Northwest Iowa — The first major storm of the winter season passed through northwest Iowa over the weekend, bringing with it rain, sleet, snow, and strong winds, paralyzing the area as it passed through.
Snowfall amounts varied for the weekend, ranging from 2.0 inches in Rock Rapids to 9.0 inches at Ashton. Cherokee ended up with 8 inches, 6-inches of snow fell at Hawarden, and Sibley, with Sheldon, Sioux Center, and Orange City seeing 5.5 inches, and Le Mars reporting 4.5 inches. According to the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls, the locations with lower snowfall amounts stayed warmer, longer, allowing more of the precipitation to fall in the form of rain and sleet before changing to snow.
In addition to the snowfall, winds gusting at more than 30-miles per hour were recorded around the area Saturday. Those strong winds combined with the heavy snowfall to make traveling all but impossible Saturday and Saturday evening.
The storm played havoc with area businesses, some of which closed early Saturday, and others that didn’t open at all due to the weather. At KIWA we received weather-related announcements from some 15 businesses and organizations on Saturday. Some area high school and college basketball games were postponed on Saturday. More than 55 area churches canceled their normal Sunday services due to the weather, and more than 20 area schools had classes that started late on Monday, due to the weekend storm.
Looking ahead, we find chilly temperatures this week, with highs reaching only the teens and 20’s through next weekend. There is no snowfall forecast for the listening area through next weekend, according to the National Weather Service In Sioux Falls.
