Heavy Snow in Idaho, March 18, 2002

Name: Heavy Snow in Idaho, March 18, 2002
Start: 2002-03-18T06:00
End: 2002-03-18T22:00
Location: Idaho

March 18, 2002 · NWS OTX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Persistent snow showers on this day brought heavy snow to parts of the central Idaho panhandle. 6".

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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: 3

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.

Persistent snow showers on this day brought heavy snow to parts of the central Idaho panhandle. Snowfall totals include: Lost Lake SNOTEL...14", Bear Mountain SNOTEL...12", Mosquito Ridge SNOTEL...11", Schweitzer Mountain Ski Area...10", Wallace...6.2", Coeur D'Alene...5-7", Harrison...5", Alder Creek...5", Athol...4.5", Bovill...4", Sandpoint...3.8", and Saint Maries...3.6".

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 Mar 18, 2:30 AM PST, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 18, 2:30 AM PST, 3 hours 30 minutes before

EASTERN WASHINGTON AND NORTH IDAHO AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WASHINGTON
230 AM PST MON MAR 18 2002

THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH THAT HAS INFLUENCED OUR WEATHER FOR THE PAST
SEVERAL DAYS HAS FINALLY MOVED SOUTHEAST AND NOW LIES OVER SOUTHERN
IDAHO. THIS IS ALLOWING A WEAK RIDGE TO BUILD OVER EASTERN WASHINGTON
THIS MORNING. EVEN SO...SOME WARM ADVECTION AHEAD OF THE NEXT SYSTEM
HAS PRODUCED SOME MID LEVEL CLOUDS AND SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS OVER
THE AREA AT THIS TIME. WITH ALL THESE CLOUDS TEMPERATURES SHOULD BE
KEPT FROM PLUMMETING AND THIS MORNINGS LOWS ARE LIKELY TO BE NOT AS
COLD AS PREVIOUSLY INDICATED...ESPECIALLY EAST. THE NEXT SYSTEM IS
NOW APPROACHING THE B.C. COAST AND WILL SPREAD PRECIPITATION ACROSS
EASTERN WASHINGTON THIS AFTERNOON/EVENING AND NORTH IDAHO THIS
EVENING. HEAVIEST SNOWFALL APPEARS TO FALL OVERNIGHT TONIGHT...THEN
ENDING OVER THE WESTERN ZONES EARLY TUESDAY...BUT CONTINUING OVER THE
EASTERN MOUNTAIN ZONES THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THEREFORE...WILL CONTINUE
WITH THE CURRENT WINTER STORM WATCHES FOR TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY. BY
TUESDAY AFTERNOON WARM ADVECTION AND SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS WILL
INCREASE TEMPERATURES AND RAISE SNOW LEVELS...ESPECIALLY SOUTH. WEST
TO NORTHWESTERLY UPPER LEVEL FLOW WILL REMAIN OVER THE REGION THROUGH
WEDNESDAY WHICH SHOULD DECREASE CHANCES OF PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE
EAST SLOPES AND THE COLUMBIA BASIN...BUT KEEP IT GOING FOR THE
EASTERN ZONES. CC

.EXTENDED...WITH THE RIDGE THAT BEGINS TO DEVELOP WEDNESDAY AND
PERSISTS INTO FRIDAY BEFORE IT STARTS TO SHOW SOME WAVES MOVING UP
FROM THE SOUTHWEST WILL CONTINUE WITH THE PRESENT FORECAST OF DRY
FRIDAY BUT CHANGE THURSDAY TO ALSO BE DRY. WITH THE SOUTHWEST FLOW
AND A TROUGH APPROACHING THE COAST WILL BE BACK TO A SHOWERY REGIME
ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. ALSO WARMING IN THE EXTENDED WITH
TEMPERATURES REACHING THE UPPER 40S TO MID 50S MOST AREAS ON FRIDAY.
LH

...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 035/023/037/029/038 57564
COE 033/021/035/028/037 57575
PUW 036/026/038/030/040 46564
LWS 040/030/044/034/048 26564
CQV 036/024/036/028/039 58886
SPT 033/020/033/025/035 58886
WWP 032/023/033/027/035 58897
EAT 039/027/042/030/045 36353
MWH 041/029/045/034/047 26453

.OTX...WINTER STORM WATCH FOR TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY FOR ID ZONES
        1 AND 4 AND WA ZONES 37 38
       WINTER STORM WATCH FOR TONIGHT THROUGH NOON TUESDAY FOR WA
        ZONES 42 AND 43.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Coeur D'Alene Area

When: March 18, 6:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST
Where: Coeur D'Alene Area forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 47.675, -116.700 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Central Panhandle Mountains

When: March 18, 6:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST
Where: Central Panhandle Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 47.265, -116.491 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Panhandle

When: March 18, 6:00 AM PST to 10:00 PM PST
Where: Northern Panhandle forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 48.247, -116.588 (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, March 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: 5287253, 5287254, 5287346.