIFR AND IFR CIGS THROUGH MID MORNING TUESDAY...WITH VFR CIGS THROUGH MID DAY TUESDAY. CLEAR SKIES ARE EXPECTED THERE AFTER. CIGS OVERNIGHT WILL BE AON 400 FT AGL...AND MAY DROP TO 200 FT AGL TOWARD SUNRISE WITH VSBYS OF 3SM. CIGS WILL BEGIN TO LIFT AROUND 15Z TUESDAY. WINDS WILL BE VARIABLE AT UNDER 10 KTS TONIGHT THROUGH MID MORNING TUESDAY...THEN SHIFT TO THE WEST AT 10 KTS TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. FOR THE KVTN TERMINAL...EXPECT MVFR CIGS AON 1500 FT AGL OVERNIGHT...WITH CIGS LIFTING ABOVE 5000 FT AGL TOWARD SUNRISE. SKIES WILL SCATTER OUT BY LATE MORNING TUESDAY WITH ONLY HIGH CLOUDINESS EXPECTED. WINDS WILL BE LIGHT AND VARIABLE AT UNDER 10 KTS THROUGH MID MORNING TUESDAY...SHIFTING TO THE WEST AT 10 KTS TUESDAY AFTERNOON. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 547 PM CST MON DEC 31 2012/ SYNOPSIS... AT H5 TROUGH THROUGH THE NORTHERN PLAINS INTO FOUR CORNERS LOW OFF PACIFIC NORTHWEST. STORM SYSTEM MOVING ACROSS CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN PLAINS ON 180+ 250MB JET. && .DISCUSSION... SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...SOUTHERN PLAINS STORM SYSTEM WHICH BROUGHT SOME LIGHT SNOW TO SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA TODAY...WILL MOVE OFF TO THE EAST OF THE REGION TONIGHT. SKIES WILL GRADUALLY CLEAR WITH LOWS DROPPING INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS...WITH THE LOWEST READING ACROSS THE PANHANDLE INTO NORTHWEST NEBRASKA WHERE CLOUD COVER SHOULD DECREASE ALMOST COMPLETELY BY MORNING. TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY WILL BRING NEAR OR SLIGHTLY BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES. AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL DROP SOUTH FROM SOUTHERN CANADA INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS...AND A FEW SNOW SHOWERS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS NORTHERN NEBRASKA TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY. EXTENDED THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY...POSSIBILITY FOR SNOW SHOWERS CONTINUING THURSDAY MORNING AS 500MB WAVE MOVES EAST OUT OF THE FORECAST AREA. HAVE LEFT DRY FOR NOW WITH LOW CONFIDENCE. MODELS ARE IN SOME DISAGREEMENT IN THE TIMING OF RIDGE BUILDING EAST AFTER THURSDAY AND THE AMOUNT OF COLD AIR ALOFT. SNOW COVER ON THE GROUND SHOULD TEMPER DAY TIME HIGHS BUT WILL BE GONE QUICKLY WITH TEMPERATURES RISING INTO THE MID TO UPPER 30S FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AS PACIFIC AIR MOVES EAST. ENSEMBLE MEANS STANDARD DEVIATIONS AROUND 3 STANDARD DEVIATIONS THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD FOR DAYTIME HIGHS. DRY THROUGH THE PERIOD. && .HYDROLOGY... ICE JAMMING CONTINUES ALONG THE NORTH PLATTE RIVER BOTH UP AND DOWN STREAM FROM LAKE MCCONAUGHY. MINOR FLOODING IS POSSIBLE NEAR ANY ICE JAM. && .LBF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && SHORT TERM/EXTENDED...POWER AVIATION...BUTTLER HYDROLOGY...TAYLOR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE 338 PM CST MON DEC 31 2012 NEZ004>010-022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071-094-012145- SHERIDAN-EASTERN CHERRY-KEYA PAHA-BOYD-BROWN-ROCK-HOLT-GARDEN- GRANT-HOOKER-THOMAS-BLAINE-LOUP-GARFIELD-WHEELER-ARTHUR-MCPHERSON- LOGAN-CUSTER-DEUEL-KEITH-PERKINS-LINCOLN-CHASE-HAYES-FRONTIER- WESTERN CHERRY- 338 PM CST MON DEC 31 2012 /238 PM MST MON DEC 31 2012/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED THROUGH TONIGHT. && THIS PRODUCT IS NOW AVAILABLE...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER... HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATOLOGICAL INFORMATION...AT HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/NORTHPLATTE TAYLOR
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
31 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
The drought that began in June 2012 continued into January 2013. The exceptional (D4) drought lingered as below normal precipitation fell during the month.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nebraska in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Nebraska, January 2013
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: 428026, 428027, 428028, 428030, 428032, 428033, 428035, 428036, 428039, 428040, 428041, 428045, 428046, 428047, 428048, 428049, 428051, 428053, 428055, 425484, 428029, 428031, 428034, 428037, 428038, 428042, 428043, 428044, 428050, 428052, 428054.