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April 2021 Observations and Discussion


Tom

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2 hours ago, CentralNebWeather said:

Got the yard mowed. The thickness of the grass was more like May than April 1. It looks amazing for this early. 2 years ago I didn’t mow the first time until early May. 

Nice! I have kept in depth  records of lawn care in this area.  We currently  maintain  over 125 properties.  Our avg first mow is april 9th.  We started  yesterday, more tomorrow.  2013 was our earliest  start on March 30th. 2018 was our latest April 29th!! 2018 was a bitter cold and dry April.  This year was our 3rd earliest since 2008.  Last April was our best gross revenue  April ever and we plowed 8 inches of snow in mid April  2020. I suspect  2021 will up that!

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6 hours ago, westMJim said:

With temperatures during the game between 30 and 34 and with snow falling at times it was one of the coldest opening days at Detroit.

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/miguel-cabrera-home-run-watch-tigers-slugger-crush-first-home-run-of-2021-mlb-season-in-a-snowstorm/

 

That's a thing of beauty. The slo mo of the hit... Pretty darn awesome.

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7 hours ago, OttumwaSnomow said:

Nice! I have kept in depth  records of lawn care in this area.  We currently  maintain  over 125 properties.  Our avg first mow is april 9th.  We started  yesterday, more tomorrow.  2013 was our earliest  start on March 30th. 2018 was our latest April 29th!! 2018 was a bitter cold and dry April.  This year was our 3rd earliest since 2008.  Last April was our best gross revenue  April ever and we plowed 8 inches of snow in mid April  2020. I suspect  2021 will up that!

I should mow the normally lush areas, but most of the grass is pretty short yet.


I’m surprised you didn’t mention 2012 when we easily had our warmest March on record, but maybe you meant 2012 instead of 2013? 2007 also had an early warmup, but maybe you weren’t in the lawn care business then. 2013 doesn’t ring any bells with me, though I can be forgetful too!

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I bottomed out at 21° yesterday morning. I covered the hydrangeas as they are pretty vulnerable and were sprouting out sooner and better than most years since they were covered by deep snow and the soil didn’t freeze very hard. I will remove the coverings today. 
 

BTW, Happy Good Friday and Easter weekend y’all!

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2 hours ago, Sparky said:

I should mow the normally lush areas, but most of the grass is pretty short yet.


I’m surprised you didn’t mention 2012 when we easily had our warmest March on record, but maybe you meant 2012 instead of 2013? 2007 also had an early warmup, but maybe you weren’t in the lawn care business then. 2013 doesn’t ring any bells with me, though I can be forgetful too!

Yes youre right! Went and looked our paper work. It was 2012!  My memory  failed me!  I try to to forget 2012 it was worse summer of my life!  Yes we started the business  in 2008

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15 hours ago, Hawkeye said:

Wouldn't this pattern pretty much kill the April severe season?

Not necessarily, I think there will be enough warmth coming up from the south when these troughs come out of the Rockies to produce severe wx.  The storm next week is looking interesting and dynamic.  Reminds me of the system way back in early Jan I believe it was that came out of the Rockies and hit a road block and drove south while laying down some snow in NE.  Looks like your area and parts of the MW are in for some pretty heavy rains next week.

00z EPS...through next Friday

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14 hours ago, westMJim said:

With temperatures during the game between 30 and 34 and with snow falling at times it was one of the coldest opening days at Detroit.

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/miguel-cabrera-home-run-watch-tigers-slugger-crush-first-home-run-of-2021-mlb-season-in-a-snowstorm/

 

That's a vivid memory nobody will ever forget.  The sharp turn around in temps for the holiday weekend is going to feel mighty nice!

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The overnight low both here and officially at the airport was 16. Unless there is a surprise big April or May snow storm (it has happened in the past) Grand Rapids with 45.8” of snow so far this season will end up with the least amount of snow fall for a winter season since the winter of 1982/83. It will also be just the 2nd time since the winter of 1982/83 that less than 50” has fallen. And of the 45.8” that did fall this past winter 30.6” fell in February and of the 30.6” that fell in February 28.1” of that fell in 22 days. 

