Blizzard — East Otter Tail, Minnesota

2020-12-23 · East Otter Tail, Minnesota

Event narrative

From 1 to 4 inches of fresh snow and winds gusting from 45 to 55 mph combined to produce widespread blizzard conditions.

Wider weather episode

The season's first blizzard struck the area during the early morning hours of Wednesday, December 23, 2020. Although winds gusted up to 60 mph, the lowest visibilities were mainly tied to falling snow. The main snow band moved into the Devils Lake ND region around midnight, shifted into the northern and central Red River Valley around 3 am, then finally into west central Minnesota and the southern Red River Valley around 6 am, with blizzard conditions developing thereafter. The 60 mph winds and falling snow combined to produce whiteout conditions at times, especially in open country. Once the snow ended, the wind did continue to loft the snow particles and keep visibilities low.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 935514. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.