Final storm wrap: 2 feet of snow up north
Biggest snowfall event of the season for Minnesota
The biggest snowfall event of the season dropped 1 to 2 feet of snow across much of Minnesota.
Our three-day storm event was timely and produced some meaningful moisture for drought Minnesota. We’ll likely see some positive impacts when this week’s U.S. Drought Monitor report for Minnesota is released Thursday morning.
Here’s a wrap of some of the impressive totals from our storm:
Northern and central Minnesota
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2 NNW of Gary New Duluth, 24.9 inches
2 ENE Baxter, 24.7 inches
4 ESE Casino, 22.8 inches
7 NNW Two Harbors, 21.2 inches
3 NNE Duluth, 21 inches
2 N Lester Park, 20.6 inches
1 SW Brainerd, 20.5 inches inches
East Gull Lake, 18.4 inches
7 WSW Pine River, 17.8 inches
Cloquet, 17.5 inches
3 NE Hermantown, 17.3 inches
Bemidji, 10 inches
St. Cloud area, 8.6 inches
Southern Minnesota
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, 12.1 inches
Marshall, 8.5 inches
Wabasha, 7 inches
Rochester area, 6 inches
Drought impact
Our three-day storm dumped meaningful precipitation amounts across most of Minnesota.
The three-day precipitation total from our snow to rain back to snow event in the Twin Cities reached 2.32 inches. The snow-to-water ratio for our snowfall was around 8 to 1. That’s why it was a heavy, wet cement-type snowfall.
Overall, most of the precipitation from this storm arrived before the Tuesday morning cutoff for this week’s U.S. Drought Monitor report. That means we should see some improvement in the drought coverage and intensity when the updated report arrives Thursday morning.
Warmer days ahead
Looking at the weather maps, I have a hunch this will be the last significant snow for southern Minnesota. No guarantees, of course, as we average 3.5 inches of snow in the Twin Cities in April. But I’m leaning that way.
Temperatures will rebound into the 40s by Friday through next Monday.
Forecast models suggest a significant warmup next week. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Global Forecast System model is cranking out 60s again for much of southern Minnesota late next week.
Stay tuned.