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It is looking very likely that the seasons first widespread MW severe wx outbreak may be occurring next week as a vigorous trough comes out of the Rockies and "bowls" its way east.  00z Euro showing advertising a similar look to a system last year when IA saw a tornado outbreak near or close to the center of the cold core ULL.  I don't remember the exact dates, however, this system needs to be monitored closely.

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Loads of precip coming dialing up...

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Just like during the Winter, the IA magnet continues as we see bountiful precip for not only IA peeps, but a majority of the central Sub Forum.  Plenty of chances dialing up as blocking locks up north and storms track underneath.  

00z EPS through Sat...

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Through Week 2...

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The overnight low here at my house was 29 the official overnight low at GRR was 31. Over the next week with highs in the mid to upper 60's and low in the 40's to low 50's the green up should ramp up. That means we should start the grass cutting season soon. At this time it it cloudy and 42 here.
 

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65 Years ago!!!

The event passed where I now live by just a few blocks.

April 3, 1956, was one of the wildest days in west Michigan weather history, when a violent tornado tore a path through several West Michigan communities. It was one of several strong tornadoes to hit Michigan that day. Unlike this year March 1956 was cold with a mean temperature of 30.1 -5.5 below average. The high for the month was just 49 and that occurred on March 1st 8.4” of snow fell on the 23rd and the low fell to +10 on the 24th April started out a little warmer with highs of 54 on the 1st and then 68 and the 2nd and then.

The afternoon of Tuesday, April 3rd, 1956 was warm and humid. Strong south winds had brought summer-like temperatures and humidity, with record highs of 77 at Muskegon and 78 at Grand Rapids. 80 at Holland and 79 at  Kalamazoo. Dew points were in the 60°s even near Lake Michigan. But a strong cold front was approaching from the west and out ahead of it, a line of violent thunderstorms had formed over Wisconsin and Illinois. By 1 PM, a tornado had roared through Bancroft, Wisconsin, killing two people. Another tornado would level the town of Berlin, Wisconsin an hour later, leaving 7 more dead and 50 injured. Michigan was put on alert. The U.S. Weather Bureau (forerunner of the National Weather Service) office in Grand Rapids began notifying the public and civil defense officials that the risk of tornadoes across western Michigan was increasing. Some schools began letting out early, anticipating the severe weather to come.

The storms crossed Lake Michigan, and when they reached the west coast of Lower Michigan by late afternoon, they immediately began producing tornadoes. Three hours of terror would follow. At least four powerful tornadoes would be spawned, tearing their way across the landscape. When it was over, areas from Saugatuck to Traverse City, and inland to Middleville and Rockford were dealing with unprecedented destruction. Almost 20 people were dead and hundreds injured. Dozens of homes were obliterated. Many people’s lives were irrevocably changed.

The worst hit areas were Hudsonville and Standale, where entire neighborhoods were laid waste. Many people, some of them badly injured, helped in the immediate recovery by searching for neighbors trapped under the debris of what had been their homes. Police and National Guard units were dispatched to make sure roads were kept clear of sightseers, allowing the injured to be evacuated to hospitals. Dozens of seriously injured people were brought to hospitals in Grand Rapids, Holland, and Zeeland.

Here is a break down of some of the storms in west Michigan.

The first tornado to strike west Michigan that day began along the beach near Saugatuck at 5:45PM. This tornado would injure seven people, but miraculously cause no fatalities as it destroyed four homes and did heavy damage to several farms. The damage path began just south of Oval Beach in Saugatuck as it damaged or destroyed several buildings at Camp Gray, along with the beach house at Oval Beach. It then flattened the historic Saugatuck Lighthouse.

Shortly after the tornado that hit Saugatuck, Gibson, Graafschap and Holland had dissipated, another storm was bearing down on areas further east. The sky grew dark over Vriesland, a small settlement east of Zeeland, just after 6 PM. People watching it from near Hudsonville would see it grow from a narrow, pencil-like funnel to a large and menacing wedge-shaped tornado as it approached the town. It crossed M-21 near 48th street and then crossed New Holland Street, where several farm homes were demolished, and the tornado would claim its first fatality. Photos taken from the ground and from the air in the following days would show the scope of the destruction here.

