All Roads In Nebraska Panhandle Closed

Just wow

Winter Storm Ulmer Intensifying Into a Major Plains Blizzard With Heavy Snow and High Winds

At a Glance

Ulmer is intensifying in the Plains where it will produce heavy snow and high winds into Thursday.
Blizzard warnings have been issued from northeast Colorado to North Dakota and northwest Minnesota.
Travel conditions will be nearly impossible due to the combination of heavy snow and high winds.
The Denver metro area is seeing blizzard conditions.
Widespread high winds will also affect locations not expected to see snow.
Ulmer has already set a preliminary low-pressure record in Pueblo, Colorado.

Winter Storm Ulmer is intensifying in the Plains where it will bring widespread high, possibly damaging winds and heavy snow, producing blizzard conditions into Thursday.

(MORE: How Winter Storms Are Named)

Happening Now

Snow and gusty winds from Ulmer continue from the Colorado Rockies to western South Dakota and much of Wyoming. Snowfall rates of 2-3 inches per hour have been reported in eastern Colorado along with thundersnow.

Ulmer is currently going through the process of bombogenesis, dropping from 994 mb Tuesday evening to 969 mb this afternoon. Bombogenesis is the process of rapid intensification that a winter storm system can go through. Bombogenesis is defined as a 24 mb drop in atmospheric pressure in 24 hours.

Denver and Cheyenne, Wyoming have reached blizzard criteria (gusts to 35 mph and visibility less than 0.25 miles for 3 hours or more), as of early Wednesday afternoon. Parts of the Nebraska panhandle are approaching blizzard criteria, including in Alliance, Nebraska.

⚠⚠ Folks, this is a serious storm. Here's a video taken just now from our office. Please stay safe! #wywx #newx pic.twitter.com/4pfsEjh0zX

— NWS Cheyenne (@NWSCheyenne) March 13, 2019