Winter Storm, Frederick
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Frederick forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 39.195, -78.213 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, March 9, 1999
An area of low pressure moved from the Ohio Valley to North Carolina from late on the 8th through the evening of the 9th. Heavy snow fell across the Appalachian Mountains and the eastern foothills as the storm system moved through.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 18 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
- 21
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 LWX wrote it up.
An area of low pressure moved from the Ohio Valley to North Carolina from late on the 8th through the evening of the 9th. Heavy snow fell across the Appalachian Mountains and the eastern foothills as the storm system moved through. In addition, the storm produced an unusual band of heavy snow that stretched in a west to east line from Frederick County to Fairfax County. This band was about 50 miles wide from north to south, and storm total snowfall was as high as one foot in this area. Snowfall rates were in excess of 1 1/2 inches per hour in many locations during the storm. By evening on the 9th Frederick, Clarke, Loudoun, Shenandoah, and Fairfax County received between 8 and 12 inches. Warren, Page, Northern Rockingham, Rappahannock, Prince William, and northern Fauquier County received between 6 and 10 inches. Southern Rockingham, Greene, Madison, Culpeper, Southern Fauquier, and Stafford County received between 4 to 8 inches. Highland, Augusta, Albemarle, Spotsylvania, and King George County received between 2 and 6 inches. Travel became treacherous across Northern Virginia on the 9th. Washington Reagan National Airport and Dulles International Airport reported numerous flight cancellations between 7:00 am and midnight. Hundreds of car accidents occurred on area roads. Loudoun County reported 53 vehicle collisions and 18 injuries. 24 school buses became stuck on rural routes. Route 7 near Highway 601 was closed. A fallen tree and power line also closed U.S. Highway 15 north of Leesburg. In Warren County, one person was killed in a car accident on Strasburg Road. The Winchester Airport in Frederick County was closed. In Shenandoah County, and early afternoon accident involving four tractor trailers closed part of Interstate 81 for four hours. Highland County reported several cars slipping off snow covered roads. Greene County reported several accidents on Route 29, including one jackknifed tractor trailer. Fauquier County reported an accident near Midland Road where 5 students and a bus driver were injured. At least 200 cars had to be towed off Interstate 95 and 66 during the storm. King George County reported two school buses in accidents and six others slipping off roadways. The city of Fredericksburg reported over 100 accidents. On Interstate 95 in Spotsylvania County, a woman was killed in a morning car accident. Another man was killed in an accident near Fort Belvoir in Fairfax County. Over 500 disabled vehicles and 30 injuries occurred across the county from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm. Hunter Mill Road was closed after 40 vehicles became disabled in the snow. Virginia State Police responded to 250 accidents and towed 200 vehicles during the storm in the Washington D.C. suburbs.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
19 winter storm, 2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Storm, Clarke
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Clarke forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 39.112, -77.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Loudoun
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Loudoun forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
Winter Storm, Shenandoah
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Shenandoah forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.858, -78.571 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Warren
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Warren forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.909, -78.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Fauquier
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Fauquier forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
Winter Storm, Prince William
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Prince William forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
Winter Storm, Fairfax
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Fairfax forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.841, -77.291 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Arlington
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Arlington forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.855, -77.106 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Rockingham
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Rockingham forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.481, -78.872 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Page
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Page forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.620, -78.484 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Rappahannock
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Rappahannock forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.685, -78.159 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Greene
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Greene forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.298, -78.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Madison
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Madison forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.414, -78.279 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Culpeper
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Culpeper forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.486, -77.956 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Orange
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Orange forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.246, -78.013 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Spotsylvania
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Spotsylvania forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.244, -77.558 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Stafford
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Stafford forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.421, -77.457 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, King George
- When
- March 9, 3:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- King George forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.274, -77.156 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Weather, Albemarle
- When
- March 9, 4:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Albemarle forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 38.029, -78.477 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Weather, Nelson
- When
- March 9, 4:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
- Where
- Nelson forecast zone
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 37.787, -78.887 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Winter Storm
- A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
- Winter Weather
- Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Damaging Wind in Alabama, March 9, 1999
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, March 9, 1999
- Damaging Wind in Alabama, March 9, 1999
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, March 9, 1999
- Damaging Wind in Florida, March 9, 1999
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, March 9, 1999
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, March 9, 1999
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Maryland, March 9, 1999
- Sleet in North Carolina, March 9, 1999
- Wildfire in Florida, March 9 to 10, 1999
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, March 9, 1999
- Heavy Snow and High Wind in Alaska, March 9 to 12, 1999
More
Every storm in Virginia in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, March 1999
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: 5686540, 5686541, 5686542, 5686543, 5686544, 5686545, 5686546, 5686547, 5686548, 5686549, 5686550, 5686551, 5686552, 5686553, 5686554, 5686555, 5686556, 5686557, 5686558, 5686559, 5686560.