Extreme heat will continue across the Pacific Northwest into midweek before finally waning. Hot temperatures, dry, gusty conditions, and isolated dry thunderstorms will bring critical fire weather. Heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected across portions of the Southwest, the Sierras, and the central/southern Plains. A series of storms will bring heavy rain and strong winds to southern Alaska. Read More >
Overview
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A winter storm impacted portions of the Cowboy State for the final two days of 2018. The winter storm began to impact western Wyoming Saturday evening, December 29th. Periods of heavy snow occurred late Saturday night and Sunday across far western Wyoming. As the winter storm was coming to an end across far western Wyoming late Sunday afternoon, it was just beginning across northern and central Wyoming. An Arctic cold front swept southward late Sunday afternoon and evening. In wake of this strong cold front, a combination of snow, strong northerly winds, and plunging temperatures were observed east of the Continental Divide. The combination of snow and strong wind caused considerable blowing and drifting of snow with whiteout conditions observed in rural areas. Several highways across central and northern Wyoming were closed Sunday night, and some did not open until early Monday afternoon, December 31st. |
 Storm Total Snowfall Map - Click to Enlarge |
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| Star Valley on December 30th | Large snow drifts near Buffalo Monday morning | Snapshot of Wyoming road closures (red shading) as of 6 AM Monday |
Wind:
24 HOUR PEAK WIND GUSTS FROM 9 PM SUNDAY UNTIL 9 PM MONDAY. ...BIG HORN COUNTY... 30 E GREYBULL 60 MPH 1258 AM 12/31 8898 GREYBULL AIRPORT 56 MPH 1138 PM 12/30 3935 5 ENE HYATTVILLE 51 MPH 1152 PM 12/30 5670 COWLEY AIRPORT 47 MPH 0755 PM 12/30 4090 ...FREMONT COUNTY... 2 W SOUTH PASS CITY 55 MPH 1146 AM 12/31 8185 7 SW MUDDY GAP 53 MPH 0450 PM 12/30 7380 8 W SOUTH PASS CITY 47 MPH 0650 AM 12/31 8120 BOYSEN RESERVOIR 43 MPH 0730 AM 12/31 4710 BEAVER RIM 42 MPH 1016 PM 12/30 6784 RIVERTON AIRPORT 41 MPH 0605 AM 12/31 5525 ...HOT SPRINGS COUNTY... BOYSEN PEAK 61 MPH 0735 AM 12/31 7300 10 S MEETEETSE 55 MPH 1142 PM 12/30 7127 9 WNW THERMOPOLIS 47 MPH 1035 PM 12/30 4902 KIRBY 41 MPH 0930 PM 12/30 4350 ...JOHNSON COUNTY... 25 ESE BUFFALO 66 MPH 0145 AM 12/31 4657 BUFFALO AIRPORT 58 MPH 0817 PM 12/30 4970 5 ESE STORY 54 MPH 0911 PM 12/30 4673 7 NE BUFFALO 50 MPH 1100 PM 12/30 4370 LINCH 44 MPH 1231 AM 12/31 4934 20 SW ECHETA 44 MPH 1225 AM 12/31 4068 KAYCEE 42 MPH 0945 PM 12/30 4681 ...NATRONA COUNTY... 8 S CASPER 48 MPH 0252 AM 12/31 7740 16 S HILAND 48 MPH 1110 PM 12/30 6380 20 N CASPER 47 MPH 1021 PM 12/30 5677 CASPER AIRPORT 43 MPH 1138 PM 12/30 5320 7 W ALCOVA 43 MPH 0320 AM 12/31 6342 ...PARK COUNTY... 8 N MEETEETSE 66 MPH 0806 PM 12/30 5926 2 N FRANNIE 50 MPH 0953 PM 12/30 4275 POWELL AIRPORT 46 MPH 1015 PM 12/30 5050 CODY AIRPORT 43 MPH 0706 PM 12/30 5100 POWELL 41 MPH 1110 PM 12/30 4386 ...SUBLETTE COUNTY... 