Heavy Snow, Kootenai/Cabinet Region
- When
- December 28, 4:00 PM MST to December 29, 6:00 PM MST
- Where
- Kootenai/Cabinet Region forecast zone
- Reported by
- DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
- Coordinates
- 48.171, -114.863 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Montana, December 28 to 29, 2002
Winter storm brought heavy snowfall to the mountains of northwest Montana and to the valleys of the Kootenai/Cabinet and Lower Clark Fork Regions. Montana DOT and Snotel sites reported 5 to 10 inches in the valleys with up to a foot in the mountains from the afternoonof 12/28 to the afternoon of 12/29.
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
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 MSO wrote it up.
Winter storm brought heavy snowfall to the mountains of northwest Montana and to the valleys of the Kootenai/Cabinet and Lower Clark Fork Regions. Montana DOT and Snotel sites reported 5 to 10 inches in the valleys with up to a foot in the mountains from the afternoonof 12/28 to the afternoon of 12/29.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, West Glacier Region
- When
- December 28, 4:00 PM MST to December 29, 4:00 PM MST
- Where
- West Glacier Region forecast zone
- Reported by
- DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
- Coordinates
- 47.971, -114.069 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Lower Clark Fork Region
- When
- December 28, 4:00 PM MST to December 29, 4:00 PM MST
- Where
- Lower Clark Fork Region forecast zone
- Reported by
- DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
- Coordinates
- 47.286, -114.685 (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
- Flooding and Heavy Snow in California, December 28 to 29, 2002
- High Wind in Nevada, December 28, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, December 28 to 29, 2002
- High Wind in Nevada, December 28, 2002
- Strong Wind in California, December 28, 2002
- Winter Storm in California, December 28 to 29, 2002
- Heavy Snow in California, December 28 to 29, 2002
- High Wind in Montana, December 28, 2002
- High Wind in Montana, December 28, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 28, 2002
- Winter Storm in Oregon, December 28, 2002
- Flood in Oregon, December 28 to 29, 2002
More
Every storm in Montana in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, December 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5324174, 5324175, 5324176.