NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

APRIL 2001

1^st-7^th…Thunderstorms rippled through portions of the south-central part of the nation Monday, and showers and snow showers were scattered from the West Coast to the northern Plains. A warm front stretching across the southern Plains kicked off a small area of thunderstorms that moved from southeastern Kansas and the extreme northeastern corner of Oklahoma across southern Missouri. Rain and lighter showers stretched across eastern Kansas and wider areas of Missouri, and also extended into western Kentucky during the afternoon. Showers also were possible in northern Arkansas, southern Illinois and western Tennessee. In the West, isolated, light showers were scattered from the coasts of northern California, Oregon and Washington across Idaho and into western Montana, northern sections of Nevada and Utah, and Wyoming. A few showers extended eastward onto the Plains in South Dakota and Nebraska. The rain turned to snow on higher mountain peaks through the region. Light snowfall moved across Minnesota through Wisconsin and into Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Farther east, occasional light showers moved from eastern Pennsylvania through southern New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware, and snow showers developed over upstate New York and northern Maine.

A storm front stretching from the Tennessee Valley to the Gulf states produced heavy rain, hail, thunder and flooding Wednesday. A separate trough in the western part of the nation dropped a mix of rain and snow from Montana to Minnesota, with isolated showers also reaching Wyoming and Utah lowlands. Dry and partly cloudy skies covered the rest of the nation, including the mid-Atlantic, Northeast, Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, Pacific Northwest and Desert Southwest regions.

Strong storms carrying powerful wind and heavy downpours swept through the

central Plains on Friday, while rain and some snow fell over the eastern Great Lakes and Adirondacks. Thundershowers pushed across the Northeast as a separate front brought hail and tornadoes to the Midwest. Isolated showers dotted Texas and the South. In the West, skies were mostly cloudy with light to moderate snow from northwestern New Mexico to central Colorado. Rain fell in the valleys of the Pacific Northwest with snow at higher elevations. The Desert Southwest was fair.

8^th-14^th…Rain fell on parts of the Midwest and central California Monday while the Pacific Northwest was dry. Rain storms hit Michigan and Indiana before moving into northeast Ohio and areas of western New York and Pennsylvania. Three-quarter inch hail was reported near Warren, Ohio. A weaker disturbance also brought rain to northern Illinois. Another area of low pressure brought unsettled weather into the northern Plains. Light rain and snow showers fell in Montana and northern Wyoming, as well as in North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. Most of the snow was over west to south-central Montana and north-central Wyoming, near the mountains. Clouds covered most of northern Idaho through Minnesota. Scattered rain showers and isolated storms were found in central California, south of the Bay area. Some snow continued over west and central Nevada. The southern portions of the nation were relatively quiet. Some clouds spread into the Gulf states, through the Tennessee Valley and along the Appalachians. A few high clouds were found over southern New Mexico through western Texas. Conditions elsewhere were fair and dry.

Tornadoes swirled through Kansas, Iowa and Missouri Wednesday, while heavy

snow buffeted Colorado and nearby states. Several tornadoes in Iowa damaged property and were blamed for at least several injuries. Up to 15 inches of snow covered Colorado, with lesser accumulations in parts of Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming. Winds of up to 70 mph whipped the high Plains. Rain and gusting winds spread through Minnesota, Wisconsin and northern Illinois. Storms also pushed east into Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and northern Virginia. Cloudy skies covered much of the rest of the Northeast, while most of the Southeast and Southwest were dry. Clouds spread over much of the Pacific Northwest, northern Rockies, California and the Great Basin.

A band of rain stretched across the South on Friday, while a weakening storm system brought showers to the northern Plains. Behind a front stretching from the Gulf Coast to the Mid-Atlantic states, fair and dry conditions with cooler temperatures prevailed in part of the Ohio Valley, west across the central Mississippi Valley, and southern Plains. A storm system brought clouds, gusty winds, and showers across the southern Great Lakes and northern Ohio Valley. Another area of low pressure continued to track across the northern Plains in the Dakotas. Some light rain and snow showers covered portions of the eastern Dakotas and western Minnesota. A few light rain showers extended southward into eastern Nebraska. Most of the West was fair and dry, with light rain and snow in higher elevations in parts of Idaho and western Montana. It was cloudy with light rain in the Pacific Northwest.

