REPORTS & PICS: 1/28/10 Southern Plains Winter Storm

[Jason Boggs]

As of now (6am) it's sleeting heavily in Amarillo with some accumulation taking place. There may have been a small area of freezing rain initially but it transitioned over to sleet very quickly. I'm trying to sleep, but the pounding of sleet against the window is not helping at all!

MODS, can you change this to the 28th please? I screwed up and put the 20th for some reason.

 

[Mike Umscheid]

Sleet here in Dumas to begin this event, too. Light accumulation on the ground. Every now and then, there's a snow flake, so I don't think we are too far off here.

 

[Mike Umscheid]

Beautiful. Just a half hour or so of sleet in Dumas. Almost entirely snow now at 1330 UTC! Let the games begin!!

EDIT 7:45am: There's still quite a bit of sleet mixed in, It's say 60% snow 40% sleet, it just looks like all snow looking in the street lights.

 

[Mark M Smith]

29 degrees here at SE OKC. Local Met.'s are talking about up to
1" of ice

 

[Chuck Robertson]

Well the Pantex Plant northeast of Amarillo (where I work) preemptively closed today in anticipation of this storm. Darn! Guess I just have to backyard winter chase today!

Light to moderate freezing rain and sleet started about an hour ago here in Miami. No snow yet. Probably not until almost noon for the snow here.

I hoping for at least 5 or 6 inches by the time the mother lode is done this evening. Looks like a quick shot, but probably very intense precipitation while it lasts. Hoping for even a little thunder!

 

[cedwards]

Here in Shawnee OK, we are already having freezing rain. The windows on the vans have a nice glaze covering them. I have set up a webcam on my bushes to show the ice build up throughout the day as they get weighted down.
http://www.cloud9tours.com/Christmas/cam.html

 

[Rocky Rascovich]

Sleet already mixing in here in Piedmont as of 9:12am!!! This may be a good thing!! Hopefully this trend will continue.

 

[Eric Sipes]

Still hoping for a change over to IP ASAP but, still moderate FRZR here in Cordell, OK. We've got 1/4"+ glaze over just about everything. Roads still seem decent as of 1540Z but, expecting it to change very soon. With Mdt FRZR still falling and winds reported over 20kts in W OK, it won't be long before tree limbs and power lines start coming down. There are already reports of power outages about 50mi to my south around Blair and Martha, OK.

-Eric

 

[Jeff Piotrowski]

1/28/10 Now TX,OK,KS,AR,MO

Lots of reports of 1/4-1/2 ice glazing trees and power lines in most of SW-W/OK. HWY Patrol reporting wrecks on I-40 bridges.

The new 12Z data is looking like 2-3" QPF over a large area.

NAM freezing rain for the next 36HR panel may not be perfect but close.
http://wxcaster4.com/nam/CONUS1_NAM212_SFC_ACCUM-FZRN_36HR.gif

Sleet:
http://wxcaster4.com/nam/CONUS1_NAM212_SFC_ACCUM-SLEET_36HR.gif

Snow: The models are now looking like nice wrap around over NE/OK with 4-8" likey during the day Friday.

http://wxcaster4.com/nam/CONUS1_ETA212_SFC_ACCUMSNOWFALL-KUCHERA_36HR.gif


update: Snow rates are 2" per hour now falling from Dumas southward to just north of AMA covarge. This area is exspanding.

Thuder snow also just NW of AMA.

 

[Chuck Robertson]

Have now been receiving moderate to heavy sleet over the past couple of hours, but lately I've noticed a few occasions when a few big, juicy snowflakes have mixed in. I think the transition here in the eastern TX Panhandle should be very soon. This is very fun to watch!!!

Edit: I am noticing that a dry intrusion is moving up rapidly from LBB toward the panhandles. Precip has all but ended just south of AMA. This may be the end of the show coming for at least the southern TX panhandle, and maybe more.

I'm feeling more strongly that this event will not be what was advertised, with the possible exception of a few areas north of I-40, and maybe even well north of I-40. Its just moving way too fast.

 

[Jason Boggs]

We had sleet in Amarillo for almost 4 hours this morning. I was getting sick and tired of hearing it pounding against my window. As of right now, heavy snow with some pretty good gusts of wind. I tried to sleep a little more but I'm just too excited! Time to venture out and document this sucker!

 

[Elinor McLennon]

Here in north Edmond roads are still ok. I just got back in from checking out conditions. The van iced over, wipers accumulated some ice. Saw a bit of sleet mixed in and I hope that trend continues.

 

[Brian Altenhofel]

I'm getting some moderate freezing rain. Most surfaces (cars, deck, rails, grass, etc.) have about 1/4" of glaze on them, I saw few branches with closer to 1/2". The roads seem so-so at the moment, I'm not sure about the highways. A friend just notified me that at least the southern part of Burns Flat is without power. We have been getting a fairly steady amount of power sags in the last hour.

 

[Jason Boggs]

Fore those interested, here is what it looks like outside my apartment balcony in Amarillo.

 

[Jason Boggs]

Just found out that basically all roads are closed in the area. I-40 west and east out of Amarillo is closed along with Hwy. 287. Basically all major roadways in the panhandle are closed.