Name: Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in California, February 9 to 10, 2001
Start: 2001-02-09T12:00
End: 2001-02-10T16:00
Location: California

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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 HNX wrote it up.

With a rather cold winter storm passage through the CWFA, snow levels dropped down to 2500 feet M.S.L. in the foothill areas. Snow amounts reported: Ponderosa Basin 12" (3500 ft); 9" at Mariposa; 14" in Sequoia Park (3500-4000 ft); Fishcamp 30" (4980 ft); Ostrander Lake 20" (8200 ft); Yosemite Valley 12" (4000 ft); Lodgepole 23" (6735 ft); Quaking Aspen 13" (7200 ft); and in the Tehachapi Mountains Alta Sierra had 7" (6000 ft) and Tehachapi 5" (5000 ft).

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Hanford, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 9, 9:21 AM PST, 2 hours 39 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 9, 9:21 AM PST, 2 hours 39 minutes before

INTERIOR CENTRAL CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HANFORD CA
921 AM PST FRI FEB 9 2001

UPPER LOW CENTER LOCATED NEAR 42N128W WITH SURFACE LOW JUST OFF THE
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST. COLD FRONT EXTENDS OFFSHORE FROM SFO BAY TO
NEAR 33N130W. LEADING EDGE OF BAND OF PRECIPITATION ASSOCIATED WITH THE
COLD FRONT EXTENDS FROM SAC SOUTHWEST TO NEAR MRY. EXTRAPOLATION OF
FRONT PUTS IT INTO MERCED AND WESTERN FRESNO COUNTIES EARLY THIS
AFTERNOON. A FEW SHOWERS HAVE SKIRTED ACROSS THE MERCED AND MODESTO AREA
WITH SHOWERS IN YOSEMITE AREA PER RADAR AND SPOTTER REPORTS.

MOISTURE ON SATELLITE DOES NOT LOOK IMPRESSIVE SOUTH OF THE LOW CENTER.
IR IMAGERY TRENDS SHOWING COLD CLOUD TOPS EXPANDING ACROSS NORTHERN
CALIFORNIA BUT NO ENHANCEMENT NOTED ALONG THE FRONT OFF THE CENTRAL
COAST. HIGH RESOLUTION MODELS HOLD OFF ON ANY SUBSTANTIAL QPF UNTIL
ABOUT NOON FOR THE CENTRAL VALLEY AND KEEP IT NORTH OF KINGS AND TULARE
COUNTIES UNTIL LATE AFTERNOON. THIS LOOKS REASONABLE BASED ON CURRENT
TRENDS. UPSLOPE FLOW WILL HELP GET PRECIP GOING EARLIER IN THE SIERRA
BUT DO NOT EXPECT TO SEE SIGNIFICANT MOUNTAIN SNOW UNTIL AFTERNOON.

COLD FRONT PROGGED TO SWEEP THROUGH THE CWFA THIS AFTERNOON WITH THE
UPPER LOW WEAKENING AND MOVING INLAND ACROSS NORTHERN CALIFORNIA TONIGHT
AND ACROSS THE GREAT BASIN SATURDAY. CROSS SECTIONS SHOW THE BEST ENERGY
AND LIFT ACROSS THE CWFA TONIGHT WITH NVA AND NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT
SATURDAY AFTERNOON. PRECIP SHOULD SLACKEN OFF SIGNIFICANTLY SATURDAY
AFTERNOON WITH THIS SCENARIO BUT THE NEXT SYSTEM IS PROGGED TO ARRIVE
SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING...SO LITTLE BREAK BETWEEN SYSTEMS.

WILL UPDATE THE FORECAST TO ADJUST TIMING OF CLOUDS AND PRECIPITATION.
WATCHES AND WARNING LOOK FINE.

.HNX...WINTER STORM WARNING THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH SATURDAY FOR
       THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA.
    ...WINTER STORM WATCH FOR TONIGHT AND SATURDAY FOR THE KERNZ
       COUNTY MOUNTAINS.

LINDQUIST

Event by event

4 winter storm, 1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, S Sierra Foothills

When: February 9, 12:00 PM PST to February 10, 4:00 PM PST
Where: S Sierra Foothills forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, S Sierra Mtns

When: February 9, 12:00 PM PST to February 10, 4:00 PM PST
Where: S Sierra Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: PARK/FOREST SERVICE

Winter Storm, Tulare Cty Foothills

When: February 9, 3:00 PM PST to February 10, 4:00 PM PST
Where: Tulare Cty Foothills forecast zone
Reported by: PARK/FOREST SERVICE

Winter Storm, Tulare Cty Mtns

When: February 9, 3:00 PM PST to February 10, 4:00 PM PST
Where: Tulare Cty Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: PARK/FOREST SERVICE

Heavy Snow, Kern Cty Mtns

When: February 9, 10:00 PM PST to February 10, 4:00 PM PST
Where: Kern Cty Mtns forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
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

More

Every storm in California in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in California, February 2001

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: 5233047, 5233049, 5233048, 5233050, 5233131.