Virginia, 2001

Winter Weather in Virginia, January 5, 2001

January 5, 2001 · NWS LWX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

Two bands of light snow moved across the region during the morning and early afternoon of the 5th. By 4 PM, 1 to 3 inches of snow had accumulated across extreme northern Virginia.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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
8

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 LWX wrote it up.

Two bands of light snow moved across the region during the morning and early afternoon of the 5th. By 4 PM, 1 to 3 inches of snow had accumulated across extreme northern Virginia. Several minor traffic accidents were reported after snow stuck to roads.

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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 5, 3:40 AM EST, 1 hour 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 5, 3:40 AM EST, 1 hour 20 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
340 AM EST FRI JAN 5 2001

VIGOROUS S/WV DROPPING THRU MIDWST INTO MID-ATLC ATTM. WHAT SYSTM
LACKS IN MSTR IS MAKES UP FOR IN ENERGY. FEEL ETA INIT BEST W/ SWD
EXTENT OF MSBL PCPN...SO WL SIDE W/ ITS SOLN...ALTHO MAKING TYPICAL
ALBEIT SLIGHT ADJUSTMENT DWNWD ON QPF. DIFF FM GEM/SEP/AVN AND EVEN
NGM WUDNT HV APPRECIABLE AFFECT ON SENSIBLE WX ANYWAY. XPCT QPF GNLY
ARND 0.05 LIQ...A PINCH MORE ON FAVORED UPSLOPE AREAS FAR W. THUS
SNWFL GNLY AN INCH OR LESS...XCPT 1-2 INCHES UPSLOPE RDGS FAR W.
PROFILE MARGINAL PER CRIT TKNS IN THE SE...WHICH WL ALLW FOR MIXED
RA/SN INVOF EZF/NHK. TEMPS ABV FRZG WL ALSO CUT DWN ON ANY PSBL
ACCUM. AS PER TEMPS...FEEL PCPN WL COOL COLUMN...SO WENT AOB COOLER
FWC/S TDA.

GOOD CAA KICKS IN TNGT. LES SHUD SMACK INTO FVRD WWD RDGS. MUCH OF
THE SNWFL SHUD BE WRUNG OUT IN ITS TRIP ACRS WVA/WRN PA. WL KEEP
POPS AT CHC LVLS ATTM...AND ACCUM JST BARELY UNDER ADVSRY LVLS.
THUS...ANY SML UPWRD ADJUSTMENT ON DASHFT WUD LEAD TO A HDLN...STAY
TUNED.

H8 TEMPS SAT MAYBE A DEGREE WRMR THAN THU...SO SEE NO GREAT WARMUP.
PLUS...SHUD BE QUITE BRZY ON SAT AS WELL. STAYED CLS TO GUID
THRUOUT. AS W/ 1ST PD...IF ANY VARIATIONS...WENT ON THE COOL SIDE IN
CRRNT PTTN.

NO CHGS MADE TO XTNDD ATTM. A CPL MORE HICCUPS IN THE PERSISTENT
EAST CST L/WV TROF. OF COURSE...ULTIMATE TIMING MAY VARY SLGTLY.

ZFP/RDF/EOL BY 4AM. WL REISSUE SPS TO BREAK DWN DETAILS OF THAT
WHITE STUFF IN THE AIR BY 430 AM. THX RLX FOR COORD CALL. GDAY ALL

FCSTID = 50...HTS
DCA   39  30  41  30 /  60  10   5   5
BWI   37  28  39  27 /  60  10   5   5
MRB   35  27  37  25 /  60  20  10  10
IAD   38  28  40  26 /  60  10   5   5
CHO   39  29  40  28 /  40   5   0  20
HGR   33  25  34  23 /  60  20  10  10
NHK   41  31  42  31 /  40   5   0  20

.LWX...
DC...NONE.
MD...NONE.
VA...NONE.
WV...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 5, 4:30 AM EST, 30 minutes before
DCZ001-MDZ002>007-009>011-013-014-016>018-VAZ021-025>031-036>042-
050>055-WVZ048>055-051515-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
430 AM EST FRI JAN 5 2001

...LIGHT SNOW WILL SPREAD ACROSS THE REGION TODAY...

AN AREA OF LIGHT SNOW...ENTERING EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA AND WESTERN
MARYLAND EARLY THIS MORNING...WILL SPREAD EASTWARD...REACHING THE
BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON AREA DURING THE MORNING COMMUTE.

THIS MORNING/S SNOW WILL LAST ABOUT AN HOUR OR TWO...AND MAY WHITEN
GRASSY AREA. ANOTHER SEVERAL HOUR LONG PERIOD OF LIGHT SNOW IS
EXPECTED TO SPREAD INTO EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA...WESTERN
MARYLAND...AND THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY OF VIRGINIA DURING THE LATE
MORNING HOURS...AND SPREAD INTO THE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON AREA DURING
THE AFTERNOON. THE BULK OF THE ACCUMULATING SNOW IS EXPECTED FROM
THIS SECOND AREA.

SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL GENERALLY BE AN INCH OR LESS...WITH THE
GREATEST AMOUNTS IN THE FAVORED WESTERN TERRAIN. HIGH TEMPERATURES
IN THE LOWER TO MID 30S WILL ALSO KEEP ACCUMULATIONS DOWN AS SOME OF
THE SNOW WILL MELT AS IT FALLS. THIS WILL BE PARTICULARLY TRUE IN
THE COASTAL PLAIN...INCLUDING METROPOLITAN BALTIMORE AND WASHINGTON.

ACROSS CENTRAL VIRGINIA AND SOUTHERN MARYLAND...THERE IS ONLY A
CHANCE FOR ANY PRECIPITATION TODAY. ITS FORM WOULD BE A MIX OF RAIN
AND SNOW AS TEMPERATURES WILL RISE WELL INTO THE 30S.

A VIGOROUS DISTURBANCE WAS SWEEPING EAST THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES
INTO THE APPALACHIANS EARLY THIS MORNING AND THE NORTHERN AND EASTERN MID
ATLANTIC REGION BY LATE MORNING AND AFTERNOON. LIMITED MOISTURE AND
RAPID MOVEMENT WILL LIMIT SNOWFALL AMOUNTS IN THE CENTRAL
APPALACHIANS BUT WITH HEAVIER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE TO THE NORTH.

MOTORISTS AND COMMUTERS PLANNING TO BE OUT AND ABOUT TODAY SHOULD BE
PREPARED FOR SOME SLIPPERY ROADS BY AFTERNOON. THIS WILL BE
PARTICULARLY TRUE ACROSS EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA...WESTERN AND CENTRAL
MARYLAND...AND NORTHWEST VIRGINIA WHERE PERSISTENT SNOW IS EXPECTED.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND OTHER LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER
DETAILS OR UPDATES.  ON THE WEB...THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION CAN
BE FOUND AT HTTP://WWW.NWS.NOAA.GOV/ER/LWX.

HTS

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Frederick / Winchester

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Frederick / Winchester forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
39.195, -78.213 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Shenandoah

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Shenandoah forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.858, -78.571 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Fauquier

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Fauquier forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Weather, Prince William / Manassas

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Prince William / Manassas forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Weather, Fairfax

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Fairfax forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.841, -77.291 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Loudoun

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Loudoun forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Weather, Clarke

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Clarke forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
39.112, -77.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Warren

When
January 5, 5:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where
Warren forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.909, -78.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Weather
Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Virginia in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, 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: 5229397, 5229398, 5229399, 5229400, 5229401, 5229402, 5229534, 5229535.