Ohio, 2001

Heavy Snow in Ohio, January 5, 2001

January 5, 2001 · NWS CLE · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Northwest flow across Lake Erie caused lake effect snow showers to develop during the early morning hours. Although the snow showers persisted into the evening hours, most of the accumulating snow occurred between daybreak and sunset.

Where it happened

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.

  • 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
$65,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 CLE wrote it up.

Northwest flow across Lake Erie caused lake effect snow showers to develop during the early morning hours. Although the snow showers persisted into the evening hours, most of the accumulating snow occurred between daybreak and sunset. Over six inches of accumulation was reported at several locations on the eastern end of Cuyahoga County. In Geauga County, 7 inches of snow fell at Newbury with 6 inch accumulations at several other locations.

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 Cleveland, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 5, 2:25 AM EST, 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 5, 2:25 AM EST, 35 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
225 AM EST FRI JAN 5 2001

FAST MVNG CLIPPER WITH LIMITED MOISTURE BUT STRONG DYNAMICS. MODELS
SIMILAR IN BRINGING VORT CENTER ACRS OH VLY THIS MORN. AVN A BIT
FASTER AND CLOSER TO CURRENT POSITION ON SATELLITE LOOP. SLOT OF LOW
LVL WARM AND DRY AIR FEEDING INTO SYSTEM ON LOW LVL JET. PCPN SHUD
CONT TO EXPAND AS GOOD UVV OCCURS IN STRG PVA AND LOW LVL JET ACRS
NE OH/NW PA. GOOD UVV AND COOLING ALOFT SHUD RESULT IN MOSTLY SNOW
WITH LESS CHC OF ZL BY MID MORN. WL CONT WITH ADVISORY NE OH/NW PA.
WL MENTION ZL EARLY AND INCLUDE BLOWING/DRIFTING SNOW. PCPN SHUD
SHIFT EAST OF NW OH EARLY AND WL TAKE ADVISORY DOWN BUT WL STILL
HAVE TO MENTION BLOWING/DRIFTING AND LESS THAN AN INCH ADDITIONAL.
SECOND S/WV N OF ARROWHEAD OF MN AND PROGGED TO OH VLY BY 00Z.
SECOND ROUND OF UVV COMBINED WITH CAA AND CYCLONIC FLOW WL LIKELY
KICK OFF SOME LAKE ENHANCED SNOW LATER TODAY THRU ABT MIDNIGHT...
THEN INVERSION PROGGED TO LOWER. NXT CLIPPER WILL BRING WAA LATE SAT
BUT SYSTEM WEAKER AND LACKING MOISTURE. CURRENT FCST OF FLURRIES
SHUD HANDLE IT TIL SAT NGT WHEN A BETTER CHC FOR SOME LGT SNOW TO
BREAK OUT. WARMEST AIR WIL GET PINCHED OFF BUT ALL MODELS BRING LOW
LVL THERMAL TEMPS TO +1C...TOO BAD WIND CHILLS WL BE LOW. NGM MOS
GUIDANCE TEMPS LOOK GOOD. PREFFER COLDER FCST FOR SAT AS A BIT OF
ARCTIC AIR BEGINS TO SNEAK BACK ACRS GRTLKS. MISC(LE ABT 330 AM.

.CLE...
OH...GALE WARNING LAKE ERIE
WINTER WX ADVISORY THIS MORN NE OH
PA...GALE WARNING LAKE ERIE
WINTER WX ADVISORY TODAY NW PA

KOSARIK

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Cuyahoga

When
January 5, 3:00 AM EST to 8:00 PM EST
Where
Cuyahoga forecast zone
Property damage
$40,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
41.479, -81.678 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Geauga

When
January 5, 3:00 AM EST to 8:00 PM EST
Where
Geauga forecast zone
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
41.500, -81.179 (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 Ohio in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Ohio, January 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: 5228596, 5228597.