A late-season storm that brought bands of heavy, wet snow to the Midwest and Plains states moved slowly eastward on Thursday.

Parts of southeastern and eastern Minnesota into western Wisconsin were expected to get more snow, the National Weather Service predicted. While about five inches of snow fell in Denver, Colo., other parts of the state got more than a foot. Parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming also saw upwards of fifteen inches of unseasonable snow, the weather service reported.

Weather.com reported that the storm had "dumped up to 13 inches of snow in Owatonna, Minn.,where I-35 was closed early Thursday due to snow and downed power lines. Up to 14 inches of snow has been measured in Ellsworth, Wis."

Snowfall was expected to continue through the upper Midwestern states through Thursday night before dissipating on Friday, the weather service reported.

And up to nine inches had already fallen in Dodge County, Minn., on Thursday.

The snow looked ready to melt away fast after hitting the ground even in the areas that saw the most accumulation on Wednesday.

The unwelcome powder still managed to cause disturbances in towns and cities that had thought it was safe to put away their shovels and ice salt.

“This is  a record for me,” Brian Wagstrom, director of public works in Minnetonka, Minn., told NBC station KARE. “This is the latest that we have ever put plows on this time of the year.”

Eric Johnson / Austin Daily Herald via AP

Mike Gregg trudges through the snow Thursday morning in Austin, Minn., to walk his dog Jake. Heavy, wet snow impacted driving and all-around travel abruptly interrupting spring.

“We are anticipating maybe 2 to 3 inches of slush on the roadways,” Wagstrom added. “Depending upon the heat of the roadway, it might melt off.”

Residents of Des Moines, Iowa, and even Kansas City, Mo., could get a last-minute visit from winter with some accumulation before the storm’s over, according to weather.com.

Jim Eulberg, director of public works in the South Dakota town of Worthington, had to tell his crews to give up spring street sweeping and ready the plows.

“When you’re looking at the calendar, you’re thinking this is the stuff we should be doing. Not dealing with ice storm damage and plowing,” Eulberg told NBC station KDLT.

Melt and move on, other residents of South Dakota said as 3 to 4 inches fell over Sioux Falls on Wednesday.

“It’s May 1. We are supposed to be out delivering May baskets,” Debbie Tams of Sioux Falls told KDLT as the city saw its first May snow in nearly four decades. “Not shoveling snow.”

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This story was originally published on Thu May 2, 2013 7:52 AM EDT

A blast of cold air being dragged southward by a dip in the jet stream dumped snow in the Rockies, Plains and parts of the Midwest on Wednesday in a snowfall that meteorologists said could be “historic” for this time of year.

Up to 18 inches of snow is forecast for the mountains of Colorado and Wyoming, where heavy snow started falling Tuesday. Several inches could also fall by the end of the week in a band from Texas to Wisconsin, according to the National Weather Service.

Some portions of the Plains and upper Midwest regions, including Wisconsin and sections of Minnesota, could see a flurry of wet snow on Wednesday night into Thursday, Weather.com reported. A light early May dusting may even be seen as far south as the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma.

Cheyenne, Wyo., had already received more than 6 inches of snow early Wednesday morning, Weather.com reported.

The National Weather Service reported winter storm warnings were in effect for portions of north-central Colorado, southern Wyoming and southern Minnesota.

AP

Snow clings to flowers in Denver on Wednesday. As much as a foot of snow is forecast for some areas of Colorado.

With the jet stream bowing to the south, cold air is being sucked deep into the country, bringing temperature changes that may seem downright cruel to many, according to meteorologists at Weather.com.

Amarillo, Texas, is the perfect example. On Tuesday it hit a high of 97 degrees.

“By tomorrow morning we have … Amarillo at 30 and probably snowing,” Weather Channel meteorologist Kevin Roth said. “So in Amarillo we’re projecting a 67-degree drop from Tuesday afternoon to Thursday morning – so summer to winter.”

Minneapolis, Kansas City and Des Moines, Iowa, have been basking in the 70s and 80s. They’ll be lucky to see 40 through the end of the week, weather.com said. And Chicago just had its first 80-degree day of the season. It should have another on Wednesday before highs drop to the 50s and low 60s through the weekend.