21 W BIG PINEY 44 MPH 0709 PM 12/30 8200 ...SWEETWATER COUNTY... 15 SE ROCK SPRINGS 58 MPH 0444 PM 12/30 7550 1 NNE GREEN RIVER 47 MPH 0947 AM 12/31 6315 ROCK SPRINGS AIRPORT 46 MPH 1103 AM 12/31 6760 I 80 - MILE MARKER 184 45 MPH 1101 AM 12/31 7112 I 80 - MILE MARKER 142 42 MPH 0455 PM 12/31 7162 FARSON 42 MPH 0830 AM 12/31 6594 ...TETON COUNTY... SUMMIT - JACKSON RESORT 59 MPH 0530 AM 12/31 10318 6 NW MOOSE 41 MPH 0500 PM 12/30 9770 ...WASHAKIE COUNTY... 10 SSE WORLAND 55 MPH 1017 PM 12/30 4520 WORLAND AIRPORT 54 MPH 0946 PM 12/30 4245 1 NNE WORLAND 51 MPH 1145 PM 12/30 4065
Snow
Public Information Statement National Weather Service Riverton WY 509 PM MST Tue Jan 01 2019 ...December 29-31, 2018 Storm Total Snowfall Reports... The following are storm total snowfall reports from Saturday evening through Monday evening; December 29-31, 2018. Observations are collected from a variety of sources with varying equipment and exposures. We thank all volunteer weather observers for their dedication. Not all data listed are considered official. ***** Snowfall Reports ***** Location Snowfall Big Horn County... Bald Mountain Snotel... 9 inches. Bone Springs Divide Snotel... 3 inches. 1 W Lovell... 1 inch. 9 NNW Shell... 0.5 inches. 2 SSW Lovell... 0.5 inches. Shell... 0.3 inches. Fremont County... 6.6 SW Lander... 16 inches. 6 SW Lander... 14.8 inches. 9 SW Lander... 11 inches. 9 SSE Lander... 10.1 inches. 9 SSE Lander... 10 inches. St. Lawrence Alt Snotel... 9 inches. 3 SW Lander... 9 inches. Townsend Creek Snotel... 7 inches. Atlantic City... 6.7 inches. Lander... 6.4 inches. 7 WNW Lander... 6.2 inches. Brooks Lake... 6.1 inches. 1 N Lander... 6 inches. Hobbs Park Snotel... 6 inches. Cold Springs Snotel... 5 inches. Lander Airport... 4.6 inches. South Pass Snotel... 4 inches. Deer Park Snotel... 4 inches. Boysen Dam... 4 inches. 1 W Riverton... 3.3 inches. Riverton... 3.2 inches. Burroughs Creek Snotel... 3 inches. Little Warm Snotel... 3 inches. Riverton Airport... 2.2 inches. Jeffrey City... 2 inches. 4 W Riverton... 2 inches. 2 W Riverton... 2 inches. Castle Creek Snotel... 2 inches. Burris... 1 inch. Dubois... 0.5 inches. Hot Springs County... Thermopolis... 8 to 12 inches. Owl Creek Snotel... 7 inches. Lucerne... 6 inches. 9 NE Thermopolis... 4 inches. Johnson County... Little Goose Snotel... 9 inches. Bear Trap Meadow Snotel... 8 inches. Cloud Peak Reservoir Snotel... 8 inches. Soldier Park Snotel... 7 inches. Hansen Sawmill Snotel... 6 inches. 4 SSW Buffalo... 5 inches. 13 SSE Buffalo... 4 inches. Buffalo... 4 inches. Lincoln County... Alpine... 10 inches. Blind Bull Summit... 9 inches. Willow Creek Snotel... 9 inches. Commissary Ridge... 9 inches. 5 NNE Thayne... 8 inches. Cottonwood Creek Snotel... 8 inches. Blind Bull Summit Snotel... 7 inches. Box Y Ranch... 7 inches. 3 SE Bedford... 7 inches. 5 SSE Smoot... 6 inches. 2 SE Thayne... 6 inches. Indian Creek Snotel... 6 inches. Spring Creek Divide Snotel... 6 inches. Afton... 4.4 inches. Hams Fork Snotel... 4 inches. Salt River Summit Snotel... 4 inches. Kelley Ranger Station Snotel... 3 inches. Natrona County... Casper Mountain Snotel... 