Weekend storm dropped 19 inches of snow on Gillette

GILLETTE — If April showers are meant to bring May flowers, what do April blizzards bring?

This past weekend’s snowstorm was one of historic proportions, with Saturday having the most snow Gillette’s seen in a single day since the middle of the Great Depression.

On Saturday and Sunday, 19 inches of snow fell, translating into 2.21 inches of precipitation. Of those 19 inches, most of them came on Saturday.

The 16 inches of snow on Saturday not only set the record for the snowiest April day. It was the second snowiest single day in the history of Gillette, according to the National Weather Service, whose records for Gillette go back to 1902. The top honor for most snow in one day belongs to March 22, 1933, when 18 inches fell.

After Sunday, Gillette’s gained 21 inches of snow so far this month, more than double the average and vaulting this month into the eighth snowiest April on record. And it’s the snowiest month Gillette’s seen since March 2009, which had 24.5 inches of snow.

The total snowfall since July 1 is now 57.4 inches, ahead of the normal of 53.3.

“I’m sort of in awe,” said David King, Campbell County emergency management coordinator, while driving around snow-covered Gillette Sunday afternoon.

Snowplow crews and first responders were out on the roads while the majority of the county took shelter. The whiteout conditions made it extremely difficult for even the snowplow drivers to get around, King said.

Many of those vehicles were left abandoned during the storm because even tow trucks had trouble getting unstuck.

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Cody to host large Harley rally

CODY — A motorcycle rally coming to Cody this summer is expected to bring more than 900 motorcycles for a three-day event in late June.

The Harley Owners Group chose Cody this year for the June 23-25 event over Jackson, Sheridan and Park City, Utah. The last event was held in Durango, Colo.

“It will bring in more than $2 million immediate impact,” Park County Travel Council Executive Director Ryan Hauck said Tuesday night at the city council meeting. “We were pretty excited when we got this bid.”

The travel council is giving the group $5,000 to assist in covering some of the more than $13,000 it will cost to run the event, and Hauck also requested the city provide an additional $2,500 sponsorship, which council members approved with one nay vote.

The city council also unanimously approved permission to close some streets, use the bandshell and allow for open beverages during the event.

Cody Police Chief Chuck Baker said businesses will be able to make agreements to access their stores during the closure.

Hauck said the downtown establishments should get plenty of businesses from the Harley owners.

“This is not a closed-off event, it’s a public event,” he said. “You’re just going to have 900 people on top of the normal crowd. It should do nothing but help everybody.

“You’re talking about people who can buy $30,000-$50,000 Harleys,” Hauck added. “This is not Hells Angels, not a rough crowd — (it’s a) a family crowd.”