The snowstorm of April 15 to 20, 2013

The Regional Snowfall Index is NOAA’s ranking of snowstorms east of the Rockies by how much snow fell, over how wide an area and on how many people, region by region: the area and the population above four snowfall thresholds set for each region, weighted against that region’s own history. A storm is scored in each region it reached, on a scale from 1, notable, to 5, extreme.

Events

282

Deaths

0

Injuries

0

Damage

None recorded

Episodes

31

Every winter weather episode the Weather Service filed east of the Rockies in these dates. A few may belong to another system on the same days. 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.

• Winter Storm in South Dakota, April 13 to 15, 201312 eventsA large upper level low pressure area brought heavy snow to much of northern South Dakota. Much of the precipitation began as a mix of rain, freezing rain, sleet, and snow before changing to all snow.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, April 14, 20137 eventsA large upper level low pressure trough combined with warm air aloft and cold air at the surface to bring freezing rain to parts of northeast South Dakota. Ice accumulations of a quarter to a half inch occurred on power lines and trees.
• Blizzard and Winter Storm in North Dakota, April 14 to 15, 201342 eventsStrong low pressure pushed across the Rockies April 13th, slowed down over the Dakotas April 14th, then moved east on April 15th.
• Winter Storm in Minnesota, April 14, 20132 eventsA slow moving storm system brought a large area of sleet, snow and freezing rain across southern Minnesota the morning of Sunday, April 14th.
• Heavy Snow in Washington, April 14, 20131 eventTraining convective snow showers provided significant snow accumulations along I-90 between Easton and the Cascade crest on April 13th-14th 2013.
• Winter Storm in North Dakota, April 14 to 15, 201318 eventsA low pressure system developed from western North Dakota into southeastern South Dakota from Sunday the 14th into Monday the 15th.
• Winter Storm in Minnesota, April 14 to 15, 201324 eventsA low pressure system developed from western North Dakota into southeastern South Dakota from Sunday the 14th into Monday the 15th.
• Blizzard in North Dakota, April 14, 20136 eventsAs a winter storm was developing over western and central North Dakota very strong winds developed across upland portions of eastern North Dakota. The strong winds produced mainly ground blizzard conditions in the middle of the afternoon.
• Winter Weather in Michigan, April 14 to 15, 20136 eventsA low pressure system approaching from Minnesota produced a mix of moderate wet snow, sleet and freezing rain over portions of the west half of Upper Michigan from the 14th into the 15th.
• Heavy Snow in Minnesota, April 14 to 15, 20135 eventsA winter storm brought heavy snow of about 6 to 9 inches to parts of northeast Minnesota, including higher terrain areas of the north shore in the Minnesota Arrowhead.
• Winter Storm in Utah, April 15 to 17, 20133 eventsA large, moist storm system moved through the region in mid-April. One of the main features with this storm was a cold frontal boundary that stalled across Utah for more than a day, bringing heavy snowfall to the valleys of southwest and northeast Utah.
• Winter Storm in Colorado, April 15 to 16, 201312 eventsA strong upper level jetstream moved over northern Colorado and produced bands of very heavy snow.
• Heavy Snow in Montana, April 16, 20131 eventHeavy snow occurred over Marias Pass and eastern portions of Glacier National Park. Snow also affected other locations further south along the Continental Divide including Lincoln, Flesher Pass, MacDonald Pass and Rogers Pass.
• Winter Storm in Nebraska, April 16 to 17, 201320 eventsA slow moving Pacific low pressure system produced moderate to heavy snowfall across the western Nebraska Panhandle. East to northeast winds of 35 to 45 mph produced blowing and drifting snow and very low visibilities.
• Winter Storm in South Dakota, April 16 to 17, 201310 eventsA strong spring storm moved across the central Rockies and Great Plains, bringing snow to much of western South Dakota. The heaviest snow fell across southwestern South Dakota, where five to nine inches of accumulation was reported.
