NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY

MARCH 2025

2-8: Active weather included significant precipitation across parts of the South, East, and Midwest, as well as unsettled, showery conditions in much of the West. Late season snow briefly blanketed several areas, including the upper Great Lakes region, southern High Plains, and a belt stretching from the northern Intermountain West into Iowa. Additionally, an outbreak of severe weather unfolded across the southeastern Plains early March 4 before sweeping to the Atlantic Coast late the following day.

Much of the active weather was focused by a storm system that emerged early in the week from the West. That low-pressure system crossed the central Plains before reaching the Great Lakes region around the middle of the week. Heavy showers drenched parts of the Midwest and East, while blizzard conditions developed across western and central Nebraska and environs before expanding into parts of the upper Midwest and upper Great Lakes region. Meanwhile, high winds raised dust across portions of the southern Plains. A couple of fast-moving disturbances immediately trailed the sprawling storm system, leading to snow from Wyoming into Iowa.

As early-week precipitation emerged from the western U.S., Great Falls, MT, received a daily-record total (0.40 inch, including 3.0 inches of snow) on March 3. The next day, record-setting precipitation totals for March 4 included 2.29 inches in Tulsa, OK; 1.64 inches in Peoria, IL; 1.49 inches in Des Moines, IA; and 1.25 inches in South Bend, IN. Wind-driven snow fell on March 4-5 in the western Corn Belt, where totals included 9.5 inches in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN; 3.7 inches in Omaha, NE; and 2.7 inches in Des Moines, IA. During the event, peak wind gusts from the north-northwest reached 65 mph in Omaha, 61 mph in Des Moines, and 45 mph in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Farther south, high winds also raked the southern Plains, leading to locally significant visibility reductions in blowing dust. On March 4, Midland, TX, reported a wind gust to 60 mph and visibilities as low as one-half mile. Elsewhere in western Texas on that date, gusts included 74 mph in Dalhart and 69 mph in Lubbock. By March 5, heavy snow spread across the upper Great Lakes region, where daily-record totals reached 20.8 inches in Marquette, MI, and 6.9 inches in Rhinelander, WI. In the Atlantic Coast States, daily-record rainfall totals for March 5 included 2.69 inches in Richmond, VA; 1.86 inches in Atlantic City, NJ; 1.85 inches in Williamsport, PA; 1.54 inches at New York’s LaGuardia Airport; and 1.17 inches in Worcester, MA. Augusta, ME, measured 2.18 inches over a 2-day period, aided by a daily record sum of 1.69 inches on March 6. Meanwhile, snow returned across parts of the northern Intermountain West, extending into the western Corn Belt. Lander, WY, which had received 3.1 inches of snow on March 4, recorded 13.6 inches on March 6-7. Following 2.2 inches of snow in Valentine, NE, on March 4, an additional 7.9 inches fell on March 6-7. Both Lander (12.3 inches) and Valentine (7.3 inches) collected daily record snowfall amounts for March 6. Late in the week, precipitation spread inland across southern California, where record-setting precipitation totals for March 7 included 0.86 inch in Oceanside Harbor and 0.42 inch in San Jacinto. On the same date, Flagstaff, AZ, noted daily records for precipitation and snowfall (0.96 and 15.9 inches, respectively). The March 7 snow in Flagstaff accounted for exactly one-half of the season-to-date total of 31.8 inches, which was just 44 percent of the normal. By March 8, beneficial precipitation fell across parts of the southern Plains, including Texas locations such as Childress (1.22 inches) and Wichita Falls (1.16 inches). Wet snow fell in some areas, with Amarillo, TX, noting 4.0 inches on March 8.

9-15: A very warm pattern developed across the central and eastern U.S., in advance of approaching Pacific storminess, setting the stage for an extraordinarily active late-week period featuring high winds, blowing dust, severe thunderstorms, and dozens of tornadoes. Other end-of-week highlights included downpours (3 to 6 inches or more) and flash flooding in parts of the Southeast, fast-spreading wildfires on the southern Plains, and a small area of wind-driven snow across the upper Midwest.

