Northern panhandle gets snow, southern panhandle misses out

Western Nebraska got a taste of winter weather to end the work week. 

The northern panhandle got considerably more snow, with reports from Chadron indicating the area got around 7-9 inches of snow. There was also a report of 7.5 inches in Crawford, west of Chadron near the Wyoming border. 

Areas around Valentine reported 6-8 inches of snow, but one report came in saying the town received 11 inches of snow.

As one travels south through the panhandle, the impacts were far less. Just a couple of inches fell in the Alliance area. In the southern panhandle, near Sidney merely a dusting of snow made it to the ground. 

Roads were covered in snow in the northern panhandle overnight once temperatures fell. NDOT crews got out early Friday, and highways in the panhandle were still wet and slushy in spots, but clear of snow. There were still patches of low visibility late Friday morning. 

Multiple schools in the northern panhandle canceled classes Friday, including Chadron State College. Others a bit further south opted for late starts. 

Snow began Thursday afternoon in the northern panhandle and a mix in the central panhandle. The precipitation turned to full snow during the nighttime hours. 

By late Friday morning, most of the weather had pushed out of the panhandle, with the northern part still seeing some precipitation. 

The moisture is a welcome sight for many in western Nebraska which has been in a drought since last year.