Heavy Snow, S Nez Perce/Lewis Counties
- When
- February 24, 8:00 AM PST to 8:00 PM PST
- Where
- S Nez Perce/Lewis Counties forecast zone
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 46.282, -116.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Idaho, February 24, 2002
A late-season arctic air mass moving southeast of Lewiston and a weather disturbance zipping by in favorable northwest flow brought heavy snow to areas southeast of Lewiston. 4".
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 OTX wrote it up.
A late-season arctic air mass moving southeast of Lewiston and a weather disturbance zipping by in favorable northwest flow brought heavy snow to areas southeast of Lewiston. Snowfall totals include: Winchester...4" and Nez Perce...4".
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 Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 24, 3:02 AM PST, 4 hours 58 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 24, 3:02 AM PST, 4 hours 58 minutes before
EASTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTH IDAHO AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WASHINGTON 230 AM PST SUN FEB 24 2002 TWO SYSTEMS CONTINUE TO INTERACT OVER THE INLAND NORTHWEST THIS MORNING. COLD ARCTIC AIR CONTINUES TO SEEP IN FROM THE NORTH THROUGH THE OKANOGAN VALLEY AND THE PURCELL TRENCH. AS OF THIS MORNING THE COLD AIR HAD MOVED ROUGHLY AS FAR SOUTH AS A SMP-MWH-GEG-MLP LINE. SOUTH OF THIS LINE TEMPERATURES ARE STILL IN THE UPPER 30S AND LOWER 40S. THE WEAKENING MOIST UPPER LEVEL TROUGH TO OUR SOUTH IS CONTINUING TO MOVE EASTWARD AND IS NOW LOCATED OVER SOUTHERN IDAHO. PRECIPITATION IS CONTINUING ACROSS THE EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE AREA THIS MORNING WITH SNOW OVER THE NORTH AND RAIN TO THE SOUTH. AS THE COLD AIR CONTINUES TO MOVE SLOWLY SOUTHWARD AND THE LOW MOVES EASTWARD RAIN/SNOW SHOULD BEGIN TO TAPER OFF LATER THIS MORNING AND BE JUST ABOUT OVER BY THIS AFTERNOON. THEREFORE WILL LET THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR SNOW TO EXPIRE THIS MORNING. RECENT RAINS AND SNOWMELT HAVE CAUSED SOME RISES ON THE NORTH FORK OF THE PALOUSE RIVER AND HAVE ISSUED A SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY THIS MORNING. A RIDGE THEN BUILDS IN OVER THE AREA WHICH WILL BRING DRY CONDITIONS BUT KEEP TEMPERATURES COOL. SOME VERY CHILLY OVERNIGHT LOWS CAN BE EXPECTED TONIGHT. THE NEXT SYSTEM TO AFFECT THE REGION WILL BE A SHORT WAVE TROUGH FORECAST TO MOVE THROUGH THE REGION ON TUESDAY. CC .EXTENDED...WILL MAKE NO CHANGES TO THE EXTENDED FORECAST ON WED AND THU. STILL LOOKS LIKE ONE SYSTEM ZIPPING ACROSS THE AREA ON WED IN NORTHWEST FLOW WITH WARM ADVECTION SETTING UP A CHANCE OF SNOW WITH RAIN CONFINED TO THE LOWEST ELEVATIONS. THIS MORNINGS 00Z MRF IS THE SECOND RUN IN A ROW TO INDICATE A FLAT UPPER RIDGE OVER THE WEST ON FRI AND SAT. THIS WILL POINT A FETCH OF MOISTURE INTO THE NORTHWEST WITH STIFF WESTERLY FLOW FURTHER ENHANCING PRECIP CHANCES OVER MTN ZONES WHILE KEEPING THE BASIN DRY. WILL TREND TOWARD THIS SOLUTION BY BUMPING UP POPS IN MTN ZONES WHILE ONLY INCREASING CLOUDS IN THE BASIN BUT KEEPING IT DRY. HANER ...THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRODUCT CONCERNING WARNINGS AND FORECASTS IS VALID ONLY AT THE TIME OF ISSUANCE. THE LATEST WARNING AND FORECAST INFORMATION WILL BE FOUND IN THE APPROPRIATE PRODUCTS... GEG 032/013/033/014/033 80013 COE 031/012/032/013/032 80013 PUW 033/017/035/016/035 80013 LWS 039/022/040/024/041 81003 CQV 032/013/034/014/034 80013 SPT 030/012/032/013/032 81003 WWP 030/016/029/015/030 82002 EAT 037/020/036/022/037 10012 MWH 036/016/037/021/039 10012 .OTX...NONE.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Avalanche in Colorado, February 24, 2002
- Winter Storm in Minnesota, February 24, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, February 24 to 25, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, February 24, 2002
- Winter Storm in Colorado, February 24 to 25, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Minnesota, February 24, 2002
- High Wind in Alaska, February 24, 2002
- Heavy Rain in Hawaii, February 24, 2002
- Wildfire in Delaware, February 24, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Montana, February 24, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Montana, February 24, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Montana, February 24, 2002
More
Every storm in Idaho in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, February 2002
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: 5283563.