Minnesota, 2001

Heavy Snow in Minnesota, February 24 to 25, 2001

February 24 to 25, 2001 · NWS DLH · 15 events in 15 counties and zones

A large winter storm moved through the western Great Lakes region, bringing heavy snow to all of northeastern Minnesota in two waves over a period of a day and a half. Snowfall totals of 8-12 inches were common, but amounts up to two feet were reported along the North Shore.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 15 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
15

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 DLH wrote it up.

A large winter storm moved through the western Great Lakes region, bringing heavy snow to all of northeastern Minnesota in two waves over a period of a day and a half. Snowfall totals of 8-12 inches were common, but amounts up to two feet were reported along the North Shore. Strong winds also caused blowing and drifting on the 25th. Up to 18 inches of wet, heavy snow resulted in the collapse of a barn roof in Pine County.

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 Duluth, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 23, 9:00 PM CST, 3 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 23, 9:00 PM CST, 3 hours before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
900 PM CST FRI FEB 23 2001

MAJOR WINTER STORM THE FOCUS TONIGHT.

STRONG ISENTROPIC LIFT/WAA SNOWS ALREADY LIFTING INTO OUR SOUTHWEST
CWA. DRY LOW LEVELS ARE HOLDING OFF THE ONSET OF SNOW SOMEWHAT...
BUT THE AMOUNT OF PRECIPITABLE WATER ADVECTING IN IS SIGNIFICANT
ENOUGH TO START SNOW AS FORECAST OVERNIGHT. SOME CONVECTIVE
ELEMENTS WERE DEPICTED ON THE LATE AFTERNOON VISIBLE SATELLITE...AND
THE TSSN IN SOUIX FALLS SD CONFIRMED THAT SCENARIO. THE NEW ETA/NGM
ARE STILL SUGGESTING 2-4 INCH SNOWFALL BY MORNING IN MUCH OF THE CWA
AND THE DYNAMICS OF THE SYSTEM SEEM TO BE STRONG ENOUGH TO SUPPORT
THIS. A BREAK IN THE ACTION STILL ON TRACK FOR SATURDAY AFTERNOON
AS THE LOW LIFTS NORTHEAST INTO IOWA. FREEZING PRECIP STILL ON TAP
FOR MUCH OF OUR WISCONSIN CWA AS THE WARM SURGE PUSHES NORTH. THIS
MAY HOLD THE SNOW TOTALS DOWN THERE A BIT...BUT THE WINTRY MESS
THAT WILL RESULT STILL WARRENTS STRONG HEADLINE WORDING. THE BIG
SNOW TOTALS WILL COME ON SATURDAY NIGHT AS THE LOW PULLS INTO
WISCONSIN. THE HEAVY SNOW BAND IN THE COMMA HEAD LOOKS TO MAINTAIN
ACROSS OUR MN CWA AND WESTERN WI CWA. SNOW TOTALS STILL HON TRACK
AND I WILL LEAVE THE CURRENT HEADLINES ALONE. ONLY MINOR ADJUSTMENTS
NEEDED TO CURRENT ZONES.

.DLH...WINTER STORM WARNING LATE TNGT THROUGH SAT NIGHT ENTIRE CWA.

SHIMON

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

15 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Koochiching

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Koochiching forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
48.245, -93.783 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern St. Louis

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Northern St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Cook / Northern Lake

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Northern Cook / Northern Lake forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.670, -90.975 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Itasca

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Northern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Central St. Louis

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Central St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Lake

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern Lake forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.557, -91.935 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Cook

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern Cook forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.817, -90.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Cass

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Northern Cass forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Itasca

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Cass

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern Cass forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Crow Wing

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Crow Wing forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.482, -94.071 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Aitkin

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Northern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Aitkin

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern St. Louis / Carlton

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Southern St. Louis / Carlton forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.091, -92.569 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pine

When
February 24, 12:00 AM CST to February 25, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Pine forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.121, -92.741 (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

More

Every storm in Minnesota in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, 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: 5234661, 5234662, 5234663, 5234664, 5234665, 5234666, 5234667, 5234668, 5234669, 5234670, 5234671, 5234672, 5234673, 5234674, 5234675.