The heaviest snowfall will be along the Front Range of the Rockies, with an area from central Colorado to southeastern Wyoming under winter storm warnings that call for up to 20 inches of fresh snow through Wednesday night. Just to the east, cities in the foothills, including Denver, could see five to eight inches of accumulation during the period, and roads could become icy and snow-packed, the weather service said.

Further east, where the cold air meets the warm, severe thunderstorms are likely Wednesday in parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, according to weather.com, which adds that the threat diminishes Thursday, with “marginally severe” storms possible in parts of Texas and southern Louisiana.

Travel disruptions could come with the worst parts of the storm, with Interstates 25 and 80 between Wyoming and Colorado in line for possible snow and ice, Roth said. But as of Wednesday morning, FlightAware.com listed only 16 canceled flights in the region, all at Denver International Airport.

“That will probably go up during the day,” Roth said.

While the storm may set some snow records, May is often a fickle month. Heavy snow is fairly rare, but temperatures in different parts of North America can range radically, Roth said.

Montreal, Quebec, and Ottawa, Ontario, for example, will be 30 to 40 degrees warmer on Thursday than normally toasty Oklahoma City, he said.

Cheyenne, Wyo., which hit 70 degrees Tuesday afternoon, was on the verge Wednesday of breaking its May snowfall record of 14 inches, Roth said.

“Cheyenne had eight inches as of midnight their time, and it’s been snowing steadily since that,” he said. “We think they’re going to end up with a good 12 to 18. … Welcome to May, right?”

NBC News’ Matthew DeLuca contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published on Wed May 1, 2013 6:00 AM EDT

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This story was originally published on Mon Apr 29, 2013 5:11 AM EDT

A day after heavy downpours flooded Texas and parts of the South – dumping as much as 7 inches of rain in some areas – waters were receding in Houston on Sunday morning, officials said.

“It’s a nice, beautiful and very green day today – not a cloud in the sky,” said Houston Fire Department spokesman Sgt. Jay Evans.

There were no reports of death or injuries, according to Evans. He added that evacuation trucks arrayed in the southwest and southeast borders of the city were not used during the onslaught of rainwater Saturday.

On Saturday, Houston firefighters conducted at least 150 rescues of motorists who accidentally drove into high water and became trapped in their vehicles, Evans said.

In Tennessee, animals reportedly escaped from a shelter after it was slammed by severe weather.

An unknown number of animals were on the loose in Fayette County, Tenn., early Sunday, after Fayette County Animal Rescue was damaged in a tumultuous storm, NBC’s WMCTV.com reported.

The line of weekend storms stretched from the Texas-Mexico border through Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Kentucky. The rough weather was caused by the collision of a cold front and warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico.

Cody Duty / AP

Cars are stranded in southwest Houston, which was flooded after an afternoon downpour Saturday.

This story was originally published on Sat Apr 27, 2013 10:10 PM EDT

Flood-weary residents in parts of the Midwest were still trying to stem the tide of murky river water Friday, as late snow-melt combined with days of spring rain sent rivers toward high-water records.

Floodwaters had begun an inch-by-inch retreat in inundated Peoria, Ill., after the Illinois River crested Tuesday at 29.35 feet, eclipsing a 70-year record. In central Indiana, more heavy rain through Wednesday morning prompted a request for voluntary evacuation along the Tippecanoe River near Lafayette.

The Grand River at Grand Rapids, Mich., which reached record levels, began to fall below flood stage Thursday and some of the hundreds of people evacuated were starting to return home.

Along the Mississippi, the biggest concern was that the flood is expected to linger into May, potentially straining longstanding earthen levees and hastily-built sandbag walls. No towns were in imminent danger.

Rain-soaked Chicago had its wettest April on record, the National Weather Service said, according to NBCChicago.com.

In tiny Dutchtown, Missouri, flooding from the Mississippi has become such a fact of life that residents expressed hope that the Federal Emergency Management Agency would buy them out of their homes.

