Heavy Snow, Northern Cook / Northern Lake
- When
- December 14, 4:00 PM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
- Where
- Northern Cook / Northern Lake forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 47.670, -90.975 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Minnesota, December 14 to 15, 1996
East winds encountering steep terrain along Minnesota's North Shore resulted in 6 to 8 inches of snow along the Gunflint Trail, with 4 to 6 inches closer to the Lake Superior shore.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS DLH wrote it up.
East winds encountering steep terrain along Minnesota's North Shore resulted in 6 to 8 inches of snow along the Gunflint Trail, with 4 to 6 inches closer to the Lake Superior shore.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Southern Cook
- When
- December 14, 4:00 PM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
- Where
- Southern Cook forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 47.817, -90.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Wind in California, December 14 to 16, 1996
- High Wind in California, December 14 to 16, 1996
- Heavy Snow in South Dakota, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Heavy Snow in South Dakota, December 14, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Minnesota, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Blizzard in South Dakota, December 14, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Minnesota, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, December 14 to 15, 1996
- Flooding in Pennsylvania, December 14, 1996
- Blizzard in Wyoming, December 14, 1996
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, December 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5583653, 5583654.