8 inches. 1 S Casper... 6.6 inches. 10 WSW Casper... 6 inches. 5 SSW Casper... 6 inches. Grave Springs Snotel... 6 inches. Reno Hill Snotel... 5 inches. 4 WSW Casper... 4.8 inches. Casper... 2.5 to 4.5 inches. Powder River... 4 inches. Casper Airport... 2.2 inches. Park County... Marquette Snotel... 10 inches. Blackwater Snotel... 9 inches. Wolverine Snotel... 7 inches. Pahaska... 6 inches. Timber Creek Snotel... 6 inches. 3 NE Sunshine... 4.4 inches. Beartooth Lake Snotel... 4 inches. Kirwin Snotel... 4 inches. 26 SW Cody... 3 inches. Evening Star Snotel... 3 inches. 2 WSW Cody... 2.5 inches. Cody... 0.5 to 2.3 inches. Younts Peak Snotel... 1 inch. 3 NE Clark... 1 inch. 4 SW Powell... 0.5 inches. 4 ENE Powell... 0.2 inches. Powell... 0.1 inches. Sublette County... Kendall Ranger Station Snotel... 9 inches. Triple Peak Snotel... 8 inches. Snider Basin Snotel... 7 inches. New Fork Lake Snotel... 7 inches. Gunsite Pass Snotel... 6 inches. Loomis Park Snotel... 6 inches. East Rim Divide Snotel... 5 inches. Elkhart Park G.S. Snotel... 4 inches. Bondurant... 3.7 inches. Big Sandy Opening Snotel... 3 inches. Pocket Creek Snotel... 3 inches. 14 NW Pinedale... 2.8 inches. Pinedale... 2 inches. Sweetwater County... Wamsutter... 2 inches. Green River... 0.5 inches. 4 NNW Rock Springs... 0.4 inches. Rock Springs... 0.1 inches. Teton County... Grand Targhee Snotel... 20 inches. 6 NW Moose... 19 inches. Grand Targhee - Chief Joseph... 18 inches. Jackson Hole - Raymer... 17.5 inches. Jackson Hole - Mid Mountain... 15 inches. Grassy Lake Snotel... 13 inches. Jackson Hole - Rendezvous Bowl... 10.5 inches. Togwotee Mountain Lodge... 10 inches. Togwotee Pass Snotel... 10 inches. Phillips Bench Snotel... 8 inches. Snake River Stn Snotel... 8 inches. 3 SSW Wilson... 8 inches. 2 NE Teton Village... 5.3 inches. Gros Ventre Summit Snotel... 5 inches. Base Camp Snotel... 5 inches. Granite Creek Snotel... 5 inches. Snow King... 4 inches. Jackson Dam... 3.8 inches. Jackson Hole - Base... 3.5 inches. 1 NNW Alta... 3 inches. 5 NW Jackson... 1.8 inches. Jackson... 1.2 inches. Washakie County... Middle Powder Snotel... 10 inches. 27 S Ten Sleep... 7 inches. Powder River Pass Snotel... 5 inches. 16 SSE Ten Sleep... 5 inches. Ten Sleep... 2.8 inches. 5 NNW Ten Sleep... 2.6 inches. 8 SW Worland... 1 inch. Winchester... 1 inch. Yellowstone National Park... Two Ocean Plateau Snotel... 11 inches. Lewis Lake Divide Snotel... 10 inches. Sylvan Lake Snotel... 9 inches. Canyon Snotel... 9 inches. Yellowstone East Entrance... 8 inches. Sylvan Road Snotel... 7 inches. Parker Peak Snotel... 7 inches. Tower Falls Ranger Station... 5.7 inches. Old Faithful Ranger Station... 5 inches. Lamar Ranger Station... 3.6 inches. Thumb Divide Snotel... 3 inches. $$
Photos:
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| Interstate 25 at MM 228 near Midwest on Monday morning (source: WDDOT) |
Snow pic from Casper (source: Tracy W.) |
3 West of Lander snow measurement (source: Kirk W.) |
Snowing in Alpine (source: Wendi W.) |
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