Reuters

Local residents work with soldiers of the 1140th Engineer Battalion to build a sandbag wall near Dutchtown, Missouri, on Wednesday.

Thousands of sandbags were at the ready in anticipation of a crest Thursday.

Doyle Parmer, who doubles as town clerk and emergency management chief, told The Associated Press that residents had been "jumping through hoops" for three years seeking a buyout from FEMA as part of a federal program that sees flood-prone areas set aside for green space or a park. The AP said:

In order for that money to arrive, towns must prove that flooding is frequent and devastating enough for a buyout to be cost-effective, and Dutchtown hasn't filed a suitable one yet, said Melissa Janssen, mitigation branch chief for the FEMA region that includes Missouri.

Parmer said he and other residents were ready to get out.

"Sell the house, cut the grass and get the hell out of Dodge," he said.

For 40 years, Shirley Moss has lived in the same home in the town, but as the sandbags piled up yet again, she didn't hesitate when asked if she would take a government buyout.

"In a New York minute," Moss said from her double-wide mobile home. "I'm 75 years old — I can't fight this."

Meanwhile, in North Dakota residents got their first touch of good news on Wednesday when officials said the swollen Red River would crest at lower than anticipated levels next week, the AP reported.

Residents in Fargo and neighboring Moorhead, Minnesota, have been filling sandbags ahead of the expected fourth major Red River flood in the past five years after unseasonably cold weather delayed the annual thaw.

But the river was still expected to peak at possibly its second-highest level on record, and flood preparations in the north-central United States follow major flooding on rivers in Illinois, Missouri, Indiana and Michigan caused by heavy rain, the AP said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published on Thu Apr 25, 2013 5:39 AM EDT

A tornado tore through the New Orleans area Wednesday, damaging homes and ripping trees out of the ground, as intense storms lashed the area with rain.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the twister was one of two that caused damage in Kenner, Louisiana, near New Orleans International Airport.

No injuries were reported, according to the Times Picayune’s website NOLA.com, but about 5,000 Entergy Louisiana customers lost electrical service.

The first tornado's path stretched two miles and 75 yards wide and packed winds of 75 mph. The second's path was a half a mile long and 50 yards wide and recorded winds of 90 mph.

Residents posted pictures on social media of torn roofs, fallen trees and flash floods caused by torrential rains, weather.com reported.

Witness Adine Humphrey told NOLA.com: "The wind picked up. The rain picked up. You kind of heard that noise like a train a little bit. I looked next door. I seen the debris going in circles. I ripped my mother inside."

The NWS said the airport tower lost power during the storms, which struck during the middle of the day on Wednesday.

This story was originally published on Thu Apr 25, 2013 4:21 AM EDT

Flood-weary homeowners and sandbaggers across the Midwest were braced for record-level river crests Wednesday amid forecasts that rain would add more water to already-swollen rivers.

Possible snow flurries were also predicted for some flood-hit areas.

Showers and scattered thunderstorms were expected to move through the lower Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and Kentucky with a cold front into Wednesday afternoon, dumping between half-an-inch and one inch of rain onto ground already soaked by spring moisture and snow-melt, Weather.com meteorologist Kevin Roth said.

Another storm will drop into the northern Plains and upper Mississippi Valley producing rain and snow showers,

However, no significant snow accumulations are forecast. NBCChicago.com reported that early low temperatures were likely to rise following an extended period of sunshine.

Floodwaters were rising to record levels along the Illinois River in central Illinois late Tuesday, according to The Associated Press. In Missouri, six small levees north of St. Louis were overtopped by the surging Mississippi River, though mostly farmland was affected.

Officials in Peoria on Tuesday said the Illinois River finally had crested, but not without destruction. In Peoria Heights, population 6,700, roads and buildings were flooded and riverfront structures were inundated. Firefighters feared that if fuel from businesses and vehicles starts to leak, it could spark a fire in areas that could be reached only by boat.

Seth Perlman / AP

Jennifer Rock uses her cell phone to take photos to send to a friend of flooding from the Illinois River on Tuesday in Spring Bay Ill.

"That's our nightmare: A building burns, and we can't get to it," Peoria Heights Fire Chief Greg Walters said. "These are combustible buildings, and we have no access to them simply because of the flooding."

