Winter Storm: Mar. 19/20 Recap

A long duration and dynamic winter storm struck portions of the Central and Southern Plains this past weekend, bringing with it nearly a foot of snow for parts of Kansas and Missouri. While snowfall did fall at a moderate to heavy intensity at times, the main culprit for the significant snowfall amounts was the long duration of the snowfall.  To think, the ground was so warm from the previous two days of sunny and 60s that there was a portion of the snow that melted instead of accumulating.  The first round of snow came with post-frontal precipitation across parts of Iowa, Nebraska and then into Kansas and Missouri during Friday evening and early overnight. As the early nighttime hours progressed, the first band of snow was enhanced by the developing upper level low to the south across Oklahoma/Texas resulting in increased coverage and intensities across Kansas and Missouri.  There were even reports of thundersnow with lightning strikes across parts of northeast Kansas around the Midnight time frame.

A short break in the snow for Kansas City came during the morning hours on Saturday, as the post-frontal precipitation had moved into central Missouri.  The low pressure system both in the lower and mid levels quickly deepened during the day, causing a large swath of deformation snow to occur over parts of eastern Kansas and western Missouri.  This snowfall came down long and steady and caused a majority of the accumulations over the Southern Plains and for areas south of I70 in Kansas and Missouri.  A very tight temperature gradient still existed across central/western Missouri which during the day on Saturday which kept the precipitation as rain over many areas including Springfield, Jefferson City, and especially St. Louis (which never saw any snow).  As the sun set on Saturday evening, a battle between the air masses resumed in which a cooling air mass due to the setting sun was being warmed by the strong southerly flow ahead of the low pressure system. This did allow some areas to see quick accumulations of snowfall, such as Springfield as the air mass cooled quick enough just before the warm air arrived.  Reports were also received of both sleet and ice accumulations where the air mass wasn't quite cold enough for snow at the lower levels.

For a full look at your local area's snowfall amounts as well as a write up from a few of the NWS offices please select one of the links below.  Additional links may be added as they become available.

Kansas City NWS -  Snowfall Maps & Recap
Wichita NWS - Snowfall Map
Springfield NWS - Snowfall Map