National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office

February 2013 had a wide range in temperatures and snowfall across central and northeast South Dakota into west central Minnesota.  Average temperatures varied from 3 to 5 degrees below normal across northeast South Dakota and west central Minnesota to 1 to 4 degrees above normal across central and north central South Dakota.  With the help of the February 10 and 11^th Blizzard, the deep snow cover across the east was a big factor in the wide variance in temperatures across the region. The blizzard dropped anywhere from 12 to 24 inches of snowfall across northeast South Dakota into west central Minnesota with 2 to 10 inches of snowfall across central South Dakota. Both Interstates 29 and 90 were closed for a while during and after the storm.   The February 10th and 11^th Blizzard brought monthly snowfall totals above to much above normal. Snowfall amounts ranged from around 4 inches above normal at Pierre and Kennebec to 12 to 15 inches above normal at Sisseton and Wheaton. Mobridge and Timber Lake were from 1 to 6 inches below normal for snowfall.  High temperatures for February ranged from the mid to upper 30s over the deep snow covered areas east  to the upper 40s to the lower 50s over the little to no snow covered areas west in the region. Low temperatures for the month were all below zero across the region ranging from 1 below zero at Pierre to a bitter cold 31 below zero at Aberdeen.