In the wake of another arctic air mass, temperatures dropped into the teens and 20s below zero. Along with the cold temperatures, wind speeds increased and allowed for wind chill values to drop into the -35 to -45 degree range for several hours.
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 MPX wrote it up.
In the wake of another arctic air mass, temperatures dropped into the teens and 20s below zero. Along with the cold temperatures, wind speeds increased and allowed for wind chill values to drop into the -35 to -45 degree range for several hours. The following are some of the lowest values that occurred:
Near Rice, in Benton County, -45F.|Near Granite Ledge, in Morrison County, -42F.|Near Isle, in Mille Lacs County, -40F.|Near Glenwood, in Pope County, -40F.|Near St. Cloud, in Stearns and Sherburne Counties, -39F.
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 Twin Cities, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 26, 5:59 PM CST, 5 hours 1 minute earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
559 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014
.SHORT TERM...(THIS EVENING THROUGH THURSDAY)
ISSUED AT 220 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014
MAIN FORECAST CONCERN IN THE SHORT TERM IS STRONG WINDS AND THE
RESULTING BLOWING/DRIFTING SNOW EXPECTED ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH
THIS EVENING. LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS AND OBS SHOW THE COLD FRONT
MOVING THROUGH THE NORTH HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA AT THE CURRENT
TIME... WITH A NICE WIND SHIFT FROM SOUTHWEST TO NORTHWEST BEHIND
THE FRONT. WE/RE SEEING STRONG SOUTHWEST WINDS... SUSTAINED NEAR
20KT WITH GUSTS TO AROUND 30KT AHEAD OF THE FRONT... AND NORTHWEST
WINDS OF AROUND 25KT WITH GUSTS OF 35KT IMMEDIATELY BEHIND THE
FRONT. HOWEVER... FORECAST SOUNDINGS FROM THE RAP AND NAM CONTINUE
TO SUGGEST THE BEST MIXING WITH POST FRONTAL COLD ADVECTION AND
SUBSIDENCE WILL OCCUR DURING THE EARLY EVENING ACROSS MOST OF THE
AREA... WITH 00-05Z LOOKING LIKE PRIME TIME FOR STRONG WINDS AND
POTENTIAL BLIZZARD CONDITIONS. THE HOPWRF MATCHES UP WITH THIS
TIMING QUITE WELL... AND HAS ENSEMBLE MEAN SUSTAINED WINDS OF AROUND
30 MPH AND GUSTS WELL IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH FOR A PERIOD OF SEVERAL
HOURS. LOCATIONS WHICH WILL SEE THE GREATEST IMPACT STILL LOOK TO BE
THE OPEN AREAS OVER THE WESTERN AND SOUTHERN PART OF THE AREA...
WHERE THE COMBINATION OF DEEP SNOW... STRONG WINDS... AND FAVORABLE
TERRAIN SHOULD LEAD TO WIDESPREAD LOW VISIBILITY AND SIGNIFICANT
DRIFTING SNOW. SOME LIGHT SNOW AND FLURRIES WILL SLIP THROUGH THE
NORTH/NORTHEAST PORTION OF THE AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING... BUT ANY
ACCUMULATION WILL BE VERY MINOR GIVEN THE EXTREMELY LIMITED MOISTURE
AHEAD OF THE SHORTWAVE AND COLD FRONT. THE PRESSURE GRADIENT LOOKS
TO QUICKLY RELAX OVERNIGHT INTO THURSDAY MORNING... SO WE SHOULD SEE
THE BLOWING/DRIFTING SETTLE DOWN FAIRLY QUICKLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. WILL
KEEP THE GOING HEADLINES IN PLACE... AS WELL AS THE TIMING... WHICH
STILL LOOKS TO ENCAPSULATE THE ENTIRETY OF THE EVENT. HOWEVER...
WIND CHILLS WILL BE PLUMMETING OVERNIGHT AS COLDER AIR ARRIVES.
ALTHOUGH WINDS WILL BE DYING OFF... THEY WILL STILL BE SUFFICIENT TO
PRODUCE VERY COLD WIND CHILLS... WHICH WILL PERSIST INTO THE DAY ON
THURSDAY. THE NORTHERN COUNTIES LOOK LIKE THEY WILL SEE WIDESPREAD
WIND CHILLS OF -35 TO -45... WHILE THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN PORTION
OF THE AREA WILL MAINLY BE IN THE -25 TO -35 RANGE. SO... ALTHOUGH
THE HEADLINES FOR BLOWING/DRIFTING SNOW WILL END OVERNIGHT... THEY
WILL BE REPLACED BY WIND CHILL HEADLINES THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING.
