Storms Rake Plains; Snow Hits Rockies

Thunderstorms with winds up to 70 m.p.h. swept across the northern plains on Monday, and snow made an early appearance in the Colorado Rockies.

Almost three inches of rain fell on Brookings, S.D., and 2.27 inches was recorded in Young America, Minn. Showers and thunderstorms dotted Nebraska, northeast Colorado and the eastern Dakotas.

The Breckenridge ski area in Colorado received one inch of snow early Monday from a cold front that pushed across the state. “This is as early as anyone can remember getting snow on the mountain,” Breckenridge ski area spokesman Dale Carlson said.

‘Somewhat Unusual’

Mike Holzinger, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Denver, said it was too early to tell whether the snow was a harbinger of an early winter. “It is somewhat unusual but not highly so. Snow can fall any time of the year up there,” he said.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Claudette became the second hurricane of the Atlantic season Monday but posed no threat to land, and a tropical depression south of Cuba threatened to become the third hurricane, the National Weather Service said.

The hurricane’s highest sustained winds were 74 m.p.h., and it was reported 140 miles north of Bermuda, forecaster Bob Sheets said.

The tropical depression in the Caribbean Sea south of Cuba could reach hurricane status as soon as Wednesday, forecasters said.