Heavy Snow, Pickens
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Pickens forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 33.281, -88.089 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Alabama, December 14, 1997
A strong low pressure system brought heavy snow to west-central Alabama, with accumulations up to five inches. m.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 10 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
- 10
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 BMX wrote it up.
A strong low pressure system brought heavy snow to west-central Alabama, with accumulations up to five inches. It began in the western counties around 900 a.m. and moved through the central counties around noon. It finally began to tapper off around 230 p.m. Many roads across the area became icy and there were numerous accidents due to the icy roads. Here are some snowfall totals: 5" in Pickens and Sumter; 4" in Greene and Marengo; 3" in Hale; 2" in Tuscaloosa, Bibb, Perry, and Shelby; and 1" in Jefferson and Chilton.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
10 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Tuscaloosa
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Tuscaloosa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 33.290, -87.525 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Jefferson
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Jefferson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 33.554, -86.896 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Greene
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Greene forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.853, -87.952 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Marengo
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Marengo forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.248, -87.789 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Hale
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Hale forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.763, -87.629 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Bibb
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Bibb forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.999, -87.126 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Perry
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Perry forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.639, -87.294 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Shelby
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Shelby forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 33.264, -86.661 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Chilton
- When
- December 14, 9:00 AM CST to 2:30 PM CST
- Where
- Chilton forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 32.848, -86.719 (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
- Heavy Snow in Mississippi, December 14, 1997
- High Wind and Strong Wind in Massachusetts, December 14, 1997
- Flood in Florida, December 14 to 24, 1997
- Strong Wind in Rhode Island, December 14, 1997
- Strong Wind in Connecticut, December 14, 1997
- Strong Wind and Winter Weather in New Hampshire, December 14, 1997
- High Wind in Alaska, December 14, 1997
- Flood in Florida, December 14 to 17, 1997
- High Wind in Washington, December 14, 1997
- Heavy Snow in California, December 14, 1997
More
Every storm in Alabama in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Alabama, December 1997
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: 5620645, 5620646, 5620647, 5620648, 5620649, 5620650, 5620651, 5620652, 5620653, 5620654.