''Thursday, November 06, 2008
The Associated Press
More than 3 feet of snow fell in higher elevations of South Dakota's Black Hills as an early season blizzard caused havoc in the western part of the state.
The National Weather Service reported about 40 inches of snow in Lead and Deadwood, while in Spearfish, about 2 feet of snow had fallen by midday Thursday. Roads were covered with drifts up to 6 feet in Spearfish.
A National Weather Service observer reported 38.5 inches of snow just northeast of Deadwood.
"It's a raging blizzard out there," said Jeff Schild, a meteorologist with the NWS office in Rapid City.
The snow came down -- sideways might be a better description -- at a rate of 3 inches an hour overnight. It's slacked off to 1-2 inches an hour, Schild said late Thursday morning.
"It's still rolling here. It's still going on," he said. Wind gusts of 60 mph were still being reported late Thursday morning.
Downtown Rapid City reported a 78-mph wind gust late Wednesday.
Interstate 90 is CLOSED...between Murdo SD and Wyoming
The Associated Press
More than 3 feet of snow fell in higher elevations of South Dakota's Black Hills as an early season blizzard caused havoc in the western part of the state.
The National Weather Service reported about 40 inches of snow in Lead and Deadwood, while in Spearfish, about 2 feet of snow had fallen by midday Thursday. Roads were covered with drifts up to 6 feet in Spearfish.
A National Weather Service observer reported 38.5 inches of snow just northeast of Deadwood.
"It's a raging blizzard out there," said Jeff Schild, a meteorologist with the NWS office in Rapid City.
The snow came down -- sideways might be a better description -- at a rate of 3 inches an hour overnight. It's slacked off to 1-2 inches an hour, Schild said late Thursday morning.
"It's still rolling here. It's still going on," he said. Wind gusts of 60 mph were still being reported late Thursday morning.
Downtown Rapid City reported a 78-mph wind gust late Wednesday.
Interstate 90 is CLOSED...between Murdo SD and Wyoming