Late March Snowfall Breaks Bismarck, North Dakota, Record

Bismarck, North Dakota -- Before the latest storm started, as late as Saturday March 28, the National Weather Service was predicting snowfall amounts of 6 to 8 inches for the I-94 corridor, including Dickinson, Mandan, and Bismarck. The storm started in Bismarck early Sunday afternoon, with rainfall turning to sleet by about 4:00 p.m. at my house, and by snow to about 6:00 p.m. That evening the wind speed was moderate, and snow was actually falling down. When I put my dog out for her pre-bed exercise just after 9:30 p.m., there was a 4 to 5 inch pile of snow atop the fence all the way around my back yard, and atop my garbage cans.

By Monday morning (March 30) when I got out, the wind was gusting to 40 miles per hour, and there was a four-foot drift holding my storm door closed and across the driveway to my yard. With what force I had, I managed to get the door pushed open just far enough for me and my large dog to get out. The snow was past my knees, and up to my dog's chest. We body-plowed it to the gate, and when she got into her yard, she began her usual fresh snow play, tossing piles of it into the air and sticking her entire head into the already-high drifts in the yard.

Bismarck schools were closed Monday morning, and Interstate Highway 94 (I-94)was closed from Bismarck to the Montana border at some point during Sunday night and Monday morning. The snow total at the airport Monday morning was 12 inches, but by Monday at 10:00 p.m., the total was 17.1 inches, breaking Bismarck's record for a 24 hour snowfall, and putting the city just over 2 inches from breaking the record for the most snowfall in a single winter season. Considering that it's still March, though barely, and that in 1997, three of the heaviest snowstorms were in April, I think it's likely that Mother Nature will break that record before real spring arrives here. The southwestern part of the state had snowfall amounts ranging from about 10 inches in Dickinson to 22 inches in Hazen.

Travel in the city of Bismarck was discouraged by the Police Department; they said that only true emergencies should bring people out in their cars, between the depth of snow on the streets and the problems with visibility, as the snow caused white-outs at times. They offered to pick up anyone who needed medical care, and take them to the hospital. I saw no cars moving in my neighborhood through most of Monday, and only 2 or 3 large pick-up trucks Monday evening.

My sister is a physician at MedCenter One's Women's Medical Center, and she was the only physician in that clinic who made it to work Monday morning. She was on-call that evening, and since her car was completely buried by that point, she stayed at a hotel across from the hospital rather than attempting to drive to her home.

By Monday evening, I couldn't open my front door at all because of the depth and weight of snow against it. Each time I tried to let my dog out or in, I had increasing trouble getting both the back door and the gate open because of the increased snowfall and the heavy wet nature of the snow.

By Tuesday morning, I-94 was closed from Mandan to Dickinson, and open with no travel advised from Dickinson to the Montana border. Snowplows had been working since Monday night on the highways, and by noon on Monday the western part of I-94 was open, but closures were being considered in the eastern part of the state as Fargo, already overwhelmed by snow and flooding, was being hit with the heaviest part of the storm. They'd received over 5 inches by late Monday night, and the storm is expected to last all day today (March 31). Warmer temperatures are predicted for later in the week which may again threaten Fargo's levees and sandbagging, and may affect Bismarck with more flooding too. Residents across the state are hoping that this was winter's last blast, but we're not betting on it.