Winter Storm in Vermont, March 22 to 23, 2001

Name: Winter Storm in Vermont, March 22 to 23, 2001
Start: 2001-03-22T15:00
End: 2001-03-23T05:00
Location: Vermont

March 22 to 23, 2001 · NWS BTV · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

A storm system moved northeast from coastal New Jersey Thursday, March 22nd into the Gulf of Maine during Friday, March 23rd. Significant snow fell across the area.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $150,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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 BTV wrote it up.

A storm system moved northeast from coastal New Jersey Thursday, March 22nd into the Gulf of Maine during Friday, March 23rd. Significant snow fell across the area. The snow was heavy and wet with power outages reported and a number of accidents. Snowfall was generally 7 to 25 inches with the greatest amounts in the mountains. A few reports included: Rutland county...East Wallingford had 24 inches with 9.5 inches in the city of Rutland. Washington county...Waitsfield had 20 inches. Windsor county...Ludlow had 15.7 inches.

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 Burlington, VT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 22, 10:47 AM EST, 4 hours 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 22, 10:47 AM EST, 4 hours 13 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BURLINGTON VT
1047 AM EST THU MAR 22 2001

SFC LOW ABT 100 MI W OF THE BENCHMARK AND 12Z MDLS SMLR IN TRACKING
LOW ACRS THE CAPE TNGT.  IR LOOP SHWS WELL DEFINED TROP CONNECTION
WITH DEEP LYRD MSTR STREMAING NWD FM TROP ATCTC THEN WWD ACRS FA.
COLD CLD TOPS STREAMING NW FM E CSTL NEW ENG AND WITH WELL DEFINED
NEG TILT TROF AND STG LL ELY INFLOW XPCT THIS CONVEYER BELT OF DEEP
MSTR/UVV TO CONT SO OCNL HVY SNOW TO CONT INTO AT LEAST THIS EVNG...
ESP HIR ELEVATIONS FM ADRNDCKS EWD.  12Z MDL QPF CONFIRMS THIS WITH
OVER 1 LIQUID AFT 12Z ERN ZNS.  SNWFALL RATES OF 1+/HR LKLY THRU
THIS AFTN WITH UP TO AN ADDITL 12 IN FVRD HIR ELEV LOCNS THRU TNGT.

THIS WL BE A CLASSIC ELEVATION STORM.  ALRDY RPTS OF 12+ OVR HIR
TRRN CNTRL VT/ADRNDCKS WHILE ONLY 2-6 IN VLYS.  TMPS AOA FRZG LMTG
SNW ACCUM IN THESE RGNS BUT AS TMPS COOL A BIT LTR TDA/TNGT SNW WL
ACCUM MORE EASILY IN LOW ELEV.

UPR CT VLY WL EXPERIENCE WHITE MTN SHADOW AS STG SE H8 FLOW RSLTS IN
SIG DOWNSLOPE.  MWN WND 11075G98KT DOES NOT BODE WELL FOR HVY SNOW
NRN CT VLY.  1V4 EXPERIENCING EFFECTS WITH ONLY 1 AND WRMST TMP IN
FA AT 36...MAY ENEN GET SOME RA MIXED IN.

FOR UPDATE WL SPLIT SNW ACCUM FOR VLYS/HIR ELEV.  HAV LWRD ACCUM FOR
VLYS WHILE INCRG AMTS IN HIR ELEV.  WUD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE LCLY
UP TO 2 FT IN E ADRNDCKS/HIR ELEV CNTRL/N VT BY FRI AM.

.BTV...WINTER STORM WARNING VTZ001>012-NYZ026>031-034-035
       THROUGH TONIGHT.

KJC

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Mar 22, 1:48 PM EST, 1 hour 12 minutes before

NYC019-031-033-089-221900-

TEST TEST TORNADO TEST WARNING - BTV-2
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BURLINGTON VT
148 PM EST THU MAR 22 2001

...THIS IS TEST MESSAGE BTV-2...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BURLINGTON HAS ISSUED A TEST TEST

* TEST TORNADO TEST TEST WARNING TEST FOR...
  CLINTON COUNTY IN NEW YORK
  FRANKLIN COUNTY IN NEW YORK
  EASTERN ST. LAWRENCE COUNTY IN NEW YORK
  NORTHERN ESSEX COUNTY IN NEW YORK

* UNTIL 202 PM EST

* AT 147 PM EST...TEST MESSAGE...BTV-2...WAS ISSUED. IF THIS WERE
  A REAL TORNADO WARNING...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WOULD HAVE
  LISTED THE COMMUNITIES IN THE PATH OF THE STORM. WHAT WOULD YOU DO
  IF YOUR COMMUNITY WAS LISTED? DO YOU HAVE A DISASTER PLAN?

* THIS COMPLETES THIS TEST MESSAGE...BTV-2.

REMEMBER...ADVANCE PLANNING IS ESSENTIAL WHEN THERE IS A CHANCE FOR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER. MAKE SURE YOUR FAMILY KNOWS WHERE TO GO AND WHAT
TO DO IN THE EVENT THAT THUNDERSTORMS BECOME SEVERE.

.END

LAT...LON 4421 7525 4409 7358 4493 7352 4473 7532

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Rutland

When: March 22, 3:00 PM EST to March 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Rutland forecast zone
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 43.580, -73.037 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Washington

When: March 22, 3:00 PM EST to March 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 44.273, -72.615 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Windsor

When: March 22, 3:00 PM EST to March 23, 5:00 AM EST
Where: Windsor forecast zone
Property damage: $50,000
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.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Vermont in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Vermont, March 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: 5238321, 5238322, 5238323.