NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY
APRIL 2020

1-4: A late-season storm delivered wintry precipitation across the north-central U.S., increasing the likelihood of major spring flooding in parts of the Red River Valley (of the North) and environs. Storm-total snowfall reached 6 to 16 inches across
eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. Meanwhile, separate areas of significant precipitation affected New England, the Pacific Northwest, and an area stretching from south-central Texas into the mid-South. Northeastern precipitation, sparked
by an Atlantic coastal storm, was accompanied by gusty winds, while late-week rain in southern Texas provided local drought relief. a late-season storm. April 1-3 snowfall reached 11.0 inches at the National Weather Service office in Grand Forks; 9.1
inches in East Rapid City, SD; 7.8 inches in Casper, WY; 6.2 inches in Mobridge, SD; and 6.1 inches in Bismarck, ND. Grass Range, MT, received 9.0 inches of snow in a 24-hour period on March 31 – April 1. Earlier in the week, precipitation had fallen
in several other areas. For example, record-setting Northeastern totals for March 29 included 0.84 inch in Massena, NY, and 0.67 inch in Saint Johnsbury, VT. On the same date, Marquette, MI, collected 1.18 inches, including snowfall totaling 0.8 inch. By
March 30, precipitation overspreading the Northwest resulted in a daily-record sum (0.89 inch) in Olympia, WA. Late in the week, heavy showers in Texas resulted in daily-record totals in Austin (Bergstrom), with 2.20 inches on April 3, and San Antonio,
with 2.06 inches on April 4. Meanwhile in Florida, Lakeland completed its driest March and first month without a drop of rain since October 2010. Tampa, FL, finished its first month without measurable rain since October 2010—and tied a March record (
previously set in 1907 and 2006) with only a trace of rain.

5-11: A slow-moving storm system near the Pacific Coast sparked several days of heavy precipitation in southern California. Cool weather accompanied the persistent cloudiness and showers, holding southern California’s weekly temperatures as much as 5
to 10ºF below normal. By late Saturday, a few strong thunderstorms erupted across the central and southern Plains—a harbinger of a much more widespread severe-weather and heavy-rain event across the South on April 12. Farther north, a harsh (Continued
from front cover) late-season cold outbreak and snowstorm overspread northern sections of the Rockies and Plains on Saturday; the following day, accumulating snow spread across the upper Midwest, from Nebraska and southern South Dakota into much of
Wisconsin and Michigan’s upper peninsula.
12-18: The Plains, Midwest, and Northeast, there were several instances of accumulating snow, starting with a significant storm across the northern Plains and upper Midwest on April 11-12. A subsequent storm produced a stripe of heavy snow on April 16-17
from Nebraska into the lower Great Lakes region.
Farther south, a deadly severe weather outbreak struck the South on April 12-13. The outbreak featured more than 130 tornadoes, based on preliminary reports, and resulted in more than 30 tornado-related fatalities. The severe weather was accompanied by
torrential rain (locally 2 to 4 inches or more), leading to flash flooding, river rises. Rain fell in some drought-affected areas across Florida and along the Gulf Coast, but bypassed others.

