Minnesota, 2002

Winter Storm in Minnesota, January 31, 2002

January 31, 2002 · NWS MPX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

A low pressure system moved into central Illinois from Iowa by the mid-evening hours on the 31st, and then moved northeast into the eastern Great Lakes region by the early afternoon of February 1st. This system produced a narrow swath of six inch snowfall which fell across extreme south central Minnesota, and portions of southeast Minnesota.

Where it happened

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.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 MPX wrote it up.

A low pressure system moved into central Illinois from Iowa by the mid-evening hours on the 31st, and then moved northeast into the eastern Great Lakes region by the early afternoon of February 1st. This system produced a narrow swath of six inch snowfall which fell across extreme south central Minnesota, and portions of southeast Minnesota. Some snowfall totals of note include: 8 inches at Fairmont, 7 inches at Red Wing, and 6 inches at Albert Lea.

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 Twin Cities, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 31, 10:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 31, 10:45 AM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
1045 AM CST THU JAN 31 2002

MAIN FORECAST CONCERN IS SNOW CHANCES ACROSS SOUTHEAST CWA INTO
EARLY THIS THURSDAY EVENING.  IN THAT REGARD...ISENTROPIC WORK FROM
MORNING ETA (285K SURFACE) CLEARLY SHOWS DEFORMATION ZONE DYNAMICS
FROM CENTRAL NEBRASKA NORTHEAST TOWARD SAINT CLOUD LOOP OF
SATELLITE IR DATA CONFIRMS THESE DYNAMICS. IN THAT REGARD...CURRENT
FORECAST APPEARS RIGHT ON THE MONEY IN TERMS OF BOTH THE AREA OF
CONCERN...TOGETHER WITH THE DURATION OF THE EVENT. WILL ONLY MAKE
MINOR MODIFICATIONS TO FIRST PERIOD WORDING.

.MSP...NONE
WET

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Faribault

When
January 31, 12:00 PM CST to 11:59 PM CST
Where
Faribault forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
43.674, -93.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Freeborn

When
January 31, 12:00 PM CST to 11:59 PM CST
Where
Freeborn forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
43.674, -93.349 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Goodhue

When
January 31, 12:00 PM CST to 11:59 PM CST
Where
Goodhue forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
44.410, -92.723 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Martin

When
January 31, 12:00 PM CST to 11:59 PM CST
Where
Martin forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
43.674, -94.551 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Steele

When
January 31, 12:00 PM CST to 11:59 PM CST
Where
Steele forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
44.022, -93.226 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Storm
A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Minnesota in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, January 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: 5276866, 5276867, 5276868, 5276869, 5276870.