15^th-21^st…Light snow was scattered over the Ohio Valley and central Appalachians on Tuesday as unseasonably cool air covered much of the central and eastern parts of the nation. Low pressure centered over the mid-Atlantic states produced a mix of light precipitation from the Great Lakes to the Carolinas. Light snow moved across parts of Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, eastern Kentucky, West Virginia, and western sections of Virginia and North Carolina. Rain spread across the Carolinas and Virginia, and showers were scattered from eastern Pennsylvania through southern New England. High pressure pumped more cold air south across the Plains, and Tuesday morning temperatures were near freezing as far south as southern Kansas. Farther south, narrow bands of showers and thundershowers rolled across Texas. Elsewhere, a storm off the West Coast produced light showers in parts of Oregon and Washington.

A warm front dumped rain in the East and Midwest on Friday, and another storm system brought rain and some snow to the West. Up to an inch of rain fell in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia and lesser amounts fell to the east. Fair to partly cloudy skies and mild weather dominated the Atlantic Coast. Light rain fell in Minnesota and Wisconsin, but the central portion of the country was mostly quiet. The Pacific Northwest, Rockies and northern California had scattered rain with some snow at the highest elevations.

22^nd-30^th…A line of rain and thunderstorms slid slowly across the nation's midsection Monday, stretching from the Great Lakes to the Rio Grande Valley.

The stormy weather formed along a cold front that stretched out from a low pressure area centered over the upper Great Lakes. Rain fell during the morning from northern Minnesota through Iowa, Missouri and Arkansas into northern Louisiana and extended into the southern tip of Texas. By late afternoon, the line of storms had moved eastward, stretching Michigan through eastern Wisconsin, parts of Indiana and Illinois and the western tips of Kentucky and Tennessee into Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. A few thunderstorms also formed in southern Louisiana, near the Gulf Coast. Locally heavy rain was reported in parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and northern Minnesota, and snow fell across parts of the eastern Dakotas, northern Minnesota and northern Wisconsin. Elsewhere on Monday, a few light rain showers moved across Washington and Oregon into Idaho, with snow showers at some higher elevations.

Showers moved across much of the East Coast on Wednesday, with a few thunderstorms in the Southeast. Light showers were scattered along the coast from Cape Cod to Virginia during the morning, with some heavier showers extending across eastern sections of the Carolinas and Georgia and into Florida.

A few thunderstorms developed off the coast and over parts or southern Florida during the afternoon. The rain fell along a cold front that marked the leading edge of cold air pressing across the East.

Light rain fell in the middle of the country Friday, and scattered showers soaked portions of the West. Scattered showers and thunderstorms also developed over the Southwest. Light rain showers fell in the northern and central Rockies from southern Montana into eastern Utah. Showers also fell across northern Oregon and eastern Washington. The rest of the region had partly to mostly cloudy skies and dry weather. Elsewhere, a high pressure system brought quiet conditions in the South. Sunny skies and dry weather prevailed from Tennessee and the Carolinas into the Gulf Coast states. East of the Mississippi, most of the rest of country was dry, with sunny to partly cloudy skies.

Showers stretched across the nation's midsection Monday and over parts of the Pacific Northwest, and a few afternoon thunderstorms developed in the Southeast. Showers were scattered along a line reaching from Oklahoma to northeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin, with some of the heaviest rain falling in Minnesota and Iowa. Isolated thunderstorms developed in parts of eastern Kansas and nearby sections of Iowa and Missouri. A few showers also extended from Minnesota westward into the Dakotas. The area of rain in Minnesota and Wisconsin was likely to move eastward during the night into Michigan. Ocean moisture moving into the Northwest spread rain across Washington and western Oregon, with a few very light showers stretching into Idaho and western Montana. The rain turned to snow at higher elevations of the Cascades and Olympics, and in some parts of the northern Rockies. In the Southeast, a few pockets of thunderstorms and showers appeared during the afternoon in southeastern Missouri, western Kentucky, central and eastern Tennessee and extreme western North Carolina.

Showers also developed over southern Florida and in parts of Alabama. Elsewhere, a few light showers moved across Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts.