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Southeast Wyoming Sees 18 Blow-Overs During Wednesday Windstorm

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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

Well, at least your Wednesday wasn’t as bad as it was for some people.

The Wyoming Department of Transportation announced Thursday that the southeastern portion of the state saw at least 18 vehicles blow over during the wicked Wednesday windstorm that swept across the state.

Laramie County saw seven confirmed blow-overs, Albany County had six, Carbon County had three and the Wheatland area had two.

Most of the state saw gusts of up to at least 65-70 mph, but southeast Wyoming was pummeled with wind, with gusts of up to 105 mph. Anything over 74 mph is defined as a hurricane-force winds.

In Cheyenne, gusts ranged from 89 to 100 MPH, while the Cody Foothills were hit with similar winds.

“The wind event not only impacted Wyoming but surrounding states,” WYDOT said in their social media post.

Multiple portions of the interstate were closed to light and high-profile vehicles.

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What’s It Like At 119 Mph Winds? Folks In South Pass Area Found Out

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By Bill Sniffin, publisher

On Friday the 13th, no less, in the year 2020, the folks who live in the area of South Pass between Lander and Farson found out what living a class 3 hurricane feels like.

The National Weather Service recorded winds of 119 mph at Atlantic City and along the South Pass area.

Andrea Kenney of Lander snapped a photo of a pickup that was blown off the road, along with its horse trailer.

Walt Olson who lives in the area the top a new home was blown away by the brisk winds and he snapped a photo of the remains the home.

The big blow hit at 5:52 p.m. as a storm system battered most of Wyoming.  Wind blew at 59 mph in my back yard.

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Snow, High Winds Hit Portions Of Wyoming On Monday Night

Published on in Don Day/weather
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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

Cold temperatures, wind and light snow hit northwestern and southeastern Wyoming this week as more normal November weather returned to the region.

According to the National Weather Service in Cheyenne, most of the week will be cold and feature at least a little bit of snow, at least in the southeast portion of the state.

The NWS reported that around one inch of snow fell in the area from Pine Bluffs to Rawlins, as well as in portions west of Riverton, Lander and the Yellowstone National Park area.

“Unsettled weather as we are in a progressive, fast moving west to east wind pattern,” the NWS said in a report Tuesday morning.

Tuesday would see “very windy” conditions, with wind-prone areas likely seeing gusts up to 70 or 75 mph, the Weather Service said. Gusts of up to 65 MPH were likely on the downslope of the Laramie and Snowy ranges, including cities like Cheyenne, Laramie and Wheatland.

Wyoming weatherman Don Day confirmed this in his Tuesday morning forecast.

“A more typical November pattern is finally settling into the western United States,” Day said.

Northwestern Wyoming will also be hit with snow over this week, but temperatures will begin rise over the weekend and into early next week.

Any truckers with light loads or people towing camper trailers will have difficulty driving across southeast Wyoming on Tuesday.

There will be another chance of strong winds later in the week.

Thursday will likely be the driest day in terms of snow and precipitation.

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Wyoming Weather: October Set Record Cold Temps, Drier Than Normal

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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

No, you weren’t just imagining things: it definitely was colder and drier than normal in October, at least for a good portion of Wyoming.

The National Weather Service in Riverton announced Monday morning that its October climate summary showed some record high and low temperatures throughout the month.

Greybull, the Riverton airport, Rock Springs and Worland set cold temperature records last weekend when an early winter storm hit much of the state. Worland was down to -18 from -4 in 2019, Rock Springs was down to -10 from -8 in 2019, Riverton tied with its previous record, -9, from last year and Greybull was down to -8 from 3 in 2019.

It was the fourth coldest October on record for Greybull, fifth for Worland and the Riverton airport and the sixth for Buffalo, the Weather Service said.

Most locations tracked by the Riverton NWS office also received less than an inch of precipitation over the month, with the only exceptions being Lake Yellowstone and Buffalo.

This was the third driest October on record for Big Piney and fourth driest at the Riverton airport.

Wyoming meteorologist Don Day noted in his Monday morning forecast that as Wyoming enters the month of November, it would see warmer temperatures and gorgeous weather.

But then, the winter weather will again arrive.

“This is the way it’s gone this fall, we have these long stretches of above-average temperatures,” Day said. “It’s actually really good, then all of the sudden: the hammer comes down. We get arctic air, we get snowed on and then it gets nice again.”

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Winter Weather Hits Wyoming Over Weekend

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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

As Wyoming meteorologist Don Day put it in his Monday morning forecast, the arctic front did not disappoint this weekend.

Wyoming was hit with a cold blast over the weekend, dropping temperatures into the single digits, if not colder, and leaving more than 1 foot of snow in some areas.

