An upper low level pressure trough moved across the Idaho panhandle, bringing heavy snow to the central and northern parts of the panhandle, mainly above 2500 feet elevation. 5".
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS OTX wrote it up.
An upper low level pressure trough moved across the Idaho panhandle, bringing heavy snow to the central and northern parts of the panhandle, mainly above 2500 feet elevation. The following are some of the heavier snowfall amounts: Silver Mountain Ski Area...21", Lookout Pass Ski Area...14", Schweitzer Ski Area...13", Saint Maries...5.4", and Priest River...5". While heavy snow typically takes place in this area several times each winter, this storm was unusually damaging when it dumped heavy, wet, sticky snow followed by wind gusts of 20 to 30 miles an hour. Most problems in the Idaho panhandle took place in Bonner County, where dozens of downed trees and power lines knocked power out to most customers in the Priest Lake area.
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 Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 30, 10:02 PM PST, 1 hour 58 minutes earlier.
EASTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTH IDAHO AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WASHINGTON
830 PM PST FRI NOV 30 2001
A DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM IS CENTERED NEAR 46N/135W THIS EVENING.
WARM ADVECTION OVER THE INLAND NORTHWEST IS BRINGING BANDS OF
PRECIPITATION TO THE AREA AT THIS TIME. THE SNOW LEVEL IS HOVERING
AROUND 2000 FEET AS THE SPOKANE AIRPORT HAS REMAINED SNOW ALL EVENING
BUT FELTS FIELD HAS BEEN A MIX OF RAIN AND SNOW. THE WARM ADVECTION
PATTERN WILL REMAIN IN PLACE OVER EASTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTH IDAHO
THROUGH THE NIGHT. THIS WILL KEEP SNOW FALLING OVER THE NORTHERN
ZONES AND A MIX OF RAIN AND SNOW FURTHER SOUTH. THEREFORE WILL KEEP
THE ADVISORIES GOING THROUGH THE NIGHT FOR NORTHERN LOCATIONS BELOW
3000 FEET. BY EARLY SATURDAY MORNING 850MB TEMPS RISE TO ZERO DEGREES
CELSIUS AND ABOVE SO AREAS SPOKANE SOUTHWARD SHOULD BE IN THE WARM
SECTOR AND BE MOSTLY RAIN. AREAS FURTHER NORTH WILL HAVE A HARDER
TIME SCOURING OUT THE COLD AIR AND SHOULD REMAIN SNOW THROUGH THE
DAY. BY SATURDAY EVENING...THIS SYSTEM WILL BE EAST OF THE AREA AND
THE PRECIPITATION SHOULD BEGIN TAPERING OFF. CC
...THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRODUCT CONCERNING WARNINGS AND FORECASTS
IS VALID ONLY AT THE TIME OF ISSUANCE. THE LATEST WARNING AND
FORECAST INFORMATION WILL BE FOUND IN THE APPROPRIATE PRODUCTS...
GEG 033/038/029/034/023/033 ++6215
COE 032/037/029/034/022/032 ++7215
PUW 033/040/031/036/021/031 +86226
LWS 036/045/035/041/030/039 576236
CQV 031/037/029/032/022/034 ++8313
SPT 031/035/030/032/023/032 ++9313
WWP 029/036/031/034/022/030 9+9326
EAT 034/042/030/034/024/028 873024
MWH 035/044/031/035/024/030 875036
.OTX...SNOW ADVISORY TONIGHT AND SATURDAY FOR NORTHERN CASCADES...
NORTHEAST MOUNTAINS OF WA...NORTH ID PANHANDLE AND OKANOGAN
VALLEY.
...SNOW ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR SPOKANE/COEUR DALENE.
...HIGH WIND WATCH SATURDAY FOR NORTHEAST BLUE MOUNTAINS.The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, December 2001
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: 5273762, 5273763.