Heavy Snow in Oregon, March 5 to 6, 2000

A late season snow storm brought widespread heavy snow to much of Central and Northeastern Oregon. Snow levels were low and some locations along the foothills of the Blue Mountains received their heaviest accumulations of the winter. The towns of Adams, Athena and Helix, all located between 1600 and 1900 feet in Umatilla County, received 4 inches of snow. The amount of snow along the foothills varied widely with elevation. While downtown Pendleton (1000 ft) received all rain, a location 20 miles south of Pilot Rock at 3000 feet received 10 inches of snow. In the Blue Mountains, heavy snow fell at Ukiah (3350 ft). Ukiah received 14 inches, the heaviest accumulation in the Blue Mountains. Other reports of heavy snow include 10 inches at Meacham ( 4000 ft ), 6 inches at Tollgate ( 5200 ft ), and 8 inches at Starkey ( 3700 ft ). In Wallowa County, Joseph (4100 ft )received 6 inches overnight. This storm caused several accidents on Interstate 84 near Meacham. The most serious mishap involved 4 vehicles and briefly blocked the Interstate near Cabbage Hill at 7:00 am the morning of the 6th. In the Grande Ronde Valley, Cove ( 2900 feet ) received 7 inches. The John Day Airport, located in the John Day Basin at 3700 feet, received 7 inches as well.