The tornado continued to intensify and demolished several homes when it reached the intersection of Van Buren Street and 40th Avenue. Some homes were completely swept away. It continued northeast to 36th Avenue and Port Sheldon Street and claimed eight more victims in this area. Two people died in a car while trying to flee the storm. Witnesses saw the car lifted as high as the tops of the telephone poles before it crashed back to earth. Two people in the car survived.

Another four people died nearby on Port Sheldon Street when they were caught out in the open and struck by flying debris. The tornado would claim one last victim in the Hudsonville area near Baldwin Street and 28th Avenue. The tornado was photographed around this time from about 2 miles south. The photo shows a large tornado funnel in contact with the ground, along with the yellow sky and greenish storm clouds that were mentioned by many eyewitnesses.

The tornado crossed Bauer Road and Cottonwood Drive before roaring across the Grand River and Fennessy Lake. Witnesses observed the funnel turn colors as it moved over the water, and a spectacular display of electrical sparks as high tension wires were ripped apart in this area. A large swath of trees along the Grand River were felled by the winds. The water and mud from Fennessy Lake was picked up and plastered against the houses nearby.

Next in the path was the business district of Standale. Fortunately, it was after hours and the approaching tornado was visible from the higher ground to the east of the river so most people were able to get to shelter. One that didn’t was 89 year-old Anna Hart of Cummings Street. She was carried about 200 feet from the second floor of her house. She was the first of four fatalities in Kent County.

The main business section, centered on the corner of Kinney Avenue and Lake Michigan Drive was devastated. Clothing and other items from stores in this area were lifted up into the storm updraft and carried to the northeast, as far as Gladwin, 100 miles away. The tornado swept away homes on Kusterer Drive and Nixon Avenue before crossing Leonard Street but fortunately there were no fatalities here. 

Two more people would be killed on Vinecroft Street, off Bristol Avenue. A father of eight was killed as his house was blown apart and a woman was killed in the Vinecroft trailer park, which was obliterated by the tornado. The tornado crossed 3 Mile Road and then Alpine Avenue and headed into the Comstock Park area where it would take its 17th and final victim as a woman on 4 Mile Road was killed when her house collapsed on her.

The tornado destroyed several more homes on Childs and Leland Avenues before hitting the Lamoreaux Dairy, and some homes on North Division Avenue. The tornado path paralleled West River Drive and the Grand River, and destroyed several more homes along with the Brookhaven Trailer Park in this area, while devastating sections of Wakefield Avenue and Pine Island Drive.

From here, the tornado moved into a more rural area before brushing the western side of Rockford. The tornado continued northeast of Rockford and struck several farms, before ending just north of Trufant in Montcalm County.

As this tornado finally lifted about 7:30 PM, the final tornado of the day was touching down far to the south in Van Buren County.

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Happy Easter everyone!  Hope all of you can enjoy more time with your family and friends this year unlike last.  It's nice to see the weather cooperate.  I was seeing some social media posts from my friends back home and everyone was out and about enjoying the outdoors.  We torched here yesterday and tied a record high of 97F, but today we could possibly set a record high of 99F but that will depend on how much cirrus cloud cover develops.  In the meantime, looks like SPS is out lining the KS area for severe wx mid week.

day3otlk_0730.gif

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The temperature sure popped quickly this morning.  Cedar Rapids was down to 39 or 40º at 7am and the Waterloo airport hit 33º.  Three hours later everyone is in the 60s.

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season snowfall: 34.8"

'22-23: 30.2"      '21-22: 27.1"      '20-21: 52.5"      '19-20: 36.2"      '18-19: 50.2"      '17-18: 39.5"

Average snowfall: ~30"

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With todays forecasted high in the upper 60's today had a chance to be in the top warmest April 4 in Grand Rapids recorded history. At this time it is mostly sunny and 65 here at my house. The current official reading of 60 is good for the 20th warmest April 4th of record at GRR.