• Winter Storm in Alaska, April 16 to 17, 20131 eventLow pressure persisted in the central Gulf of Alaska on 4/16 which moved warm moist air over colder air near the surface along the Eastern Gulf Coast. This caused a day of heavy snow.
• Winter Weather in Oklahoma, April 17 to 18, 20131 eventThe combination of a fast moving shortwave trough, the divergent quadrant of the jet stream, and sub-freezing surface temperatures allowed for 1 to 2 inches of snow to accumulate during the overnight hours of the 17th and early morning hours on the 18th.
• Winter Weather in Texas, April 17 to 18, 20131 eventThe combination of a fast moving shortwave trough, the divergent quadrant of the jet stream, and sub-freezing surface temperatures allowed 1 to 2 inches of snow to accumulate during the overnight hours of the 17th and early morning hours of the 18th.
• Winter Weather in Nebraska, April 17 to 18, 201310 eventsIn the midst of one of the top-10 coldest months of April on record for much of South Central Nebraska, a late-season winter storm brought a widespread 1-4 inches of snow to most counties during a roughly 15-hour period between the late evening of Wednesday the 17th and the…
• Cold in Texas, April 17 to 18, 201320 eventsA cold post frontal airmass was well established across the Texas Panhandle overnight on the 17th. This cold airmass allowed temperatures to drop below freezing prior to midnight and remain so until the mid-morning hours on the 18th.
• Cold in Oklahoma, April 17 to 18, 20133 eventsA cold post frontal airmass was well established across the Oklahoma Panhandle during the night of the 17th. This cold airmass allowed temperatures to drop below freezing slightly prior to midnight and remain so until the mid-morning hours on the 18th.
• Winter Storm in Minnesota, April 18 to 19, 201329 eventsA storm system began to organize across the southern Rockies early April 17th, and moved quickly northeast across the Plains, and into the Upper Midwest by Thursday evening, April 18th.
• Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Minnesota, April 18, 20138 eventsSnowfall of 5 to 8 inches was accompanied by areas of blowing snow. The blowing snow, which took place in winds gusting up to 40 mph, was noticed mainly while the wet snow was falling.
• Winter Weather in Iowa, April 18, 20133 eventsWet snow accumulated 2 to 5 inches in northwest Iowa near the northern border of the state during April 18th.
• Winter Storm in Wisconsin, April 18 to 19, 20131 eventA storm system began to organize across the southern Rockies early April 17th, and moved quickly northeast across the Plains, and into the Upper Midwest by Thursday evening, April 18th.
• Blizzard and Winter Storm in Michigan, April 18 to 20, 20139 eventsA significant late season winter storm emerging out of the mid-Mississippi Valley dumped heavy snow over much of western Upper Michigan...especially higher terrain locations along Lake Superior...from the 18th into the 20th.
• Cold in Texas, April 18 to 19, 201320 eventsAll of the Texas Panhandle dropped below freezing for several hours during the late night hours of the 18th and morning hours of the 19th. A cold front moved through the Panhandle early on the 15th, and the post frontal airmass allowed for temperatures to plummet after sunset.
• Cold in Oklahoma, April 18 to 19, 20133 eventsAll of the Oklahoma Panhandle dropped below freezing for several hours during the late night hours of the 18th and morning hours of the 19th.
• Winter Storm in Wisconsin, April 19, 20131 eventA strengthening area of low pressure tracked from eastern Iowa northeast to Lower Michigan. Cold air poured into the region behind the storm system on gusty northwest winds and changed rain into snow.
• Heavy Snow in Montana, April 20 to 21, 20132 eventsA Canadian cold front brought heavy snow to areas along the Rocky Mountain Front and light snow elsewhere across north-central Montana in mid-April.
• Winter Storm in Wyoming, April 21 to 22, 20131 eventA strong Spring storm system moved across the Northern Rockies and brought heavy snow to the mountain and foothill locations of North Central Wyoming.

The snowstorm of April 13 to 15, 2013The snowstorm of April 22 to 24, 2013Snow nowEvery winter storm filed

NOAA NCEI Regional Snowfall Index, and the Storm Events Database for the episodes.