Winter Storm

Winter Storm Ursa Was a Crippling Blizzard in the High Plains; One of Their Heaviest Late-Spring Snowstorms of Record

At a Glance

Ursa was a major blizzard in the High Plains during the final weekend of April 2017.
Numerous roads were shut down due to the blizzard.
Trees and power lines were knocked downed by winds up to 70 mph and heavy, wet snow.

Winter Storm Ursa brought a crippling, destructive blizzard from the Texas panhandle to Nebraska in the final weekend of April 2017. Ursa caused vehicles to be stranded, downed trees and power lines and whipped up snow drifts up to 8 feet in one of the strongest snowstorms to slam the High Plains so late in the spring.

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Ursa also brought heavy snow to the Rockies, and the Upper Midwest saw slushy accumulations as well.

High Plains Blizzard Recap

Numerous roads were closed in western Kansas Sunday, April 30, including a long stretch of Interstate 70 west of Hays to the Colorado border. Kansas National Guard dispatched teams looking for stranded motorists, some of which were rescued on Interstate 70 in Thomas County, emergency management told the National Weather Service (NWS).

A stretch of Interstate 80 west of Kearney, Nebraska, was also closed during the afternoon of April 30 due to multiple accidents.

(LATEST NEWS: Winter Storm Ursa's Impacts)

Here are some of storm reports from the Plains April 29-30:

Colby, Kansas: Estimated 14 to 20 inches of snow
Scott City, Kansas: Estimated 16 inches of snow
Herndon, Kansas: 6 to 8 inches of snow measured in 90 minutes
Elkhart, Kansas: Major tree damage, snow drifts up to 8 feet and power outages
Cambridge, Nebraska: Power poles broken; estimated up to 7 inches of snow
Red Willow County, Nebraska: Power poles snapped from Danbury to Lebanon
Near Goodwell, Texas: 70-mph wind gust
Texline, Texas: Up to 12 inches of snow
Arnold, Nebraska: Highway 92 blocked by heavy snow and was closed
Near Callaway, Nebraska: Power lines have about 1 inch of ice and lights are flickering on and off
Beaver City, Nebraska: Estimated 5 inches of snow; power outages in much of western Furnas County
Boise City, Oklahoma: Up to 12 inches of snow.
Thundersnow also occurred in several locations across western Kansas on April 30.

One of Heaviest/Latest High Plains Snowstorms?

The fact that this happened on the last weekend of April may leave you wondering how unusual Ursa was.

Given the High Plains, well, higher elevation, big spring and fall snowstorms are normal.

However, the snowfall totals we saw from Ursa were quite unusual for so late in the spring.

According to Dr. Brian Brettschneider from the Western Regional Climate Center, the following are the record heaviest, latest-in-spring one- or two-day snowstorms for each of the following states:

Kansas: 10 inches at McDonald on April 29, 1984 (one- and two-day record)
Oklahoma: 12 inches near Boise City on May 3, 1978 (one- and two-day record)
Texas: 12 inches at Stratford on May 3, 1978 (one- and two-day record)

If peak snow totals reported in western Kansas hold, Winter Storm Ursa would take the crown as producing the heaviest snowfall anywhere in the Sunflower State so late in the season.

Ursa's snow totals appear to be on par with the May 3, 1978, snowstorm peak totals in the Oklahoma and northern Texas panhandles, and produced more snow in the city of Amarillo (2 inches) than the storm a few days later in the calendar 39 years ago did (0.5 inches).

Rockies Snow Total Recap

Before pounding the High Plains, Ursa also brought snow to the Rockies. Here are selected snowfall totals from Ursa in that region April 27-30.

Colorado: 39 inches near San Isabel; 25.1 inches in Genesee; 2-5 inches in the Denver metro area
Montana: 17 inches near Fishtail; 12.5 inches near Red Lodge
New Mexico: 16 inches in Ute Park; 8.4 inches near Santa Fe
Wyoming: 33.0 inches near Lander; 23.0 inches in Jackson Hole; 9.9 inches in Riverton

On April 29, snow brought down tree limbs and power lines in portions of southeastern Colorado, including the Pueblo area.