Among those still in their homes was Mark Reatherford. The 52-year-old unemployed baker has lived for decades in the same split-level home with a gorgeous view: a small park between him and the Illinois River. But by Tuesday afternoon, as a chilly rain fell, the river had rolled over the park and made it to Reatherford's home, creating a 3-foot-deep mess in the basement. Reatherford had cleared out the basement furniture and was hopeful the main floor would stay dry.

Now, he's considering moving.

"I'm getting too old to deal with this," he told The Associated Press.

In Saginaw County, Mich., water topped the dyke at Misteguay Creek in Spaulding Township. Businesses and homes were flooded along the Tittabawassee River, a Saginaw River tributary. Part of Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge also was under water.

The National Weather Service predicted that the Red River in Fargo, North Dakota could set a new record when it crests, possibly later this week, weather.com reported. A cold spring has delayed snow melt in the area.

A rise in temperatures later this week will accelerate the snow melt across the region, Weather.com said.

It was a very different picture fort the Northeast Wednesday, where thunderstorms were forecast to give way to sunshine and warm temperatures in metropolitan New York - possibly into the 70s.

Meanwhile, a storm system was expected to bring thunderstorms through the Southwest Thursday and into the southern Plains and Texas Friday, Roth said. Severe thunderstorms are possible in southern Oklahoma and northern Texas with this storm Friday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published on Wed Apr 24, 2013 6:20 AM EDT

Rivers including the Mississippi and Illinois are expected to remain in “major flood stage” through this weekend, the National Weather Service warned as rain and snow continued to fall on much of the central U.S. Tuesday.

A number of flood warnings were in place as ongoing rain and runoff from last week’s intense downpours continued to keep the water levels high in rivers across Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Indiana and Michigan in particular, the NWS added.

“The larger rivers, such as the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, will take longer to recede and will remain in major flood stage through this weekend,” the weather service said.

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“Do not drive through flowing water. Nearly half of all flood fatalities are vehicle related. As little as 6 inches of water may cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Two feet of water will carry most vehicles away,” it added in a flood warning for several rivers in Missouri.

More snow
There were some heavy snowfalls overnight in parts of the central U.S. and snow was continuing to fall Tuesday morning but was expected to gradually diminish, the weather service said.

The worst-affected area was expected to be the foothills and eastern slopes of the Front Range Mountains, which could see up to 16 inches.

Duluth, Minn., has this month seen a record total of 50.2 inches for any month of the year, weather.com said. The figures go back to 1870.

The weather service warned that in areas where the snow was wet, travel would be “especially hazardous."

Rain and floods
There was also a risk of severe storms from the Ohio Valley to the lower Mississippi Valley, weather.com said on Tuesday, with “localized damaging winds and large hail.”

The floods have been blamed for at least five deaths since Thursday and have also forced evacuations, swamped homes and shut down bridges.

Barge traffic on the Mississippi was brought to a near standstill. On Sunday at least one sank and others ran aground or were half-submerged because of the floods.

States of emergency have been declared in Missouri and Illinois.

In Grafton, Ill. -- about 40 miles northeast of St. Louis -- Mayor Tom Thompson said his small community along the Mississippi River was managing, despite the water reaching 10 feet above flood stage by Monday afternoon.

"If it gets another foot (higher), it's going to become another issue," Thompson said, reported The Associated Press. Many businesses "are kinda watching and holding their breath. ... Some things are going to really be close to the wire."

Prison inmates were bused in to work alongside the National Guard and volunteers to build a floodwall of sand and gravel in Clarksville, Mo., but the barrier was showing signs of strain on Monday, according to The AP.

Areas south of St. Louis are not expected to crest until late this week.

Meanwhile, smaller rivers were causing big evacuations elsewhere. In Grand Rapids, Mich., the Grand River rose to a record 21.85 feet --  breaking 1985's record of 19.64 feet -- and driving hundreds of residents outs of their homes while flooding parts of downtown. Flood stage for the Grand River is 18 feet, according to Detroit's Lansing State Journal.

