Friday,  Dec. 20, 2013 • Vol. 16--No. 157 • 8 of 31

Today in Weather History

1967: Freezing drizzle added a thin coating of ice over a previous ice coating that had been created on the 16th of the month over eastern South Dakota and still existed in most areas. An ice coating remained over many areas in eastern South Dakota through the end of the month.

1991: Light freezing drizzle and freezing rain developed over northern South Dakota from Timber Lake to Webster. Numerous car accidents were attributed to slippery conditions. The Aberdeen Police Department reported 24 accidents in Aberdeen, but only one resulted in an injury. Numerous businesses closed and schools were canceled.

1993: Strong winds, accompanied by existing snow cover and one to five inches of new snow, caused blizzard conditions in parts of north central and eastern South Dakota from the 20th to 22nd. A man died in a weather-related crash of a small plane near Isabel on the night of the 20th. The heaviest new snowfall of four to five inches was located in the Sisseton Hills in northeast South Dakota, while the north central part of the state generally received only an inch or two of new snow.

2008: Arctic air combined with blustery northwest winds brought extreme wind chills to central and northeast South Dakota and west central Minnesota from the late afternoon of the 20th until the afternoon of the 21st. Wind chills of 35 below to 45 below zero were common across the area.

1986: An "Alberta Clipper" intensified explosively south of New England bringing high winds, torrential rains, and heavy snows to the region. Up to 4 inches of rain fell in southern areas and winds gusted frequently to 70 mph. 30 inches of snow fell in southern Vermont, 24 inches on the higher elevations of western Massachusetts, and 20 inches in New Hampshire.

1990: Snow fell at Santa Maria, CA for the first time since records were kept.

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