On this day in 2019, most of the state was dealing with a blizzard and winter storm. Could history repeat itself?
Well it could, but not this year. No snow is foreseen for the next couple of weeks and is unlikely through the rest of the month. However just a few years ago from October 10th through the 13th, a large storm system struck the state leaving behind 1-3 feet of snow in north central and north eastern North Dakota.
Rain quickly turned to snow as a strong cold front rushed across the state. A large Colorado low lifted into the area and stalled over North Dakota and Minnesota on the 10th and remained stationary through the weekend. This resulted in several days of strong winds which reached as high as 64 mph gusts resulting in widespread blizzard conditions across central and eastern North Dakota Friday and Saturday. Accumulating snowfall reached as high as 30 inches observed near Harvey ND, with drifts over 10 feet tall. Widespread one and two feet of snow was observed across nearly all of central and eastern North Dakota.
This Historic blizzard hit at a time when leaves were still on the trees resulting in numerous tree damage reports, as well as blanketing crops across much of the state. Some crops were a lost cause and others were forced to be left alone until the following spring to be harvested.
meteorologist,
Justin Storm