Cheyenne and much of southeastern Wyoming saw some of the worst of the snow, with the capital city racking up anywhere from 12 to nearly 15 inches, according to the National Weather Service. This was the recorded snowfall from the Wyoming state line all the way down to Denver, Day said in his forecast.

He added that hopefully the weekend storm would put a stop to fire season and help slow down the Colorado wildfires, especially the Cameron Peak and East Troublesome fires that are affecting the Front Range.

Snowfall totals varied throughout the state and even throughout certain counties. For example, portions of Teton County only saw 2 inches of snow, whereas other parts received more than a foot.

Not all of the state saw snow, but the whole state definitely saw freezing cold temperatures, some of which were considered all-time lows for October.

According to the National Weather Service office in Riverton, four Wyoming towns broke their records for the coldest temperatures in October for the second year in a row. They were Worland (down to -18 from -4 in 2019), Rock Springs (down to -10 from -8 in 2019), Riverton (which tied with its previous record, -9, from last year) and Greybull (down to -8 from 3 in 2019).

The good news is that this will likely be the last snowstorm Wyoming sees for a little while, Day said in his forecast. He added that a cold front may move in over the weekend, but that he currently wasn’t seeing that happen in his models.

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Don Day: Winter Weather Coming This Weekend To Wyoming

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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

Enjoy these last couple days of fairly warm weather, because winter is moving in this weekend.

Wyoming meteorologist Don Day said in his Tuesday forecast that a cold front is moving into the state later this week (Thursday and Friday) and a storm system will form over the weekend.

The northern part of the state will likely see snow later in the week, while the southern portion of the state will probably see snow move in by Sunday.

“Hunters beware,” Day said in his forecast. “Also, if you’ve got plans on traveling in the region this weekend, especially Saturday night or Sunday morning…a lot of the northern and central Rockies will have the first widespread snow that will literally make roads and highways slick.”

The meteorologist added that people hunting in the mountains this weekend will likely see a “good amount” of snow over the weekend, which is something they should be cautious of.

Probably the most ominous part of his forecast, however, had to do with the really cold temperatures that are coming up.

How cold? According to some models, sub-zero temperatures are on the way.

“These are not celsius temperatures,” Day said. “These are fahrenheit temperatures by sunrise Monday. Anywhere you see grey is a sub-zero temperature — surrounded by single-digit teens.”

Day said this was just a model so it’s not the “gospel truth” but this is “the real deal” he cautioned.

Day explained that the jet stream (fast-flowing yet meandering air currents in the atmosphere) has been building up a ridge in the gulf of Alaska, which is “setting the stage” for the winter weather coming in this week.

The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning for some southeastern portions of the state until midday Tuesday, with predictions that gusts will increase again overnight.

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Jimmy Orr: Don Day Says Wyoming Will Get Break From Smoke Soon

Published on in Column/Jimmy Orr/News/weather
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By Jimmy Orr, Cowboy State Daily

Before Wyoming’s weatherman Don Day left for a fall hunting trip, we tracked him down to discuss the smoky air that is affecting many areas of the state.

Day said it will take 24 to 48 hours but we should be getting a break from the smoke due a rainstorm that will hit the Pacific Northwest over the weekend.

“There’s going to be rain moving into Washington, Oregon, even far northern California and that’s going to really help reduce the coverage of the fires,” Day said. 

He said the rain won’t extinguish the fires but will give firefighters some help.

The cold front will act as a broom, Day said and will push the smoke out.

“It will bring upper level winds that will be faster and stronger,” he said. “It may not completely get rid of the smoke, but by Sunday and Monday the smoke will be greatly reduced.”

If you’ve felt like the smoke has hung around for a long time, you’re not imagining things. It’s the time of the year.

“The thing to remember about high pressure this time of year is the winds aloft — the prevailing winds — are very weak,” he said.  “So when you build up a lot of smoke, there’s nothing to push the smoke out. It kind of lingers and hangs around until the weather pattern changes or the fires go out.”

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Record Low Temperatures, Big Snowfall, Hurricane Force Winds Hit Wyoming

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Wyoming had it all yesterday. Record low temperatures, significant snowfall, and winds high enough to be categorized as hurricane strength.

If you just moved here: Welcome!

Yes, we had low temperatures. Record-setting in many areas.

Record lows — so far — were recorded in Buffalo, Lander, Riverton, Rock Springs, and Yellowstone. 

Record cold high temperatures (which is confusing) were also set in many towns including Big Piney, Buffalo, Casper, Cody, Jackson, Lander, Riverton, Rock Springs, Worland, and Yellowstone.

