Several ski resorts reported heavy snow. At Northstar they had 12 inches in 12 hours at 7300 feet and 22 inches at 8600 feet.
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.
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.
The episode as NWS REV wrote it up.
Several ski resorts reported heavy snow. At Northstar they had 12 inches in 12 hours at 7300 feet and 22 inches at 8600 feet. Squaw Valley reported 14 inches at 6200 feet and 24 inches at 8200 feet in 24 hours. Boreal ski at 7200 feet reported 30 inches of snow in 24 hours with a total of 35-36 inches. Sierra at Tahoe ski reported 18-24 inches of snow in 24 hours at 8100 feet. Alpine Meadows ski reported 16 inches of snow at 7000 feet and 22 inches at 8600 feet in 24 hours.
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 Reno, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 6, 3:00 AM PST, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.
WESTERN NEVADA AND EASTERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
300 AM PST WED MAR 6 2002
SHORT WAVE TROUGH NOW APPROACHING 130W SOUTH OF 40N WILL MOVE INTO
THIS AREA THIS EVENING. A SECOND STRONGER AND COLDER TROUGH THEN
COMES IN FROM THE NW ON THURSDAY. SNOW LEVELS WILL BE LOWERING THIS
AFTERNOON AS THE FIRST TROUGH MOVES IN AND WILL DROP TO THE VALLEY
FLOORS OF NORTHWEST NEVADA DURING THE DAY THURSDAY. SNOW AMOUNTS
SHOULD EASILY EXCEED WARNING CRITERIA FOR THE EASTERN SIERRA AND MAY
AS WELL FOR OUR NORTHEAST CALIF ZONES COULD ABOVE 4500-5000 FEET IN
PARTS OF NORTHWEST NEVADA. IT WILL BE WINDY MOST OF THE TIME THROUGH
THURSDAY ALTHOUGH THE ETA POINTS TO SPEEDS STAYING BELOW WARNING
LEVELS. THE WEATHER QUIETS DOWN ON FRIDAY AS A RIDGE BUILDS INTO THE
AREA.
IN THE EXTENDED...RIDGE OVER THE AREA BEGINS TO MOVE EASTWARD ON
SATURDAY AS NEXT SHORT WAVE APPROACHES 130 WEST. THERE ARE SOME
TIMING AND STRENGTH DIFFERENCES IN THE MEDIUM RANGE MODELS ON THIS
SYSTEM BUT THE UNDERLYING THEME IS FOR THE SYSTEM TO MOVE THROUGH
THE CWA GENERALLY IN THE SUNDAY TIME PERIOD. THE MRF IS A LITTLE
SLOWER AND HAS MORE AMPLITUDE WITH MORE PRECIP THAN THE OTHER MODELS
ARE SHOWING. AFTER SUNDAY THE TREND IS TOWARDS A MORE ZONAL FLOW
WITH SEVERAL EMBEDDED FEATURES WHICH WOULD BE HARD TO TIME. ONE
COULD ARGUE FOR A FAIRLY BROAD BRUSHED FORECAST OF PRECIP FOR ALL
BUT THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE CWA FOR MONDAY AND TUESDAY. HOWEVER
AFTER COORDINATION FOR NOW WILL JUST LIMIT THE THREAT TO A SLIGHT
CHANCE FOR ZONES 4 AND 5 AND KEEP THE REMAINDER OF THE CWA PARTLY
CLOUDY. HOPEFULLY LATER RUNS WILL RESOLVE THE PATTERN A LITTLE MORE.
.REV...WINTER STORM WARNING ZONE 2/72 TODAY AND THURSDAY
WINTER STORM WARNING ZONE 71 ABOVE 5500 FEET TODAY AND
ABOVE 4500 FEET TONIGHT AND THURSDAY
WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE SIERRA PORTION OF ZONE 73
THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH THURSDAY
WINTER STORM WATCH ZONE 5/70 ABOVE 4500 FEET TONIGHT AND
THURSDAY MORNING
WINTER STORM WATCH ZONE 3 ABOVE 5000 FEET THURSDAYThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
5 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in California, March 2002
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: 5286023, 5286024, 5286025, 5286026, 5286022.