An enormous winter storm dumped heavy snow over a large portion of the midwest. This was the first blizzard, and significant snowfall of the 2009-10 winter season. At one time on December 8, there was a blizzard warning posted from northern Missouri to southern Minnesota. The blizzard warnings continued through the morning hours of December 9.
A developing area of low pressure over Colorado deepened and moved to northeast Missouri by the late evening of December 8. By 8am December 9th, the center of the low was over Milwaukee, with a barometric pressure at Milwaukee of 28.83 inches. While this pressure is low, it is not as low as the pressure recorded over Wisconsin and Minnesota during the Great Lakes storm of November 10, 1998.
The heaviest snow from the December 8-9 storm fell in a wide swath from Kansas, over all of Iowa, then clipping southeast Minnesota to the southern half of Wisconsin. In these areas from 8 inches to 16 inches of snow fell. The highest snow total found so far in Minnesota is 16.3 inches at Minnesota City and the town of Dakota in Winona County. The Twin Cities International Airport saw 7.4 inches by Noon, December 9. This is the largest snowstorm to hit the Twin Cities since the blizzard of February 28-March 2, 2007.
Winds gusting to 53mph were reported at Windom in southwest Minnesota at 5am on December 9. These strong winds, along with falling and blowing snow created visibilities near zero at times across southern Minnesota. Much colder air swooped in behind the storm and temperatures plummeted over western Minnesota by 9am December 9, Hallock in Northwest Minnesota was -17 degrees below zero.
Below are Public Information Statements from the National Weather Service.
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
1215 PM CST WED DEC 9 2009
...SNOWFALL TOTALS DECEMBER 8-9...
LOCATION SNOWFALL TIME LAT/LON
MINNESOTA
...DODGE COUNTY...
DODGE CENTER 13.0 1039 AM 44.03N 92.86W
MANTORVILLE 10.0 1040 AM 44.07N 92.76W
...FILLMORE COUNTY...
PETERSON 1S 14.0 0706 AM 43.78N 91.82W
PRESTON 14.0 0838 AM 43.67N 92.08W
SPRING VALLEY 3E 8.0 0941 AM 43.68N 92.31W
...HOUSTON COUNTY...
CALEDONIA 6S 14.0 1105 AM 43.54N 91.5W
HOKAH 13.0 0959 AM 43.76N 91.35W
LA CRESCENT 1N 13.0 0929 AM 43.83N 91.31W
HOUSTON 5E 13.0 1043 AM 43.76N 91.49W
RENO 3SW 12.0 1059 AM 43.53N 91.33W
RENO 9.5 0743 AM 43.60N 91.28W
SPRING GROVE 7.0 0826 AM 43.56N 91.64W
...MOWER COUNTY...
AUSTIN KAAL TV 11.0 0940 AM 43.68N 92.95W
GRAND MEADOW 10.0 0452 AM 43.71N 92.57W
AUSTIN 7.0 0825 AM 43.67N 92.98W
...OLMSTED COUNTY...
ORONOCO 2E 13.1 1045 AM 44.16N 92.51W
ORONOCO 12.3 0754 AM 44.16N 92.54W
DOUGLAS 2N 12.0 1054 AM 44.16N 92.57W
ROCHESTER KTTC TV 11.0 1150 AM 44.08N 92.51W
ROCHESTER 10.8 0730 AM 44.02N 92.47W
BYRON 10.5 0758 AM 44.03N 92.65W
ROCHESTER AIRPORT 10.3 0622 AM 43.94N 92.5W
...WABASHA COUNTY...
READS LANDING 1W 12.0 0727 AM 44.40N 92.17W
OAK CENTER 12.0 1210 PM 44.35N 92.4W
WABASHA 11.0 0752 AM 44.37N 92.04W
WABASHA 5S 11.0 1111 AM 44.32N 92.05W
ZUMBRO FALLS 10.0 0734 AM 44.29N 92.43W
THEILMAN 9.7 0833 AM 44.30N 92.2W
LAKE CITY 8.0 1028 AM 44.45N 92.28W
ELGIN 2SSW 8.0 0744 AM 44.11N 92.26W
...WINONA COUNTY...
MINNESOTA CITY 16.3 1046 AM 44.09N 91.75W
DAKOTA 16.3 0816 AM 43.91N 91.36W
WINONA 15.6 0859 AM 44.05N 91.66W
WINONA 3S 15.0 0449 AM 43.99N 91.61W
GOODVIEW 13.8 0648 AM 44.07N 91.71W
STOCKTON 13.0 1136 AM 44.03N 91.77W
ST CHARLES 5N 13.0 0831 AM 44.04N 92.07W
WINONA 2ENE 11.0 0752 AM 44.06N 91.63W
OBSERVATIONS ARE COLLECTED FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES WITH VARYING
EQUIPMENT AND EXPOSURE. NOT ALL DATA LISTED IS CONSIDERED OFFICIAL.
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
1220 PM CST WED DEC 9 2009
THE FOLLOWING ARE SNOWFALL TOTALS THROUGH 1215 PM DECEMBER 9 2009.
APPRECIATION IS EXTENDED TO COOPERATIVE OBSERVERS...SNOWFALL
SPOTTERS...AND HIGHWAY DEPARTMENTS FOR THEIR REPORTS.
SNOW REPORTS LISTED BY AMOUNT
INCHES LOCATION ST COUNTY TIME
------ ----------------------- -- -------------- -------
15.70 4 W WASHBURN WI BAYFIELD 0740 AM
15.00 5 S HERBSTER WI BAYFIELD 1120 AM
15.00 MAPLE WI DOUGLAS 1025 AM
15.00 WENTWORTH WI DOUGLAS 0915 AM
13.70 BAYFIELD WI BAYFIELD 0805 AM
SNOW DEPTH IS 16 INCHES
12.70 5 NW WASHBURN WI BAYFIELD 0900 AM
11.50 3 W BAYFIELD WI BAYFIELD 1020 AM
10.00 4 W CLAM LAKE WI BAYFIELD 0723 AM
9.50 GURNEY WI IRON 0845 AM
SNOW DEPTH IS 13 INCHES
9.00 UPSON WI IRON 0800 AM
8.50 HAWTHORNE WI DOUGLAS 0900 AM
HAWTHORNE DOT
7.80 9 N BAYFIELD WI BAYFIELD 0800 AM
7.20 5 SW PHILLIPS WI PRICE 0954 AM
7.00 HAYWARD WI SAWYER 0800 AM
6.00 WINTER WI SAWYER 1100 AM
6.00 SPOONER WI WASHBURN 0900 AM
5.50 8 N CUMBERLAND WI WASHBURN 1025 AM
5.00 ADOLPH MN ST. LOUIS 0900 AM
5.00 PARK FALLS WI PRICE 0900 AM
PARK FALLS DNR
4.00 CLOQUET MN CARLTON 1100 AM
4.00 20 N PARK FALLS WI ASHLAND 1050 AM
3.50 ASKOV MN PINE 0840 AM
3.20 4 N GRANTSBURG WI BURNETT 0720 AM
3.10 DULUTH MN ST. LOUIS 1200 PM
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE
2.50 WRENSHALL MN CARLTON 0845 AM
2.50 2 SE ESKO MN CARLTON 0800 AM
1.70 12 N ISLE MN AITKIN 0800 AM
1.50 FLOODWOOD MN ST. LOUIS 0723 AM
1.00 PEQUOT LAKES MN CROW WING 0815 AM
1.00 3 NE NISSWA MN CROW WING 0800 AM