Heavy Snow in Washington, November 28, 2001

Name: Heavy Snow in Washington, November 28, 2001
Start: 2001-11-28T00:00
End: 2001-11-28T12:00
Location: Washington

November 28, 2001 · NWS PDT · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Heavy snow fell during the morning hours in the Yakima and Kittitas Valleys. and the 5th largest daily snowfall ever recorded.

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: $100,000
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 PDT wrote it up.

Heavy snow fell during the morning hours in the Yakima and Kittitas Valleys. For the city of Yakima, the 11 inches that fell made this the heaviest snow since December of 1996...and the 5th largest daily snowfall ever recorded. Hundreds of accidents occurred during the morning rush hour in Yakima. Interstate 82 and State Routes 82 and 821 were intermittently closed throughout the day due to accidents. Elsewhere, 10 inches were recorded in the Yakima valley next to Granger. In the Kittitas Valley, 9 inches of snow fell in Ellensburg.

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 Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 27, 8:15 PM PST, 3 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 27, 8:15 PM PST, 3 hours 45 minutes before

NORTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
815 PM PST TUE NOV 27 2001

MID AND UPPER LEVEL CLOUDS CONTINUE TO SPREAD INTO THE PACIFIC
NORTHWEST IN ADVANCE OF NEXT STORM SYSTEM. CURRENT RADAR MOSAICS
INDICATE NO RAIN AS OF YET...BUT SUSPECT THAT WILL CHANGE OVER THE
NEXT FEW HOURS. THIS SYSTEM IS EXPECTED TO BRING A HODGE PODGE OF
WEATHER ACROSS THE PENDLETON FORECAST AREA LATE TONIGHT AND
WEDNESDAY. HEAVY SNOW TO THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CASCADES AND THE
YAKIMA AND KITTITAS VALLEYS WITH MIXED PRECIPITATION AND POSSIBLY
FREEZING RAIN FROM THE EASTERN GORGE TO THE FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE
MOUNTAINS. PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS LOOK TO BE LESS ALONG THE
BLUE...OCHOCO AND WALLOWA MOUNTAINS...BUT STILL ENOUGH TO WARRANT
SNOW ADVISORIES THERE. NEW ETA MODEL STILL SHOWING ABOVE SCENARIO TO
BE ON TRACK. CURRENT PACKAGE HAS ABOVE SITUATION IN CHECK. UPDATED
THE WSW AND ZONES EARLIER THIS EVENING FOR SOME MINOR DETAILS...SO
NO OTHER UPDATES EXPECTED. MEAD

PDT 2864  ALW 2864  PSC 2843  YKM 6+63

.KPDT...WSR-88D...VCP32/CSR21...OPERATIONAL.

.KPDT...HEAVY SNOW WARNING LATE TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY FOR OREGON
        ZONES 42...43 AND WASHINGTON ZONE 25...26 AND 27...
     ...A SNOW ADVISORY WEDNESDAY FOR OREGON ZONES 46...47...50 AND
        WASHINGTON ZONE 30...
     ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY LATE TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY FOR
        WASHINGTON ZONE 24 AND OREGON ZONES 41...
     ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY WEDNESDAY FOR WASHINGTON ZONES
        28...29 AND OREGON ZONES 44...45...
     ...HIGH WIND WATCH WEDNESDAY FOR OREGON ZONE 49...

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, Yakima Valley

When: November 28, 12:00 AM PST to 12:00 PM PST
Where: Yakima Valley forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.457, -120.739 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Kittitas Valley

When: November 28, 12:00 AM PST to 12:00 PM PST
Where: Kittitas Valley forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.791, -120.709 (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

Every storm in Washington in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, November 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: 5272840, 5272841.