High winds and blowing dust were especially severe across the southern Plains on March 14, when local gusts above 80 mph sharply reduced visibility and contributed to several chain-reaction vehicular accidents. Elsewhere, active weather in the West included widespread precipitation, with snow blanketing higher elevations. Some of the heaviest precipitation fell along the Pacific Coast and in the Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Although the Southwest also received some rain and snow, prospects for spring and summer runoff remained mostly

Early-week downpours across the lower Southeast led to a record-setting rainfall total for March 9 in Tallahassee, FL, where 4.25 inches fell. By the middle of the week, widespread precipitation arrived in the West. Daily-record totals for March 12 included 1.06 inches in Santa Barbara, CA, and 0.52 inch in Yakima, WA. On March 13 in southern California, daily-record totals topped an inch in locations such as Ramona (1.38 inches) and San Jacinto (1.09 inches). According to the California Department of Water Resources, the average water equivalency of the Sierra Nevada snowpack increased to around 23 inches by mid-March, more than 90 percent of normal for the date. In Alta, UT, month-to-date snowfall topped 85 inches, with 40 inches falling from March 13-16. In Flagstaff, AZ, big snow events on March 6-7 and 13-15, with respective totals of 18.9 and 13.5 inches, helped to boost the season-to-date snowfall through March 15 to 46.8 inches (60 percent of normal). Farther east, a rash of late-week weather extremes included wind, wildfires, and tornadoes. In Lubbock, TX, a westerly wind gust to 82 mph on March 14 was the highest on record during the spring and the highest non-convective gust at any time of year. Several other gusts ranging from 80 to 85 mph were noted across western Texas, while reports in Oklahoma included 83 mph in Frederick, 75 mph in Hobart, 74 mph in Stillwater, and 68 mph in Oklahoma City. Late-week wildfires in Oklahoma scorched at least 170,000 acres of land and destroyed at least 200 homes, with the fire outbreak extending into parts of Kansas and the northern panhandle of Texas. March 14-15 also featured more than 100 tornadoes, based on preliminary reports, across the South and lower Midwest, with several resulting in fatalities. On the 15th, torrential rainfall soaked the interior Southeast, leading to flash flooding and daily-record totals reaching 6.01 inches in Muscle Shoals, AL; 5.12 inches in Tupelo, MS; and totals ranging from 3 to 4 inches in Kentucky locations such as Frankfort and Bowling Green. The previous wettest day in Muscle Shoals, at any time of year, had been 5.71 inches on September 13, 1979.

13-22: For the second time in 5 days, a ferocious dust storm across the southern High Plains and neighboring regions led to sharp visibility reductions and increasingly stressful conditions. The dust, lofted by high winds on March 18, was drawn into a storm system crossing the central Plains and upper Midwest and led to widespread reports of “dirty” rain and snow. On March 19-20, significant accumulations of wind-driven snow occurred from parts of Kansas and Nebraska into northern Michigan, while locally severe thunderstorms erupted across the Midwest. More than a dozen tornadoes were spotted on March 19 across Illinois and Indiana.

Farther east, drought-easing precipitation fell on March 16 and 20 in portions of the middle and northern Atlantic States. Elsewhere, dry weather dominated the southern Plains and the Southwest, while widespread, late-season precipitation fell across northern and central California and the Northwest. According to the California Department of Water Resources, the average water equivalency of the high-elevation Sierra Nevada snowpack climbed nearly to 25 inches, essentially ensuring a normal seasonal accumulation.