.LONG TERM...(THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY)
ISSUED AT 220 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014
LONGER TERM TRENDS CONTINUE TO REMAIN COLD. TEMPERATURES ARE
EXPECTED TO REMAIN FAR BELOW NORMAL THROUGH THE ENTIRE PERIOD.
STANDARDIZED ANOMALIES FROM THE NAM AND GEFS CONTINUE TO SHOW H85
TEMPERATURES AROUND 2 TO 3 STANDARD DEVIATIONS BELOW
NORMAL...WHICH SHOULD CONTINUE TO YIELD 30 TO 40 DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL THROUGH MOST OF THE PERIOD. SOME INDICATIONS AT THE END OF
THE PERIOD...INTO NEXT WEEK...THE UPPER FLOW PATTERN MAY FLATTEN A
BIT OVER THE NORTHERN CONUS...ALLOWING SOME MODIFIED PACIFIC TYPE
AIR TO INTRUDE ACROSS THE NORTHERN PLAINS. THAT IS PRETTY FAR IN
THE FUTURE AND THE 12Z ECMWF IS THE MODEL MOST PROMINENT WITH THIS
OVERALL DEVELOPMENT.
A COUPLE OF SNOW CHANCES COME INTO PLAY...NAMELY FRIDAY AND
SATURDAY/SATURDAY NIGHT. MODELS TREND AN INVERTED TROUGH EAST
ACROSS THE CWA ON FRIDAY. BEST FORCING IS FOUND OVER THE SOUTHERN
CWA. WILL CONTINUE TO MENTION LIKELY POPS FOR THE SOUTHERN
THIRD OF THE AREA THEN. WILL HAVE TO MONITOR FOR DEVELOPMENT ON
THE NORTH END OF THE TROUGH AS WELL...BUT CONTINUE CHANCE POPS
THERE. THIS WOULD GENERATE AN INCH OR TWO OF ACCUMULATION TO THE
SOUTH BY FRIDAY EVENING. SHOULD BE A FLUFFY SNOW AND WINDS DO
INCREASE SOME IN THE WAKE OF THE TROUGH. AT THE PRESENT TIME THEY
DO NOT APPEAR TO BE STRONG ENOUGH TO GENERATE SIGNIFICANT
BLOWING/DRIFTING SNOW CONCERNS.
THE NEXT SNOW THREAT ARRIVES FOR SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT.
MODELS IN SOME DISAGREEMENT AS TO HOW FAR AND SNOW THREAT WOULD
BE AS LARGE COLD ARCTIC HIGH BUILDS SOUTHEAST OVER THE AREA INTO HE
WEEKEND. AT THE MOMENT THE BEST AGREEMENT REMAINS OVER FAR SOUTHERN
MINNESOTA FOR MEASURABLE SNOW AND WILL MENTION LIKELY POPS IN THAT
AREA.
WIND CHILL CONCERNS WILL CONTINUE INTO THE WEEKEND BUT WINDS
SHOULD GRADUALLY DIMINISH AS THE ARCTIC HIGH SETTLES CLOSE TO THE
CWA.
&&
.AVIATION...(FOR THE 00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY EVENING)
ISSUED AT 554 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014
HIGHLY VARIABLE CONDITIONS ONGOING AND RANGING FROM VFR TO LIFR
WITH BLSN. AS WINDS CONTINUE TO INCREASE A BIT EARLY THIS
EVENING...THINK A CONTINUATION OF DETERIORATING CONDITIONS WILL
PERSIST...THEN IMPROVE BY MID TO LATE EVENING AS WINDS SUBSIDE.
KMSP...VFR FOR THE MOST PART THROUGH THE PERIOD WITH BRIEF
INSTANCES OF MVFR CONDITIONS WITH BLOWING SNOW THIS EVENING.
NORTHWEST WIND GUSTS TO 35 KT WILL DECREASE THROUGH THE NIGHT AND
BECOME SOUTH LATE IN THE PERIOD.
/OUTLOOK FOR KMSP/
FRI...CHC MVFR WITH -SN. S WIND 5-10 KT BCMG NW.
