3/27-3/29 Blizzard

[Michael Carlson]

We are at 13" here in westminster.
PHOTOS AND VIDEO HERE!

 

[Karen Burdick]

13" or 14" now in Arvada. Quite a nice 2'+ drift in front of the front door as well...

 

[Ben Prusia]

I can already say that I am already dreading the drive to work on Saturday afternoon, a nice 42 mile drive from Gardner to Kansas City, Missouri.

0Z NAM model runs show quite a copious amount of liquid precipitation falling in the KC Metro area throughout the day on Saturday. Looks like the majority of the precip will stay south of I-70, with snowfall amounts easily exceeding 10" IMO. Most people around here aren't prepared for this type of storm especially after being spoiled with green grass and 70 degree temperatures.

I'll try to get some pictures and video from southwest Johnson County (if I can even get out of my house on Saturday).

 

[jladue]

This is one of the most potent systems I've seen in some time and I think we'll see some excitement in central Oklahoma. This is a highly baroclinic, concentrated system and the WRF has the vertical stack of the low passing just south of here. Patternwise I feel there's great potential for heavy sleet or snow bands coming the OKC area later Friday night and much of Saturday morning.

Tim

I think you may be right. Though models show max frontogenesis extending in an arc further from the upper low center I think it may contract closer to the center. I'll be optimistic the grass will be covered in my lawn Friday night in Norman.

I'm also amazed at how fast and widespread the snow's developing out in the high plains. The polar front dropped incredibly fast down I-25 with a wall of snow.

 

[Chris Nuttall]

So far, Felt, OK, has already recorded 6 inches of snow.

 

[Jay McCoy]

All roads in the NW panhandle have already been closed. Hwy 87, Hwy 54, and hwy 385. Dalhart to startford (hwy54). Dalhart to Logan, Nm and also up to Boise City are shut. hwy 87 from hartley to clayton, nm closed.

The Amarillo EOC will go operational at 5:30am and I go on duty at 6am as do all Emergency Service units.

 

[Wesley Luginbyhl]

It started snowing in Guymon, OK about 30 minutes ago and is already sticking to the roads. Precip fell as sleet for about 20 mintues and has been all snow for the last 30 minutes. I kinda figured the roads would start to close once the snow began, which is why I made it to Guymon a couple hours ago.

 

[Jason Boggs]

As Jay said, roads are already closed down near Dalhart, and it's going to progress through the day. I'm sure most of the region will be literally shut down. I-40 will more than likely be closed east and west out of Amarillo. I can't remember the last time we were in a blizzard warning here in Amarillo.

I love winter weather, so this gets me as excited as a big May tornado outbreak. I'll definitely have video and photos on my blog after the event is over late tomorrow, so stay tuned.

 

[Tim Vasquez]

It does look like the 00Z WRF has shifted the baroclinic zone about 75-100 miles further south, compared to the earlier 12Z cycle. I wonder if anyone is seeing this too. This might displace all the action southward a little bit from what was previously expected.

The 00Z WRF cycle now puts the surface low in the Denton-Gainesville area tomorrow afternoon, and unless my memory is failing me, the charts from the previous cycle had this low in the Ardmore area. The track of the 700 mb / 500 mb low seems slightly further south as well, though not as much. Maybe the earlier runs had a warm bias from the climatological normals for this time of year?

Tim

 

[J West]

I looked at the NAM and GFS after reading the AFD's from some of the offices up here in the great lakes. It looks like 700mb low hauls up through central IL into lower Michigan which leaves me with a chance at some fresh snow here in SE WI. Luckily, I haven't put away the snow blower yet. We just got down with our first severe weather night before last and now back to snow. It seems the GOM moisture isn't quite making it up this far yet, so we are only looking at maybe 6-9 inches up here.

If the low swings a bit futher south, we'll barely get anything out of this one.

 

[Patrick Martin]

Snow shut down at my house just north of Denver around 6:30am today. Sun is peeking out now. Measured 15 inches of accumulation in my backyard.

 

[Jeff Piotrowski]

Model Snow Totals

Tim I agree the upper low and 850, 700 lows are farther south also the QPF from WRF,GFS, now puts NW/NC OKLA with the highest snow totals probably exceeding 24+ with NC- OK QPF over 3" Liquid

I expect this storm will break records in TX, OK, KS with snow totals.

Jeff P.

 

[Jason Bolt]

I was just wondering aloud if there had been a SVR warning in a thundersnowstorm before, then I looked at the radar and saw Enid is at 32 reporting thunder with half of the county in a blizzard warning and a SVR at the same time!

 

[joeybahr]

Here in Great Bend it started snowing about 10pm last night. Didn't stick on the streets until this morning about 6.

Right now the wind is blowing the snow around pretty good. The airport is reporting only 3/4 mile visibility, which I would agree with.

From the radar, it looks like we have a lot more snow on the way before the day is done.

 

[Mike Smith]

MODS --

Given the threat of tornadoes in South again today, is it OK to use this forum to post real time snow amounts and related reports?

Mike