National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office

Pressure records were set at several locations across the Northern Plains and Midwest yesterday. The massive storm system had a minimum central pressure of 28.24" or 956 mb (equivalent to the minimum pressure of a Category 3 hurricane). This is deeper than the Blizzard of 1978 (aka the Cleveland Sueprbomb) at 28.28" (958 mb) on Jan. 26, 1978. This is also lower than the March 1993 Superstrom (aka "The Storm of the Century"), or the "Witch of November" storm that sank the Edmund Fitzgerald in 1975, or even the Columbus Day Storm of Oct. 1962.

Here is this morning's ummary of the storm—including reports of peak wind gusts—from the NWS Hydrometeorological Prediction Center:

STORM SUMMARY NUMBER 6 FOR MIDWEST HIGH WIND EVENT
NWS HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL PREDICTION CENTER CAMP SPRINGS MD  
400 AM CDT WED OCT 27 2010
 
...RECORD BREAKING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM BEGINS TO WEAKEN AS IT
MOVES INTO ONTARIO CANADA...
 
HIGH WIND WATCHES AND WARNINGS AND WIND ADVISORIES REMAIN IN
EFFECT FOR AN EXTENSIVE AREA FROM ACROSS MUCH OF NORTHERN PLAINS
INTO PARTS OF THE CENTRAL PLAINS...THE MIDWEST...UPPER GREAT
LAKES...AND NORTHERN OHIO VALLEY. STORM WARNINGS CONTINUE TO BE IN
EFFECT FOR THE WATERS OF THE GREAT LAKES.
 
BLIZZARD WARNINGS...WINTER STORM WARNINGS....AND WINTER WEATHER
ADVISORIES ARE ALSO IN EFFECT ACROSS MUCH OF NORTH
DAKOTA...NORTHERN MINNESOTA...EXTREME NORTHWESTERN WISCONSIN...AND
NORTHEASTERN MONTANA.
 
FOR A DETAILED GRAPHICAL DEPICTION OF THE LATEST
WATCHES...WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES...PLEASE SEE WWW.WEATHER.GOV

AT 300 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLAR RADARS AND
SURFACE OBSERVATIONS INDICATED A 962 MB...28.41 INCH...SURFACE LOW
CENTERED JUST EAST OF ATIKOKAN IN ONTARIO CANADA. SUSTAINED WINDS
OF 35 TO 45 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 55 MPH COVER MUCH OF THE NORTHERN
PLAINS AND THE UPPER MIDWEST...WHERE LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOW WITH
EMBEDDED HEAVIER BANDS WAS OBSERVED.

...SELECTED PEAK WIND GUSTS IN MILES PER HOUR EARLIER IN THE
EVENT...

...IOWA...
BOONE AIRPORT 4 ESE                     58                     
SPENCER                                 58                     
WAUKON                                  51                     
ESTHERVILLE AIRPORT                     50                     
IONIA 2 N                               49                     
CHARLES CITY 3 E                        45                     

...ILLINOIS...
MACKINAW 1 NE                           70                     
DUPAGE AIRPORT                          61                     
FAIRVIEW                                60                     
LAWRENCEVILLE AIRPORT                   60                     
OSKALOOSA                               60                     
JACKSONVILLE                            58                     
OLNEY                                   57                     
FLORA 1 E                               56                     
PETERSBURG 8 E                          55                     

...INDIANA...
GREENFIELD                              77                     
SW MONROEVILLE                          75                     
MOORESVILLE 2 NW                        70                     
TERRE HAUTE                             70                     
ODON                                    68                     
SHERIDAN                                68                     
NORMAL 1 N                              67                     
COLUMBIA CITY                           65                     
ANDERSON 5 N                            63                     
INDIANAPOLIS                            61                     
FRANKTON                                60                     

...MICHIGAN...
POINT AUX BARQUES 3 W                   71                     
GRAND MARAIS                            68                     
DAVISON                                 65                     
SOUTH HAVEN 1 W                         64                     
ESCANABA                                58                     
MUSKEGON 4 W                            58                     
PLOVER                                  58                     
FAIRPORT                                56                     
CADILLAC                                54                     
NEWBERRY                                54                     
FLINT                                   53                     
CALUMET 1 S                             50                     
CHATHAM                                 50                     
HERSEY                                  46                     

...MINNESOTA...
GEORGEVILLE                             65                     
MEHURIN                                 65                     
HANLEY FALLS                            63                     
MORRIS                                  62                     
SAUK CENTRE                             62                     
ALEXANDRIA                              61                     
LANGHEI                                 61                     
CANBY                                   60                     
GLENWOOD                                60                     
MINNEAPOLIS                             60                     
OLIVIA                                  60                     
BENSON                                  59                     
DOVRAY 3 W                              59                     
GRANITE FALLS                           59                     
LAKE BENTON 1 WNW                       59                     
ST. JAMES                               59                     
MARSHALL                                58                     
REDWOOD FALLS                           57                     
NEW ULM                                 56                     
LESTER PRAIRIE                          55                     
SPRING VALLEY 3 E                       55                     
ST. CLOUD                               50                     

...NORTH DAKOTA...
FARGO/HECTOR FIELD                      64                     
BISMARCK                                61                     
HETTINGER                               61                     
MANDAN 4 S                              60                     
JAMESTOWN                               59                     
GARRISON                                58                     
DICKINSON                               56                     
MINOT                                   54                     
WILLISTON                               47                     
LINTON                                  46                     

...NEBRASKA...
ONEILL                                  55                     
GRAND ISLAND                            54                     
OGALLALA                                54                     
VALENTINE                               54                     
BROKEN BOW                              51                     
ORD                                     47                     
HASTINGS                                45                     

...SOUTH DAKOTA...
UNION CENTER                            70                     
SISSETON                                64                     
ABERDEEN                                62                     
CASTLEWOOD                              62                     
FAITH                                   62                     
RAPID CITY/ELLSWORTH AFB                62                     
BUFFALO 1 N                             61                     
DRAPER 4 NNE                            61                     
MOBRIDGE 1 ENE                          61                     
PHILIP 3 E                              61                     
WINNER                                  61                     
BELLE FOURCHE                           60                     
CHAMBERLAIN                             60                     
OACOMA                                  60                     
PIERRE MUNI ARPT                        60                     

...WISCONSIN...
SHERWOOD                                76                     
ALGOMA                                  68                     
KENOSHA MUNI ARPT                       68                     
SHIOCTON 4 W                            59                     
PLOVER                                  58                     
BELLEVUE                                57                     
EYOTA RWIS 2 SE                         56                     
VIROQUA AWOS                            56                     
GREENVILLE                              55                     
KIMBERLY                                55                     
LITTLE CHUTE                            54                     
OSHKOSH                                 54                     
WASHINGTON ISLAND                       53                     
MAUSTON                                 52                     
WISCONSIN RAPIDS                        52                     
LA CROSSE 3 E                           50                     
UNION                                   50                     


THE SURFACE LOW IS EXPECTED TO STEADILY WEAKEN TODAY AS IT MOVES
EAST-NORTHEASTWARD FURTHER INTO ONTARIO CANADA.  BLIZZARD OR NEAR
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPERIENCED WITHIN THE WARNED AREA THIS
MORNING.  BUT CONDITIONS SHOULD BEGIN TO IMPROVE THIS AFTERNOON AS
WINDS AND SNOW BEGIN TO SUBSIDE.

THE NEXT STORM SUMMARY WILL BE ISSUED BY THE HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL
PREDICTION CENTER AT 1000 AM CDT. PLEASE REFER TO YOUR LOCAL
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS
EVENT.

KONG