The National Weather Service has issued an update with regards to an impending major moisture event. Will it be rain? Will it be snow? Here’s a report from those in the know, posted at 6am Friday, April 15.

 

“A Spring Storm is still expected to bring snow to most of southeast Wyoming with a rain/snow mix for western Nebraska.  Here is an update to the previous forecast:

 

This storm is trending colder.  Near surface temperatures appear to be 3 to 5 degrees colder compared to 24 hours ago.  This will result in lower forecast snow levels.  Snow levels are now expected to range between 4500 to 5500 feet. This will impact mainly the lowest elevations of eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska.  More on this below.

Winds are slightly higher, but with the heavy/wet nature of the snow this may not be much of an additional impact (blowing snow) outside the high mountains passes.  Drifting snow is still expected.

Winter Storm Watches have been upgraded to Winter Storm Warnings for the mountains beginning Friday afternoon.

Winter Storm Watch has been extended north and east to include the Pine Bluffs area and southwest Platte county.

 

Southeast Wyoming above 5000-6000 feet - Snow & Blowing Snow

* Timing:  Friday evening through Sunday night.

* Accumulations:  South Laramie Range/Foothills Snowy: 1-2 feet possible.  Generally 6-12 inches in the area of the Winter Storm Watch through Saturday night with additional accumulations possible Sunday night and early Monday.  Lesser amounts elsewhere.

* Impacts:  Travel will likely be severely impacted in areas from Cheyenne to Rawlins this weekend, especially the higher elevation mountain passes.

 

Southeast Wyoming below 5000-6000 feet - Rain/Snow Changing to Snow

* Timing:  Friday night through Sunday night

* Rainfall Amounts:  around one inch of rain.
* Snow Amounts: Rain/Snow mix changing to all Snow as early as Saturday Morning.  Periods of snow continuing into Sunday with 2-5 inches of snow mainly on grassy/elevated surfaces.

* Impacts:  Lower potential for lowland flooding in this area due to a quicker change over to snow.  Heavy snow will result in periods of slushy and slick roads.

 

Western Nebraska Panhandle - Mostly Rain with some snow

* Timing:  Friday night through Monday

* Rainfall Amounts:  2-4" inches of rain.  Mixing with wet snow periodically 4000-5000 feet in elevation Friday night and eventually changing to snow on Saturday. There is increasing confidence for the southern Nebraska Panhandle (Kimball & Banner Counties) to turn completely over to snow for an extended period Saturday and Sunday.  If this happens, then they could see 4-8" of snow there.

* Impacts:  Flooding is a concern across this area, but not as confident about flooding due to an eventual change over to snow over most areas.

 

There is still some uncertainty, which is now related to how long the storm will last since it is expected to move very slowly if at all.  Stay tuned as this information will likely be updated Friday.“

 

Don Day says A Winter Storm Warning is in effect from midnight tonight through 6pm Sunday. Travelers and stock growers be prepared for winter storm conditions that are imminent.

 

Mostly cloudy & windy today with a high in the 40s and a chance of showers and thunderstorms by this afternoon.

 

Snow tonight that could likely get heavy at times and continue through midday Saturday leaving 3 – 6 inches of snow. Another 3 – 6 inches of snow could fall Saturday night into Sunday.

More snow is possible Sunday night going into Monday.

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