Winter Storm — Wright, Minnesota

2014-04-16 · Wright, Minnesota

Event narrative

Numerous reports from local observers, and county officials indicated a large area of snowfall across the county. Amounts ranged from 12 to 15 inches in the northern portion of the county, to around 6 to 8 inches in the far south.

The Minnesota State Patrol reported a car crash during the afternoon of Wednesday, April 16th. A woman was heading east on Highway 55 and lost control on the slick roads and slid sideways into a vehicle, killing her. Two others had minor injuries in the crash.

Wider weather episode

A nearly stationary intense band of snow set up from southwest through northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin as low pressure tracked just to the south. Temperatures held steady in the upper 20s to lower 30s within the band of snow, however just to the south they reached the 40s and 50s. A sharp rain/snow line also remained nearly stationary, which led to extreme snowfall gradients across the area. For example, snowfall totals across Hennepin County ranged from nearly 13 inches in Rogers, MN to less than a half inch near Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport.

A swath of 8 to 16 inches stretched from just west of Hutchinson, MN northeast to northwestern Wisconsin, including most of central Minnesota and portions of northeast Minnesota. The highest total reported was 20.0 inches near North Branch, MN.

Intense snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches an hour caused significant travel delays across the region throughout the day and evening on the 16th. Several school districts closed early and remained closed on the 17th. A fatal accident resulted from the slick roads in Wright County.

The following are some of the heavier totals from this storm;

19.0 inches in Isanti.

17.0 inches in Nowthen.

16.0 inches in Cambridge.

15.9 inches in Rush City.

14.8 inches in Darwin.

14.6 inches in Monticello.

14.5 inches in Big Lake.

14.5 inches in Milaca.

14.0 inches north of Forest Lake.

14.0 inches in near Andover.

14.0 inches in Litchfield.

14.0 inches in St. Francis.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 501402. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.