“We have prepared for the worst,” Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell said, reported The Lansing State Journal.

NBC's Elizabeth Chuck contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on Tue Apr 23, 2013 6:44 AM EDT

Heavy river flooding in six Midwestern states — which has forced evacuations, shut down bridges, swamped homes, and caused at least five deaths — was at or near crest levels in some areas Monday.

Downpours have been wreaking havoc on the Illinois River and parts of the Mississippi, bringing barge shipping to a near standstill. The Coast Guard set a safety zone on the Mississippi River due to barges breaking away because of the flooding. On Sunday, 30 barges carrying coal and grain had broken free after the lead barge had struck the Vicksburg Railroad Bridge.

All barges have been accounted for, though one sunk and others are aground or half submerged, according to the Coast Guard.

A section of the Illinois River near Peoria was set to close to traffic Monday evening to protect levees. Shipping restrictions may also be put into place with heavy currents are making navigating the waters dangerous.

And the worst may be yet to come. Forecasters warned that “more rain was expected in the affected areas Tuesday into Wednesday,” according to Weather.com. River towns in the north are expected to be slammed with snow heading into mid-week.

In Clarksville, Mo., volunteers raced against the clock to sandbag a section of the dirt berm they built that was being overtaken by the swollen Mississippi. 

Record flooding swelled in Grafton, Mo., a small tourist enclave 40 miles north of St. Louis. The basement of Pam and Dennis Bick’s home was swamped by floodwater three inches deep.

“We have time to figure out what to do, where we would go and where we would put everything,” Pam Bick, 57, told The Associated Press. “I don’t want it to come up any more. But I can’t stop it.”

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and deployed the Missouri National Guard to help fight the floods.

In Allendale, Mich., parts of homes were submerged underwater as water levels steadily rose over the morning.

Significant flooding is possible in places like Ste. Genevieve, Mo., Cape Girardeau, Mo., and Cairo, Ill., later this week, The Associated Press reported.

More photos from the Grand Rapids Press

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn declared a state of emergency as massive deluges were recorded at over a dozen river gauges across the state over the weekend. High waters may have claimed the life of an unidentified body discovered in a creek in Oak Brook, Ill. An autopsy was unable to determine the cause of death for the badly decomposed body, according to media reports.

Chris Clark / Grand Rapids Press

Aerial of a home near Allendale, Mich. surrounded by Grand River flood waters Saturday, April 20, 2013.

The Chicago area, which was hit by widespread flooding over the weekend, was dry for much of the period. Forecasters predict a half-inch to an inch of rain of rain Tuesday, with temperatures falling in the evening and opening the door to possible snow showers.

Hundreds were evacuated from towns in Indiana as the Wabash River rose by 14 feet on Saturday -- its highest level since 1958.

Two drivers were killed in Arcadia, Ind., over the weekend when their cars were swept into Cicero Creek, roughly 30 miles north of Indianapolis. 

Robert Morgan, 64, died Friday night after his car was caught by floodwater and swept 100 yards downstream in Hamilton County, according to a statement from the local sheriff’s office. The body of 42-year-old David A. Baker, was recovered on Sunday. Police responded after receiving a distress call from Baker’s cell phone in the early hours of Saturday, and later recovered his vehicle and dog.

Another confirmed flood-related death occurred in De Soto, Mo., on Thursday when an 80-year-old woman’s car was swept off the road during a flash flood, NBC’s St. Louis affiliate KSDK reported.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Heavy river flooding in six Midwestern states that forced evacuations, shut down bridges, swamped homes and caused at least three deaths was at or near crest in some areas Sunday evening.

Rivers surged from the Quad Cities to St. Louis on Sunday. Hours earlier, National Guardsmen, volunteers, homeowners and jail inmates pitched in with sandbagging to hold back floodwaters that closed roads in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan. 

Forecasters warned that "more rain was expected in the affected areas Tuesday into Wednesday," according to weather.com.

Record flooding swelled in Grand Rapids, Mich., with a crest of over 22 feet expected late Sunday into Monday. The water is expected to peak sometime Monday. 

