Heavy Snow in Idaho, June 8, 2002

Name: Heavy Snow in Idaho, June 8, 2002
Start: 2002-06-08T08:00
End: 2002-06-08T22:00
Location: Idaho

June 8, 2002 · NWS MSO · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

A powerful, late season snow storm brought heavy wet snow to the region, mainly for elevations above 4000 feet. Snow was reported as low as 3000 feet early Saturday.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

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 MSO wrote it up.

A powerful, late season snow storm brought heavy wet snow to the region, mainly for elevations above 4000 feet. Snow was reported as low as 3000 feet early Saturday. Total amounts ranged from 6 inches at Grangeville, to 8 inches at Hemlock Butte.

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 Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 8, 4:58 AM MST, 3 hours 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 8, 4:58 AM MST, 3 hours 2 minutes before

WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
FOR SNOW IN NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
558 AM MDT SAT JUN 8 2002

.SHORT TERM...SHOWER ACTIVITY ON THE INCREASE AS UPPER LEVEL
LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM CENTERED OVER EASTERN WA AND FRONTAL BOUNDARY
OVER WESTERN MT TAKES HOLD OF OUR WEATHER PATTERN FOR THE NEXT
FEW DAYS. UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL SLOWLY SAG SOUTH INTO EASTERN OR
THIS AFTERNOON...WITH ASSOCIATED SHORTWAVE ENTERING NORTH CENTRAL
IDAHO THIS MORNING TO SWING INTO NORTHWEST MT. SOME DRIER AIR
BEHIND THE SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE INTO THE SOUTHERN ZONES THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING. HENCE...FAIRLY WIDESPREAD PRECIP THIS MORNING
WILL TAPER OFF IN THE SOUTH. IN THE NORTH...PRECIP WILL BECOME
STEADY AND MODERATE ALONG CONVERGENT ZONE THAT SETS UP ALONG
SURFACE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. SNOW LEVELS WILL BE AROUND 3000 FEET
THIS MORNING IN NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO AN 5000 FEET IN NORTHWEST MT.

HAVE ISSUED NEW HEAVY SNOW WARNINGS FOR MTZ001 AND IDZ005>008
WHERE COLDER AIR AND LOWER SNOW LEVELS WILL LIE CLOSER TO UPPER
LEVEL LOW. ATMOSPHERE UNSTABLE BOTH TODAY AND SUNDAY...SO WILL GO
WITH ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ALL ZONES.

ON SUNDAY...THE UPPER LEVEL LOW ENDS UP OVER SOUTHERN IDAHO WITH
RAP AROUND MOISTURE CONTINUING OVER ALL ZONES...FOR LIKELY SHOWERS
IN MOST AREAS. SNOW LEVELS ARE ADVERTISED TO RISE ON SUNDAY AS THE
COLDER AIR FOLLOWS THE UPPER LEVEL LOW INTO SOUTHERN ID. THE WINTER
STORM WATCH MAY HAVE TO BE CANCELED...BUT WILL KEEP IT GOING FOR
THE SOUTHERN ZONES FOR NOW AND LET THE DAY SHIFT TAKE A LOOK AT THIS
FOR LATER MODEL RUNS.

ON MONDAY...THE UPPER LEVEL LOW WEAKENS AND SHIFTS TO THE NORTHEAST
INTO CENTRAL MONTANA. THE AVN IS QUICKER THAN THE ETA IN THIS
SCENARIO. NEVERTHELESS...BOTH MODELS INDICATE PRECIP SHOULD TAPER
OFF IN NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO ZONES BUT WITH SHOWER ACTIVITY AND
ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING IN NORTHERLY FLOW ALOFT OVER
WESTERN MT AND LEMHI COUNTY. FELSCH

.LONG TERM...NEW AVN SOMEWHAT SLOWER MOVING UPPER LOW TO THE EAST...
MAINTAINING A BAGGY TROUGH OVER CWA TUESDAY.  EVEN QUICKER ETA
PROGS LIGHT QPF OVER MOST ZONES IN A NORTHWEST FLOW 12Z TUESDAY
MORNING. THEREFORE...WILL ADD SLIGHT CHANCE OF RAIN TUESDAY. RIDGING
WITH A GOOD WARMING TREND THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE EXTENDED STILL
LOOKS GOOD.  TEMPERATURES AROUND 10 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL ARE POSSIBLE
BY THURSDAY.  WHITMORE

.MSO...HEAVY SNOW WARNING ABOVE 5000 FEET FOR MTZ001-002 TODAY
       THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING...
    ...WINTER STORM WATCH ABOVE 5500 FEET FOR MTZ004-006-007-043-
       ID005-006 SUNDAY...

...7-DAY SPOT TEMPS AND POPS...
LIB RRW /054 045/056 042/059 30+9622
     EBUU 044/072 045/077 045/086 045/087 046/ 34210000000
FCA RRW /052 044/054 041/058 30+7634
     EBUU 043/069 044/074 044/082 046/083 048/ 34220000000
POL WRW /053 048/055 049/058 3085644
     EBUU 046/072 046/074 046/079 048/081 049/ 34220000000
MSO WRW /055 040/056 042/059 3084665
     EBUU 043/073 046/075 045/084 043/085 045/ 34221000000
HMM WRW /058 041/058 042/062 3063674
     EBUU 047/074 047/076 047/085 049/086 050/ 34221000000
BTM EOW /054 034/050 033/054 3033676
     EBUU 036/068 040/070 041/075 041/078 043/ 34221000000
ORO WWW /053 043/063 047/065 3073653
     EBUU 051/076 053/077 053/087 055/088 056/ 34110000000
GRV WWW /048 040/059 044/062 3073664
     EBUU 048/073 050/075 051/085 049/086 051/ 34110000000
SMN EWW /060 039/056 038/060 3035576
     EBUU 040/072 044/075 046/079 048/081 050/ 34110000000

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Northern Clearwater Mountains

When: June 8, 8:00 AM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Northern Clearwater Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 46.674, -115.657 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Clearwater Mountains

When: June 8, 8:00 AM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Southern Clearwater Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 45.844, -115.467 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Orofino / Grangeville Region

When: June 8, 8:00 AM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Orofino / Grangeville Region forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 46.259, -115.562 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Lower Hells Canyon / Salmon River Region

When: June 8, 8:00 AM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Lower Hells Canyon / Salmon River Region forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 45.844, -115.467 (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 Idaho in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Idaho, June 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: 5301714, 5301715, 5301716, 5301717.