Snow Overnight? Obsessed With Dust -- I Guess We Start With The Weather This Morning

Drought? What drought. West of Jamestown, North Dakota, May 18, 2013. 

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Snow in North Dakota overnight? KQCD/Sky Spy Photo. The photo was taken in Montana but it is my understanding the same was seen on North Dakota side of the state line. Nope, not snow. Hail.

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The Dickinson Press seems to be obsessed with dust. Or it's just a slow news day. It used to be all about the "dust ball" hanging over Williston, but now the Press is concerned with the dust in Dickinson:

In 1978, Kansas sang “all we are is dust in the wind.” For residents of southwestern North Dakota in 2013 caught in a dust storm on a windy day, that lyric can certainly ring true.

The region’s dust storms — a worrisome issue for county officials and a result of the booming economy — can be troublesome for allergy or asthma sufferers, said Dr. Parag Kumar, a Bismarck-based pediatrician for Sanford.

“We have not done any studies, but we have a very strong feeling that the dust in the air is contributing,” he said ...

Back in September, 2011, the Stark Development Corporation Executive Vice President talked about the dust ball over Williston.

Somehow Williston survived.

By the way, the heavy rain southwestern North Dakota received last night should help with the dust today. Some areas reported close to five inches over night.

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Meanwhile, on a more positive note, the Minot Daily News is reporting that some folks in Dickinson are looking for opportunities to take advantage of inexpensive natural gas for their vehicles.

Dickinson city officials met with Montana-Dakota Utilities several months ago to discuss the possibility of creating a slow-fill, compressed natural gas station at the city's new public works building.

..... the city originally sought to convert vehicles that operate strictly within the city limits, beginning with its solid waste division ....

The concept appears feasible for the garbage operation, though, he said. The main concern is money. The city received a bid indicating the cost could be between $300,000 and $600,000. The cost of retrofitting vehicles would be another $10,000 to $30,000 per vehicle.