Winter Weather — Buffalo, Nebraska

2011-12-08 · Buffalo, Nebraska

Event narrative

Snowfall totals of 2 to 4 inches were reported across the county.

Wider weather episode

Although the forecast for this Thursday called for only 1-2 inches of snow across much of South Central Nebraska, a heavier-than-expected east-west snow band materialized for several hours near and north of Highway 6, resulting in widespread 3-4 inch amounts across several counties. Per NWS Cooperative Observers, amounts were fairly uniform, but some of the highest totals fell near Phillips (4.0 inches), in Grand Island (3.9 inches) and at the Hastings NWS Office (3.7 inches). Between the Highway 6 corridor and the Kansas state line, lesser amounts of 1-2 inches were common, with places such as Franklin and Hebron barely catching a dusting. Blowing and drifting snow was not a major issue during this event, with northeast winds only averaging 10-15 MPH. However, slick roads contributed to numerous accidents, including a two-vehicle collision that killed two teenagers on Highway 30 near Silver Creek.

This event was centered squarely on the daytime hours, as the first flakes started falling north of Interstate 80 around sunrise. The majority of accumulations occurred between 9 AM and 5 PM, before diminishing to flurries during the evening and gradually ending from west to east. The primary mesoscale forcing for this event was tied to a broad zone of mid level frontogenesis, focused within the entrance region of a stout 120+ knot upper jet streak aligned from southeast South Dakota into the Great Lakes. On the larger scale, Nebraska was brushed by extensive mid level shortwave energy diving southeast across the Dakotas, rotating around the southwest periphery of a deep Hudson Bay vortex. The snowfall on this day, combined with the first widespread snow of the season from Dec. 3, left much of South Central Nebraska under 5-7 inches of total snow cover for a short time before a warmer weather pattern took hold by mid-month.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 354471. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.