Heavy showers lingered in the Atlantic Coast States through March 16, when daily-record rainfall totals included 1.37 inches in Williamsport, PA, and 1.31 inches in Atlantic City, NJ. High winds preceded, accompanied, and trailed the Eastern rain, with Clarksburg, WV, clocking an all-time-record peak gust to 71 mph on March 16 (previously, 67 mph on April 10, 1991). Meanwhile, heavy precipitation overspread parts of the Northwest. In Oregon, record-setting totals for March 16 included 3.47 inches in Roseburg and 1.38 inches in Eugene. With 1.34 inches, McCall, ID, also netted a record-setting sum for March 16. As precipitation raced eastward across the nation’s northern tier, International Falls, MN, received a daily record snowfall of 7.4 inches on March 17. Additional moisture overspread northern sections of the Rockies and Plains on March 18, resulting in daily-record totals in locations such as Sheridan, WY (0.93 inch), and Billings, MT (0.42 inch). Farther south, high winds raked the southern Plains on March 18, when Lubbock, TX, recorded a gust to 78 mph. That reading closely followed Lubbock’s highest spring wind gust on record—82 mph on March 14. Other March 18 peak gusts included 76 mph in Ruidoso, NM; 75 mph in El Paso, TX; 74 mph in Carlsbad, NM; 72 mph in Clayton, NM; and 70 mph in Dalhart, TX. El Paso reported visibility reductions in blowing dust to one-half mile or less or 10 of the first 18 days of the month, including March 18. In some areas, high winds lingered into March 19, when peak gusts reached 72 mph in Clinton and Gage, OK, along with 68 mph in Garden City, KS. Meanwhile, the March 18-19 snowfall in Kansas totaled 6.3 inches in Goodland and 4.4 inches in Dodge City. In Nebraska, the March 19 snowfall included 6.7 inches in Hastings, with a peak gust to 71 mph, and 5.0 inches in Lincoln, with a gust to 73 mph. The most significant band of accumulating snow eventually cut across parts of western and northern Iowa, southeastern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.

23-29: Disorganized storminess became more focused as the week progressed, with heavy precipitation events affecting the western and central Gulf Coast States and the upper Great Lakes region, respectively. In the latter region, late-week precipitation included damaging ice accretions across northeastern Wisconsin and northern Lower Michigan, leading to widespread tree damage and extensive power outages. Precipitation extended to other areas, including the Midwest and Northwest.

precipitation highlights were scarce. On March 23, snow in the north-central U.S. led to daily-record totals of 7.3 inches in International Falls, MN, and 7.1 inches in Wausau, WI. A day later, snow fell in northern New England, where Bangor, ME, measured 5.3 inches, a record for March 24. Meanwhile, heavy showers dotting the South led to a daily-record sum (3.26 inches) for the 23rd in Greenwood, MS. Heavy precipitation also began to spread inland across the Pacific Northwest; in western Washington, record-setting rainfall amounts for March 23 reached 4.23 inches in Quillayute and 1.19 inches in Bellingham. By March 26, an organized area of heavy rain developed across southern Texas and drifted eastward. Victoria, TX, collected consecutive daily-record totals—1.66 and 1.97 inches, respectively—on March 26 and 27. Historically heavy rain fell in Deep South Texas on March 27, when daily totals included 13.79 inches in Harlingen, 8.18 inches in McAllen, and 5.72 inches in Brownsville. Previously, Harlingen’s wettest March on record— 1997—had featured 5.24 inches of rain, and the wettest March day had been 2.50 inches on March 8, 1938. McAllen also set a monthly rainfall record in a single day, with the previous highest March sum having been 4.48 inches in 2012. The 27th was easily the wettest March day on record in McAllen (previously, 4.37 inches on March 29, 2012) and Brownsville (previously, 4.79 inches on March 12, 2007). Farther north, heavy precipitation developed across the upper Great Lakes region, in the vicinity of a nearly stationary frontal boundary separating warm from cold air. In northern Lower Michigan, some of the heaviest rain and worst icing conditions occurred on March 29, when daily-record totals included 2.19 inches in Houghton Lake, 1.17 inches in Traverse City, and 1.06 inches in Alpena. Ice accretions topping an inch leveled large swaths of forest and decimated the electrical grid, leading to protracted power outages.

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com