April 09, 2013 - UNITED STATES - The storm that dumped snow across parts of the Rockies and northern Plains on Tuesday was expected to bring more severe weather on Wednesday.
The central and southern Plains areas were at risk for severe weather, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.
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A
man crosses the street during a winter storm that brought snow and a
fast plunge in temperature overnight to downtown Denver on Tuesday.
Brennan Linsley / AP
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Swaths of land from New Mexico to Wisconsin were under winter storm warnings,while parts of Utah were under blizzard warnings.
According to the National Weather Service, Oklahoma City and Wichita Falls, Texas, were at risk for tornadoes and possible hailstorms Tuesday night and into Wednesday.
Earlier Tuesday, blizzard warnings were in effect in Colorado, where the temperature plunged more than 50 degrees in less than 24 hours and the wind chill approached zero. Wyoming got more than a foot of snow.
The culprit is a deep dip in the jet stream that swung west and pulled arctic air far into the country. As it collides with warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico, strong storms and tornadoes are possible in the Great Plains and Texas.
“It’s just brutal to be outside,” said Eric Fisher, a meteorologist for The Weather Channel.
WATCH: A big storm is moving across the US – on one side of the system it's snowy and windy with temperatures below average. Meanwhile, warm air in parts of the Midwest leaves the region bracing for tornadoes. The East Coast, however, experienced record-highs. Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Seidel reports from Aurora, Colo.
In Denver, the temperature plummeted from 71 degrees at 2 p.m. Monday to 16 degrees at 7 a.m. Tuesday, with a wind chill of 1. More than 250 flights were canceled into and out of Denver on Tuesday alone.
In Wyoming, authorities closed two stretches of interstate more than 100 miles long — I-25 between Cheyenne and Douglas and I-80 between Laramie and Rawlins. More than a foot of snow fell by midmorning in the city of Lander, and one town near the Nebraska state line reported 2-foot snow drifts.
Snow was also falling at midday Tuesday in Colorado, Utah, the Dakotas and Minnesota.
The calendar may say spring, but April is the second-snowiest month of the year in Denver. The city has averaged 9 inches in April since 1882, second only to the 11.5 inches it gets in an average March, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather pattern threatened to bring damaging wind, large hail and perhaps tornadoes to parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Iowa, and weaker storms later in the day in the Ohio Valley.
“We’re looking at the gamut today for severe weather,” Weather Channel meteorologist Kevin Roth said.
As the system moves east, severe storms are possible Wednesday across a boomerang-shaped swath of the country from the Texas Gulf Coast north through Indiana and into western Pennsylvania.
Severe storms could move into Georgia, West Virginia and the Carolinas on Thursday. -
NBC News.
WATCH: Storm chasers move into Colorado just ahead of wild spring weather as others are fleeing. KUSA's Kevin Torres reports.
465 Flights Cancelled At Denver International Airport As City Gets Slammed With Spring Storm.
A storm that toppled trees, whipped up blinding dust storms and might have spawned some tornadoes brought blizzard conditions to parts of Colorado, where up to 20 inches of snow was possible in the mountains through Tuesday, April 9.
The storm has so far proved less potent than originally predicted in Colorado because a cold front has been lingering to the north. Wyoming has been hit harder, with over a foot falling in Lander.
Up to around 10 inches of snow had fallen in Colorado’s mountains by dawn. Another 5 to 10 inches was possible in some locations but final snowfall amounts would vary quite a bit, National Weather Service forecaster Jim Daniels said.
Up to a foot had been in expected in Denver but forecasters are now calling for around 5 inches.
The storm has canceled 465 flights at Denver International Airport and deicing was causing departing flights to be delayed by as much as a half hour.
Blizzard warnings are also in effect from south of Denver to the New Mexico line and in northwestern Colorado. Winds gusting up to 50 mph were expected there.
As the storm moved in Monday night, April 8, spotters reported two tornadoes near Akron in eastern Colorado.
Northern California was first to feel the lashing blasts of the storm Monday, which spread to the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys.
At least a dozen trees came down in San Francisco, police officer John Tozzini told KGO-TV, which reported that more than 20,000 utility customers lost power in the region. A swath of outages occurred across the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, the Sacramento Bee reported.
A tree smashed into a Sacramento home where four friends were playing bridge, but they didn’t stop playing their game Monday, according to KCRA.
Gusts topped 80 mph at some places in Southern California. The blustery system was being fueled by a cold front.
“It’s just a cold, really strong upper low,” said Carol Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard, Calif.
Whitecaps flecked the Pacific Ocean along the California coast, where gale warnings and small craft advisories were posted. Recreational boaters were warned to stay in port. Wind-driven swells slapped over the tops of breakwaters and turned waves into a churning froth under piers at points such as Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach on the Los Angeles County coast.
The wind turned small wildfires into big problems in some areas, including a blaze in Fillmore about 50 miles northwest of Los Angeles that burned two homes and forced the evacuation of 84 homes.
Blowing dust forced the closure of state Route 14 in the high desert Antelope Valley north of Los Angeles due to low visibility. Officer Michael Farrell said motorists who stopped on the road were hit from behind by other cars, but no major injuries were reported.
The power went out for more than 13,000 Southern Californians because of the winds and the weather.
The rush of air had an upside: California’s main power grid manager, the Independent System Operator, reported that turbines spinning within the ISO grid produced a record of 4,196 megawatts Sunday, April 7. The previous record was 3,944 megawatts on March 3.
In Arizona, gusty winds produced by a cold front enveloped Phoenix in a dusty haze and closed 34 miles of Interstate 40 in the northern part of the state for several hours Monday. At least four people were injured in a pileup when two semi-trucks jackknifed in a dust storm on I-10 in southern Arizona. The injuries were not life-threatening. -
Lubbock Online.
Pueblo Harley Davidson Store Damaged By High Winds.
High wind literally blew apart the Outpost Harley Davidson store in Pueblo. The City of Pueblo Fire Department responded to the Outpost at 5001 N. Elizabeth around 07:30 Tuesday morning. An hour later, firefighters say they saw the front façade wall extending from the second floor through the roof tear away from the building. Although employees were inside as the initial wind damage occurred, no injuries were reported. Damage to the front of the structure is extensive. Wind gusts were reported by the National Weather Service station in Pueblo at up to 64 mph overnight and 62 mph at the time of the destruction. Sustained winds were over 40 mph.
The building is expected to be closed until repairs can be made. The 5000 block of North Elizabeth Street is also closed Tuesday morning between the La Quinta Inn and Kohl's department store. The northbound and southbound lanes are closed due to debris flying from the building.Debris from the building is flying eastbound. 9NEWS partner KOAA says Pueblo Police Colorado State Patrol are monitoring the situation. The closure of I-25 is a possibility if the situation gets worse. -
9NEWS.