Significant, late-season snow accompanied the chilly conditions in several areas, particularly across the northern and central Rockies. As the week began, a late-season snowfall was in progress in parts of the upper Midwest. Record-setting snowfall
totals for April 12 included 9.1 inches in Rhinelander, WI; 7.5 inches in Rochester, MN; 5.2 inches in Sioux Falls, SD; and 3.7 inches in Sioux City, IA. For Sioux Falls, it was also the snowiest Easter on record, surpassing 5.0 inches on March 31, 1929.
In Michigan, Marquette received 18.8 inches of snow on April 12- 13. Meanwhile, heavy showers and severe thunderstorms erupted across the South. With a 4.17-inch sum on the 12th, Crossville, TN, noted its wettest April day on record (previously, 4.13
inches on April 4, 1977). Daily-record rainfall amounts for April 12 included 2.58 inches in Tyler, TX; 2.28 inches in Jackson, TN; and 1.94 inches in Montgomery, AL. By April 13, heavy showers swept into the East, where daily-record totals reached 3.10
inches in Lynchburg, VA; 2.33 inches in Washington, DC; 1.97 inches in Baltimore, MD; and 1.92 inches in New York’s Central Park. The deadly tornado outbreak began in Mississippi and later spread to parts of Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina. One
tornado in southern Mississippi was on the ground for approximately 76 minutes (from 4:12 to 5:28 pm CDT on April 12) and had a path length of nearly 68 miles across parts of five counties. The same tornado, an EF-4 with winds estimated near 190 mph, had
a maximum width of 2.25 miles and resulted in eight fatalities. The only wider tornadoes in U.S. history occurred in El Reno, OK (2.6 miles wide on May 31, 2013), and Hallam, NE (2.5 miles wide on May 22, 2004). By April 13-14, light snow dusted the
southern High Plains, where Amarillo, TX, received 1.7 inches. At mid-week, patchy snow stretched from the northern Rockies into the Midwest. Daily-record snowfall totals for April 15 included 2.1 inches in Missoula, MT, and 1.7 inches in Chicago, IL.
Missoula also netted a daily-record precipitation total (0.59 inch) for April 15, along with Pocatello, ID (0.63 inch). On April 16-17, snow spread eastward from parts of Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. Record-setting snowfall amounts for April 16
totaled 9.1 inches in Lander, WY; 6.9 inches in Cheyenne, WY, and 5.0 inches in Omaha, NE. On April 17, snowfall reached 3.0 inches in Chicago, IL, and South Bend, IN. For Chicago, it was the second-latest snowfall of at least 3 inches, behind 3.1 inches
on April 23, 1967. By April 18, Harford, CT (2.4 inches), and Providence, RI (1.2 inches), achieved daily-record snowfall totals. Historically cold weather for mid-April settled across the Plains and Midwest.
19-25: Rain and locally severe thunderstorms swept across much of the South and lower Midwest. The heaviest rain, locally 5 inches or more, fell from northern Louisiana into central Georgia and southern South Carolina, sparking flash flooding and river
rises. Beneficial showers dotted Florida but mostly bypassed the southern part of the state. In contrast, little or no rain fell across the northern and southern Plains and the upper Midwest. The week began amid Southern downpours. With a 5.42-inch
total on the 19th, Tuscaloosa, AL, experienced its wettest April day since April 12, 1979, when 6.44 inches fell. Daily-record amounts for April 19 totaled 3.36 inches in Birmingham, AL, and 3.31 inches in Hattiesburg, MS. On the same date, tornadoes
resulted in single fatalities in Marion County, MS, and Henry County, AL. Meanwhile, a new storm system arrived in the West, producing dailyrecord totals for April 19 in Alturas, CA (0.68 inch), and Ely, NV (0.57 inch). On the same date, Stanford, MT,
received 1.8 inches of snow. By mid-week, another round of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms erupted across the South. Daily-record rainfall totals for April 22 included 1.95 inches in Vicksburg, MS, and 1.45 inches in Springfield, MO. The following
day, record-setting amounts for the 23rd reached 3.23 inches in Savannah, GA, and 2.14 inches in Macon, GA. Three more deadly tornadoes struck on April 23, with a total of six fatalities in Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana. The tornado in Texas, an EF-3
with winds estimated as high as 140 mph, traveled more than 32 miles across San Jacinto and Polk Counties, causing three deaths in Onalaska. Farther north, late-season snow fell in parts of the Northeast, where record-setting totals for April 22 included
5.5 inches in Caribou, ME, and 0.7 inch in Buffalo, NY. By April 24, much-need rain fell in Florida, where daily-record totals climbed to 4.05 inches in Sarasota-Bradenton and 1.67 inches in Tampa. At week’s end, heavy rain developed in the lower
Midwest. Daily-record totals for April 25 included 3.30 inches in Lincoln, IL, and 1.58 inches in Evansville, IN. Mild weather covered western Alaska, while temperatures were mostly close to normal across the remainder of the state.

26-30: A slow-moving storm system delivered heavy rain across parts of the eastern Plains. Heavy rain eventually swept into the East, where 1- to 3-inch totals were common in the middle and northern Atlantic States. Precipitation was spottier, however,
across Florida, where pockets of drought persisted.

Farther east, however, significant rain developed in late April in many areas along and east of a line from eastern Texas to Lake Superior. On April 26, mixed precipitation across the interior Northeast led to a daily-record snowfall amount of 0.9 inch (
and liquid totaling 0.85 inch) in Binghamton, NY. Later, daily-record amounts for April 28 included 1.82 inches in Lake Charles, LA, and 1.45 inches in Grand Rapids, MI. Lake Charles also received more than an inch of rain on April 29, for a 2-day total
of 2.91 inches. Elsewhere on the 29th, daily-record amounts climbed to 3.67 inches in Macon, GA; 2.44 inches in Muskegon, MI; and 2.06 inches in Asheville, NC. Muskegon’s 4-day (April 27-30) rainfall rose to 3.91 inches. As heavy rain swept across the
Atlantic Coast States on April 30, daily-record amounts totaled 2.87 inches on Cape Hatteras, NC; 2.20 inches in Tampa, FL; and 1.61 inches in Lynchburg, VA. Meanwhile, Northwestern showers produced a daily-record sum (0.46 inch on April 30) in Stanley,
ID. At week’s end, additional precipitation arrived in the Northwest and overspread the High Plains, resulting in daily-record amounts for May 2 in Scottsbluff, NE (1.03 inches), and North Bend, OR (1.00 inch).

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