The basements of some homes in the town of Comstock Park, Mich., were already full of water even before the surge Sunday morning, and the new swell forced some residents to leave their houses by boat.

“I’m surrounded by water all the way around my house,” resident Gary Smith told Grand Rapids NBC station WOOD-TV. “When I step out, I have a porch and then I have one step that’s still visible, and then I step down into at least three feet of water, four feet of water.”

Significant flooding is possible in places like Ste. Genevieve, Mo., Cape Girardeau, Mo., and Cairo, Ill., later this week, The Associated Press reported. 

The Chicago area, which was hit by widespread flooding over the weekend, was dry for much of the period. But more rain may be on the way on Tuesday and Wednesday as a developing cold front could bring as much as an inch of precipitation to the region, forecasters said.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn declared a state of emergency as record flooding occurred at a dozen river gauges across the state over the weekend.

All hands pitched in as the hard-hit town of Clarksville, Mo., worked to keep back the waters of the Mississippi River from the historic downtown area.

The river was at 34.7 feet on Sunday afternoon, over 10 feet above the 25-foot flood stage – and was expected to rise another foot before cresting Monday, according to the AP.

Jeff Roberson / AP

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, right, walks away from floodwaters after meeting with members of the Missouri National Guard as they make flood preparations Saturday in Clarksville, Mo.

“This is frustrating for people,” Trish Connelly, 57, told the Associated Press. “This isn’t as bad as 2008, but thank God it stopped raining.”

Hundreds were evacuated from towns in Indiana as the Wabash River rose by 14 feet on Saturday. Authorities in the town of Montezuma, Ind. called in volunteer firefighters to help fill sandbags as waters looked to crest at twice the normal flood stage.

“Right now we are just trying to help people,” town council President Allen Cobb told WTWO. “We’re just trying to keep people calm at this point, let them know the facts as we know them and put down some of the rumors they’re hearing.”

Indiana resident Robert Morgan, 64, of Arcadia, died Friday night after his car was caught by floodwaters and swept 100 yards downstream in Hamilton County, according to a statement from the local sheriff’s office.

The body of another driver and Arcadia resident, 42-year-old David A. Baker, was recovered on Sunday, according to the sheriff’s office. Police responded after receiving a distress call from Baker’s cell phone in the early hours of Saturday, and later recovered his vehicle and dog. Baker’s body was recovered on Sunday morning.

A third confirmed flood-related death occurred in Missouri, according to weather.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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This story was originally published on Sun Apr 21, 2013 9:47 AM EDT

An Indiana man is missing and another is dead after their vehicles were overtaken by floodwaters north of Indianapolis, police said Saturday, as high water caused by heavy rains continues to plague the Midwest.

Torrential rains over the last few days have led to flooding in parts of Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, resulting in blocked roads, closed schools and rescues by boat from homes surrounded by floodwaters. 

Rain left the region on Friday, but in some areas flooding will continue beyond the weekend. Levels in some tributaries of the upper Mississippi and Ohio rivers are projected to reach or surpass major flood stage, according to Accuweather.com. Sections of Chicago area rivers have hit new crest records, including the Des Plaines, the Chicago and the DuPage, according to the National Weather Service. 

Robert Morgan, 64, of Arcadia, Indiana, died Friday night after he tried to drive his car through high water and was carried 100 yards downstream in Hamilton County north of Indianapolis, according to a statement from the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office. 

Early Saturday morning, police responded to a 911 call from a motorist who said his vehicle was sinking in the water in the same location where Morgan's car was overtaken. 

Upon arrival, rescuers found an unoccupied truck 200 feet from the roadway. The phone that called 911 belonged to an Arcadia resident, but the owner had not been found, police said. 

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency on Friday, activating the National Guard. Iowa Gov. Terry Bransted issued disaster declarations for five eastern counties and Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn declared 38 counties disaster areas. 

Chicago-area residents weary from battling floods woke up to snow on roofs and cars Saturday morning. Snow and hail also was seen Saturday morning in Cleveland, Ohio. 

The colder than normal temperatures in much of the northern part of the country are part of a strong cold front and large storm system that will clear the East Coast late on Saturday, according to the NWS.