To put this in perspective, Big Piney, which is frequently called the “icebox of the nation” normally has a high temperature of 71 degrees on September 8. The town’s previous record cold high was 55. Yesterday, it only hit 51 — which was pretty warm in comparison to the rest of Wyoming.

Casper’s normal high for September 8 is 79. It struggled to get over freezing yesterday and recorded 33 degrees as its high temperature.

Yesterday's high and low temperatures compared to the records and the average for this time of year. A handful of records were broken for low temperatures at go all the way back to the 1960s! #wywx

Posted by US National Weather Service Riverton Wyoming on Wednesday, 9 September 2020

As for snow totals, Fremont and Natrona counties both had locations which received 17 inches while one location in Park county had 12 inches of snow, and a Johnson county spot received 11 inches of snow.

The complete snow accumulation chart is available here.

And it wouldn’t be Wyoming without hurricane-force winds. 

The Rock Springs airport recorded a high wind gusts of over 80 mph many times, including a gust of 86 mph at the airport and southeast of the area.

Other notable locations with significant wind include: Farson (68 mph), Green River (67 mph), and Wamsutter (60 mph).

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Winter-Like Storm Creates Winter Wonderland in Some Areas; Blizzard From Hell in Other Areas

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The winter storm that’s affecting most of Wyoming is not an equal-opportunity employer.

It’s quite discriminatory, in fact.  

Looking at photos and videos posted on Facebook, particularly on our favorite page “Wyoming Through The Lens“, you see a remarkable difference in how the storm is impacting different areas of the state.

Up here in Hulett, the sun is peaking through the clouds and the high temperature should be around 50 degrees.

Down in Superior, Wyoming, a couple Facebook videos posted by Norbert Green show an entirely different picture. 

Posted by Norbert Green on Tuesday, 8 September 2020

Something that, perhaps, explorer Earnest Shackleton might have experienced when he was stuck in Antarctica.

Here's an update in Superior Wyoming ❤❤❤

Posted by Norbert Green on Tuesday, 8 September 2020

Meanwhile in Lander, as in other parts of the state, power is down and the snow is heavy.

Same with Douglas where there are reports of many downed trees.

While over in Jackson, the storm produced a picture-perfect Christmas wonderland.

This mornings drive….yes you read that right, THIS morning 🥶😍

Posted by Isaac Spotts on Tuesday, 8 September 2020

Contrast that to Rock Springs where the movie ‘The Shining’ comes to mind.

What a lovely summer blizzard!

Posted by Jacqui Abejar on Tuesday, 8 September 2020

And just remember, close your windows:

That’s because the wind has been something else today. Check out these wind speeds:

Maximum wind gusts across Western and Central Wyoming over the last 12 hours #wywxhttp://ow.ly/Cqx950BkFrU

Posted by US National Weather Service Riverton Wyoming on Tuesday, 8 September 2020

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Winter-Like Storm Closes Wyoming Highways, Leaves Thousands Without Power

Published on in News/weather
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By Jim Angell, Cowboy State Daily

A strong winter-like storm left Wyoming highways closed and thousands of Wyoming residents without power on Tuesday as the weekend’s warm, mild weather was replaced with brisk winds, snow and frigid temperatures.

The storm, the result of moisture coming into Wyoming from the west mixing with cold Arctic air, dropped temperatures from the 90s on Sunday to below freezing by Monday night.

The resulting snow, cold temperatures and brisk winds forced the closure of multiple Wyoming highways by Tuesday morning, including Interstate 80 between Cheyenne and Rawlins and from Evanston to the state border, U.S. Highway 189 north from Evanston to Kemmerer, U.S. Highway 20/26 from Casper to Shoshoni and U.S. Highway 14/16/20 at the eastern entrance to Yellowstone National Park.

The weather also caused power outages across the state. Rocky Mountain Power reported that almost 8,000 of its customers were without power Tuesday morning, most of them in the Rock Springs area.

However, outage maps also showed that people were without power in Green River, Riverton, Lander, Casper, Glendo and Douglas.

Snow from the storm appeared vary widely around the state, ranging from 3 inches in Gillette to 5 inches in Wheatland, 7.5 inches in Story, north of Buffalo and 11 inches in Douglas.

It appeared no schools were forced to close by the storm.

By Tuesday morning, Cheyenne had received less than one-half inch of snow.

The storm forced temperatures far below normal for early September and meteorologist Don Day said the cool, wet weather would continue in the region until at least Wednesday before conditions improve heading into the weekend.

“By Saturday afternoon, we’ve got a nice high pressure ridge returning to the region,” he said in his daily podcast. “It’s not a hot one. But what it will do is bring a return of nice looking, in fact, great looking September weather by the weekend that will probably stretch into all the next week.”

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