Heavy Snow in Indiana, February 4 to 6, 1998

One of the heaviest snowfalls in recent memory blanketed southwest Indiana with a total of 10 to 14 inches of snow. The snow fell in two distinct bursts. The first period of heavy snow from the afternoon of the 4th into the wee morning hours of the 5th produced 6 to 8 inches. Snowfall rates during the peak of this burst were 1 to 2 inches per hour. The most intense snowfall occurred during the late afternoon rush hour, which caused major traffic headaches. A motorist was killed in a two-car accident on the Lloyd Expressway around 4 P.M. on the 4th. Countless minor accidents occurred, which slowed traffic to a crawl. A tractor trailer rig overturned on Interstate 164, closing that highway for a couple of hours. Strong wind gusts around 30 MPH caused some problems with snow drifting across roads that had been cleared. Almost every school, college, and university was closed. Some businesses were closed, and many clubs and associations cancelled meetings. The second burst of snow began during the afternoon of the 5th and continued into the wee morning hours of the 6th. Although snowfall rates were not as intense as in the first round of heavy snow, an additional 4 to 5 inches of snow fell. This brought snowfall totals for the two-day period up to a foot across most of southwest Indiana. This storm total was enough to make this the sixth snowiest February on record at Evansville. Despite the heavy snow totals, relatively warm ground temperatures combined with air temperatures right near the melting point helped road crews clear the primary roads fairly easily. The long duration of the storm was the result of a prolonged easterly flow of moist air from the Atlantic Ocean. A nor'easter type of low pressure system moved slowly north along the Atlantic seaboard. Lots of moisture from this storm was drawn westward into the Ohio Valley by an east-west oriented upper level trough.