SAT...VFR. NNW WIND 10 KT.
SUN...VFR. NW WIND 5 KT.
&&
.MPX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MN...WIND CHILL ADVISORY FROM 3 AM TO NOON CST THURSDAY FOR MNZ047-
048-054>070-073>078-082>085-091>093.
BLIZZARD WARNING UNTIL 3 AM CST THURSDAY FOR MNZ041-042-048-049-
055>059-065>069-073>077-082>085-091>093.
WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 3 AM TO NOON CST THURSDAY FOR MNZ041>045-
049>053.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM CST THURSDAY FOR MNZ043>045-
047-050>054-060>064-070-078.
WI...WIND CHILL ADVISORY FROM 3 AM TO NOON CST THURSDAY FOR
WIZ023>028.
WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 3 AM TO NOON CST THURSDAY FOR WIZ014>016.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM CST THURSDAY FOR WIZ014>016-
023>028.
&&
SHORT TERM...TRH
LONG TERM...DWE
AVIATION...BORGHOFFHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN 853 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014 MNZ041-042-048-049-055>059-065>069-073>077-082>085-091>093-280300- DOUGLAS-TODD-POPE-STEARNS-SWIFT-CHIPPEWA-KANDIYOHI-MEEKER-WRIGHT- RENVILLE-MCLEOD-SIBLEY-CARVER-SCOTT-REDWOOD-BROWN-NICOLLET- LE SUEUR-RICE-WATONWAN-BLUE EARTH-WASECA-STEELE-MARTIN-FARIBAULT- FREEBORN- 853 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL MINNESOTA...EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA... SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT A BLIZZARD WARNING IS IN EFFECT TONIGHT. WIND GUSTS UP TO 45 MPH ARE PRODUCING WIDESPREAD BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW AND NEAR ZERO VISIBILITY. WIND CHILLS WILL FALL TO BETWEEN 25 AND 40 BELOW LATE TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY EARLY MORNING WIND CHILL VALUES WILL DROP TO BETWEEN 25 BELOW AND 40 BELOW ZERO FOR MUCH OF THE AREA THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. MNZ043>045-050>053-WIZ014>016-280300- MORRISON-MILLE LACS-KANABEC-BENTON-SHERBURNE-ISANTI-CHISAGO-POLK- BARRON-RUSK- 853 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL MINNESOTA...EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA AND NORTHWEST WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT A WIND CHILL WARNING IS IN EFFECT LATE TONIGHT. WIND CHILLS OF 35 TO 40 BELOW ARE EXPECTED. STRONG WINDS WILL CONTINUE PRODUCING AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW OVERNIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY EARLY MORNING WIND CHILL VALUES WILL DROP TO BETWEEN 25 BELOW AND 40 BELOW ZERO FOR MUCH OF THE AREA THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. MNZ047-054-060>064-070-078-WIZ023>028-280300- STEVENS-LAC QUI PARLE-HENNEPIN-ANOKA-RAMSEY-WASHINGTON- YELLOW MEDICINE-DAKOTA-GOODHUE-ST. CROIX-PIERCE-DUNN-PEPIN- CHIPPEWA-EAU CLAIRE- 853 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA...WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA AND WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT A WIND CHILL ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT LATE TONIGHT. WIND CHILLS OF 25 TO 35 BELOW ARE EXPECTED. STRONG WINDS WILL CONTINUE PRODUCING AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW OVERNIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY EARLY MORNING WIND CHILL VALUES WILL DROP TO BETWEEN 25 BELOW AND 40 BELOW ZERO FOR MUCH OF THE AREA THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. BORGHOFF
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
810 PM CST WED FEB 26 2014
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0800 PM BLIZZARD COSMOS 44.94N 94.70W
02/26/2014 MEEKER MN COCORAHS
SIGNIFICANT BLOWING AND DRIFTING ON SOME GRAVEL ROADS IN
SOUTHERN MEEKER COUNTY. VISIBILITIES NEAR WHITEOUT
CONDITIONS AT TIMES.
&&
AJZThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
12 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.
Several surface observations, including AWOS, ASOS, and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS, ASOS, and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
Several surface observations, including AWOS and private weather stations, measured wind chill values between 35 to 45 below zero.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, February 2014
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: 491250, 491253, 491254, 491257, 491258, 491256, 491248, 491252, 491255, 491249, 491251, 491259.