Heavy Snow, Sanilac
- When
- December 17, 10:00 PM EST to December 18, 7:30 AM EST
- Where
- Sanilac forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.443, -82.646 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 17 to 18, 1998
A cold air mass covered the Great Lakes, while a trough of low pressure developed over the relatively warm water of Lake Huron. A lake effect snow band formed over central Lake Huron on the 17th, and as the wind shifted to the northeast with the passing trough, the snow band came onshore in the Thumb area.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 3 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
- 3
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 DTX wrote it up.
A cold air mass covered the Great Lakes, while a trough of low pressure developed over the relatively warm water of Lake Huron. A lake effect snow band formed over central Lake Huron on the 17th, and as the wind shifted to the northeast with the passing trough, the snow band came onshore in the Thumb area. Seven inches of snow fell in Lexington (Sanilac County), while Croswell (Sanilac) received six inches. Six inches of snow also fell in northeast St Clair County, north of Port Huron. A similar lake effect snow band over Saginaw Bay also came onshore, producing six inches of snow in Akron (Tuscola). Snowfall rates with these bands were around an inch an hour.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Tuscola
- When
- December 17, 10:00 PM EST to December 18, 7:30 AM EST
- Where
- Tuscola forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.491, -83.440 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, St. Clair
- When
- December 17, 10:00 PM EST to December 18, 7:30 AM EST
- Where
- St. Clair forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 42.931, -82.664 (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
- Winter Weather in Vermont, December 17, 1998
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Maine, December 17 to 18, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 17, 1998
- Winter Weather in North Carolina, December 17, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Minnesota, December 17 to 18, 1998
- High Wind in Alaska, December 17 to 19, 1998
- High Wind in Wyoming, December 17, 1998
- Dense Fog in California, December 17, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, December 17 to 18, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, December 17 to 18, 1998
- High Wind in Montana, December 17, 1998
- High Wind in Montana, December 17, 1998
More
Every storm in Michigan in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Michigan, December 1998
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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5677422, 5677423, 5677424.