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We just hit 70º, so today will easily be the warmest of the year so far.

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season snowfall: 34.8"

'22-23: 30.2"      '21-22: 27.1"      '20-21: 52.5"      '19-20: 36.2"      '18-19: 50.2"      '17-18: 39.5"

Average snowfall: ~30"

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Made it to 80.4 yesterday with a dewpoint in the mid 20s. What little wind there was during the day yesterday died off at sunset and the temps tanked pretty fast falling all the way down to 53 degrees by 1030. Pretty rare to see a drop that quickly without a cold frontal passage.

Severe weather looks pretty marginal with this system. Capping concerns on Tuesday and then too much clouds and precip on Wednesday. I actually am not a big fan of closed cut off lows and severe weather opportunities. A lot of times you have one hell of an ugly looking atmospheric column for winds with horrible veer back and the system moves so slow you have big issues with convective overturning.

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The mid 80s extend all the way up to Mason City.  That's a bit too warm.  When I'm busy cleaning up the garden 70s with a breeze is much better.

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season snowfall: 34.8"

'22-23: 30.2"      '21-22: 27.1"      '20-21: 52.5"      '19-20: 36.2"      '18-19: 50.2"      '17-18: 39.5"

Average snowfall: ~30"

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I just noticed there are a couple nice thunderstorms nw of Dubuque.

I'm still waiting for my first rumble of thunder this year.  The latest 3k NAM has no precip here til Wednesday.

season snowfall: 34.8"

'22-23: 30.2"      '21-22: 27.1"      '20-21: 52.5"      '19-20: 36.2"      '18-19: 50.2"      '17-18: 39.5"

Average snowfall: ~30"

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I had a wonderful time yesterday with my sisters family in town.  My duties were in the kitchen and I cooked up some delicious food.  Lot's of leftovers.  Spent time at the pool earlier in the day before it go to hot as PHX tied another record high for the second day in a row (98F).  Well, the cool down the models were indicating last week for this week are no longer.  The streak of 90's shall continue into the weekend.  Full blown summer mode over here.  We skipped right from late winter into summer it seems as it was snowing in the mountains just about a week ago.

 

 

 

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"Wx Geek Alert"...taking a look at last night's 00z EPS, look way up north towards the N Pole and you can see the Vortex send a lobe down the western shores of Canada, down into the Upper MW/GL's by Day 7-10 where it stalls out.  Golly, that blocking is doing some weird stuff this Spring.  As the jet stream this week pretty much comes to a crawl, some interesting model runs are showing up for later in the week/weekend.

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Late season Spring snows are showing up for the North land...

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There are now flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder here. So far just 0.03" of rain and the current temperature is 51 and that is the overnight low so far. Yesterdays official high of 71 at Grand Rapids was the 7th warmest for any April 4th there was a new record set at Muskegon with a high of 73 the old high was 72 set in 1942. The high of 72 at Kalamazoo was the 4th warmest for the date and the high of 74 at Holland was the 3rd warmest for the date. The record for today at GR is 81. At Muskegon it is 79 at Kalamazoo 80 at Lansing 81 all set in 1988 and at Holland it is 79 set in 1921.

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Here is a fun fact. At Grand Rapids While there have been only 3 April's where the high did not reach 70 (1950, 1961 and 1907) there have been 14 years where the warmest temperature in April was 85 or better (the record high for the month is 90) there have been 25 years when the months high has been 85 or better 30 years where the high has been 83 or better and 58 years where the high has been 80 or better. So having a warm day or two in April is not that unusual.

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Omaha was under a severe tstorm warning last night 2 different times, once until 1 am and then again until 2 am. The warnings were for collapsing showers that were producing wind gusts up to 60 mph.

Didn't have any kind of wind that strong here, but my weather station did show 2 different small heat bursts where the temp jumped up about 5 degrees and the humidity dropped a decent amount for a few minutes.

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