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Winter Storm Atlas: Snow Totals and Photos from South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana
Winter Storm Atlas: Snow Totals and Photos from South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana
Sep 19, 2024 9:39 AM

Winter Storm Atlas delivered feet of snow from the northern Rockies to the northern High Plains Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 3-5. As the region recovered, late reports continued to trickle in as late as Monday afternoon, long after the storm had ended. Here's a roundup of the impacts of Atlas:

Snow totals from Winter Storm Atlas.

Wind gusts from Winter Storm Atlas.

Top historical snowstorms in Rapid City, S.D.; two of the top three have occurred in 2013.

South Dakota

According to The Associated Press,first responders in Rapid City were overwhelmed with calls for stuck vehicles and downed trees and power lines making some roads impassable. Police spokeswoman Tarah Heupel said snow and ice was accumulating on traffic signals, making the lights difficult to see.A report submitted to the National Weather Service Friday night said that there was widespread tree damage on the north side of Rapid City along with widespread power outages.The National Weather Service confirmed blizzard conditions occurred in Rapid City, with visibility of 1/8 mile for over three hours.Sustained winds reached 44 mph with gusts to 55 mph at the Rapid City airport before the sensor was knocked out of commission late Friday afternoon. As of Sunday morning the airport was still not reporting any weather data.All Rapid City schools were closed Friday due to impacts from Atlas.Interstate 90 was closed between Murdo and the Wyoming state line.Wind gusts up to 71 mph accompanied the heavy snow in western South Dakota.MORE: South Dakota road conditions

Snowfall Totals:

A Monday update from the National Weather Service indicated that the top total was 3 miles southeast of Beulah, Wyo., just over the state line in northwest Lawrence County, S.D. At this location, an incredible 58 inches of snow fell. The liquid equivalent there was 6.78 inches of water, over 20% of the average annual precipitation in this area. Other totals included:

Lead – 55"

Deadwood – 48" on the west side of town

Sturgis – 35" on the east side of town

Piedmont – 35"

Rapid City – up to 31" on the city's southwest side

Spearfish – 26" downtown

The official total of 23.1 inches in Rapid City makes this the second heaviest snowstorm on record in the city. Nearly six months ago they recorded their now third heaviest snowstorm on record with 22.4 inches from April 8-10, 2013. It is also by far the biggest October snowstorm in Rapid City; in fact, the 23.1 inches from this one storm dwarfs the city's previous record for the entire month of October, which was 15.1 inches in 1919.

Wyoming

The Associated Press reported that heavy snow snapped tree limbs that knocked out power lines in parts of the state, causing thousands of people to lose power.The snow and wind closed many highways in eastern Wyoming.

Snowfall Totals:

Around 30 inches fell in the southern Big Horn Mountains and on Casper Mountain, according to the National Weather Service.

Reno Hill (elevation 7900 feet, 22 miles southeast of Casper) – 34"

Sundance – 24”

Lusk – 20" with drifts up to 8 feet

Lander – 17"

Casper – 16.2" makes this their heaviest snowstorm on record so early in the season; the third-heaviest October snowstorm; and the 10th-heaviest overall in Casper weather records.

Sheridan – 9"

Montana

Snowfall Totals:

Pony – 32”

Limestone – 30"

Near McLeod– 25"

Near Red Lodge– 22"

Fishtail – 21”

Near Big Sky – 17"

Colorado, Nebraska, North Dakota (Top Snow Totals)

Collbran, Colo. – 12.5”

Northern Sheridan County, Neb. – up to 26", with 6-foot drifts, near the South Dakota border

Mott and Elgin, N.D. – 12"

(MORE: October's Increasingly Snowy Reputation)

PHOTOS: Winter Storm Atlas

iWitness Guzva84 captured this photo of mailboxes encased in snow in Spearfish, SD.

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