BEATRICE – High winds, blizzard conditions and dust storms.   That’s how the weekend ended in western Nebraska and northwest Kansas.  Viewers of Monday’s eclipse will face varying cloud conditions in both states.

The National Weather Service says ten to twelve inches of snow fell in the southern panhandle of Nebraska, shutting down Interstate 80 and Nebraska Highway 30 westbound.  Ten-foot drifts were reported north of Potter, and the winter blast knocked down power lines across part of the interstate. 

Sunday, an estimated 11,000 were without power in Gering, Bayard and Bridgeport.  Widespread power outages were reported in Scotts Bluff, Sioux, Box Butte and Morrill Counties…with high winds, snow and ice combining to cause problems.

A dust storm Sunday afternoon caused brown-out conditions and closure of a highway at McCook, in southwest Nebraska.  Wind gusts as high as 65 to 70 miles-per-hour were reported. 

North of Brewster in northwest Kansas visibility was down to less than a half-mile in a plume of blowing dust, Sunday morning.   Blowing dust near Interstate 70 brought visibility to a half-mile to near zero.  Winds speeds reached over 60-miles-per-hour in several northwest Kansas locations. 

In southeast Nebraska early Saturday evening, severe thunderstorm warnings were issued for several counties, including Thayer, Jefferson, Saline, Gage and Lancaster…for thunderstorms accompanied by wind gusts of around 60-miles-per-hour.