Flood, Big Stone
- When
- March 22, 2:30 PM CST to March 31, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Big Stone County, 1.38 mi S of Ortonville to 2.07 mi WSW of Ortonville Arpt
- Cause
- Heavy Rain / Snow Melt
- Reported by
- River/Stream Gage
- Coordinates
- 45.300, -96.450
Flood in Minnesota, March 22 to 31, 2019
Snow melt flooding occurred on the Minnesota River at the end of March. The river rose to almost a foot above the flood stage of 10 feet to 11 feet at Ortonville.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS ABR wrote it up.
Snow melt flooding occurred on the Minnesota River at the end of March. The river rose to almost a foot above the flood stage of 10 feet to 11 feet at Ortonville. The flooding continued into April.
What forecasters said that day
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 Aberdeen, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 22, 2:10 PM CST, 20 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Mar 22, 2:10 PM CST, 20 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Aberdeen SD 310 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 .SHORT TERM...(This Evening through Saturday Night) Issued at 310 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 Surface high pressure will begin moving east of the area tonight, allowing for light south to southeast winds to develop. Temps are expected to fall into the teens and 20s overnight, with areas of fog possible once again. Several models are again showing fog potential, so have inserted this into the forecast through Saturday morning. A warmer air mass moves into the region on Saturday as southerly breezes continue. Will be looking at temps rising into the 40s and low 50s on Saturday, with increased snowmelt which will worsen or create new flooding for some locations. Any precipitation from the approaching system looks to remain over southern SD during the day Saturday. Models continue to show rather scant areal coverage of precip, as well as amounts Saturday into Saturday night. Therefore, don't expect precip this weekend to really worsen the flooding over the region compared to what's already expected from snowmelt alone. There could be some light freezing rain across the area late Saturday night if temps can manage to drop below 32 degrees. Although, expect any impacts to be rather minor due to the limited coverage of precip as well as the minimal amount of any rainfall. .LONG TERM...(Sunday through Friday) Issued at 310 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 The long term portion of the forecast begins with a low pressure system pushing east of the region, with a secondary storm moving in from the west. The secondary storm could bring light rain the Missouri River valley and points west on Sunday. Overall, Sunday appears more dry than wet. An upper level ridge will build over the region early next week with high temperatures warming into the 50s and 60s by Wednesday. The warmer temperatures could lead to more widespread flooding issues. Weather conditions at the end of the forecast period are a little more unclear at this time. While all the models bring a storm system through the region Thursday and Friday, they differ significantly with the placement of warm air. The 0Z EC and 12Z GFS are warm with rain the most likely precipitation type. The 12Z Canadian and ECMWF are much colder with rain and snow possible. Confidence with the temperature forecast at the end of next week is low at this time. && .AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS through 18Z Saturday Afternoon) Issued at 1246 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 VFR conditions will prevail today. For the overnight period, BR/FG is possible once again, with potential for IFR/MVFR visibility. A brief period of LLWS is also expected at KPIR tonight, and have included that in the TAF forecast. && .ABR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SD...None. MN...None. && SHORT TERM...TMT LONG TERM...SD AVIATION...TMT
Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 22, 1:44 PM CST, 46 minutes before
Hazardous Weather Outlook...UPDATED National Weather Service Aberdeen SD 244 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 MNZ039-046-SDZ003>011-015>023-033>037-045-048-051-231945- Traverse-Big Stone-Corson-Campbell-McPherson-Brown-Marshall-Roberts- Walworth-Edmunds-Day-Dewey-Potter-Faulk-Spink-Clark-Codington-Grant- Hamlin-Deuel-Stanley-Sully-Hughes-Hyde-Hand-Jones-Lyman-Buffalo- 244 PM CDT Fri Mar 22 2019 /144 PM MDT Fri Mar 22 2019/ This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for west central Minnesota, central South Dakota, north central South Dakota and northeast South Dakota. .DAY ONE...This afternoon and tonight. Areas of fog are possible once again tonight, possibly dense at times. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Saturday through Thursday. Continued snowmelt over the next several days will contribute to overland and river/stream flooding over portions of the region. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not expected at this time. TMT
In the hours before
Local storm report, Mar 22, 9:41 AM CST, 4 hours 49 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
1041 AM CDT FRI MAR 22 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0300 AM FLOOD CORONA 45.33N 96.77W
03/22/2019 ROBERTS SD EMERGENCY MNGR
LARGE PORTIONS OF CORONA ARE FLOODING.
ESPECIALLY THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN HALVES
OF THE TOWN.
&&
JTLocal storm report, Mar 22, 11:50 AM CST, 2 hours 40 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
1250 PM CDT FRI MAR 22 2019
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0300 AM FLOOD CORONA 45.33N 96.77W
03/22/2019 ROBERTS SD EMERGENCY MNGR
CORRECTS PREVIOUS FLOOD REPORT TEXT. LARGE
PORTIONS OF CORONA ARE FLOODING.
&&
JTThe radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in New York, March 22 to 23, 2019
- Sneakerwave in California, March 22, 2019
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Vermont, March 22 to 23, 2019
- Marine Thunderstorm Winds in North Atlantic Coastal Waters, March 22, 2019
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in New York, March 22 to 23, 2019
- Flood in North Dakota, March 22 to 24, 2019
- Tornadoes and Flood in Texas, March 22, 2019
- Flooding in South Dakota, March 22 to 31, 2019
- High Wind in Virginia, March 22, 2019
- Avalanche and Winter Weather in California, March 22 to 23, 2019
- High Surf in Hawaii, March 22 to 23, 2019
- Damaging Winds in Virginia, March 22, 2019
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, March 2019
Sources
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: 814072.