New Hampshire, 2002

Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in New Hampshire, February 1, 2002

February 1, 2002 · NWS GYX · 12 events in 12 counties and zones

Low pressure moving east from the upper Ohio Valley and a second low that formed off the New England coast brought moderate snow to Coos County, heavy snow to most of central New Hampshire, and a wintery mix of precipitation to southern parts of the state. The precipitation began on January 31st and continued until mid afternoon on Feb.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 12 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
12

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 GYX wrote it up.

Low pressure moving east from the upper Ohio Valley and a second low that formed off the New England coast brought moderate snow to Coos County, heavy snow to most of central New Hampshire, and a wintery mix of precipitation to southern parts of the state. The precipitation began on January 31st and continued until mid afternoon on Feb. 1. In general, from 4 to 8 inches of snow fell across the state. Southern areas saw the snow mix with, and then change to, sleet and freezing rain.

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 Gray, ME wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 31, 8:40 PM EST, 3 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 31, 8:40 PM EST, 3 hours 20 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME
840 PM EST THU JAN 31 2002

SNOWFALL RATES OF AN INCH/HR BCMG COMMON ACRS MUCH OF SRN/CNTRL
ME/NH ATTM WITH AMTS TOTALLING CLOSE TO 6 INCHES OVR MANY AREAS
ALRDY. OVER THE LAST FEW HRS SNOW CHNGG TO SLEET OVR SERN NH AS WELL
AS WRN NH AS OBSERVED BY LEB OBS.  WILL NEED TO INCR THE LIMITS FOR
SNOWFALL TOTALS OVR ALL OF SRN/CNTRL ME AND CNTRL NH BY A FEW
INCHES.  LAST HR 88D SHOWG HVIER BANDS OF PCPN DVLPG OVR NH AND SHUD
BE MOVG INTO ME NEXT FEW HRS.  AFT MIDNGT ALL INDICATIONS ARE FOR
WAA TO OVERSPRD FA SO CHANGEOVER TIMG STILL ON TRACK AND LOOKS
GOOD.  SLEET AND ICE TO BE MAIN STORY IN THE ERLY MRNG AND FREEZG RN
THRU THE DAY FRI SINCE TEMPS WILL STRUGGLE TO BREAK 32 DEGS.  TEMP
FCST LOOKS GOOD TNGT.

.GYX...
ME...WTR STRM WRNG THRU FRI MEZ007>009-012>014-018>028.
NH...WTR STRM WRNG THRU FRI NHZ001>010-013-014.

MARINE

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 heavy snow, 5 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Northern Coos

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Northern Coos forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
44.690, -71.305 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Grafton

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Southern Grafton forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
43.941, -71.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Carroll

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Southern Carroll forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
43.874, -71.203 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Grafton

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Northern Grafton forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
43.941, -71.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Carroll

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Northern Carroll forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
43.874, -71.203 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Belknap

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Belknap forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
43.519, -71.423 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Sullivan

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Sullivan forecast zone
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
43.361, -72.222 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Strafford

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Strafford forecast zone
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
43.297, -71.029 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Merrimack

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Merrimack forecast zone
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
43.298, -71.680 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Interior Rockingham

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Interior Rockingham forecast zone
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
42.985, -71.089 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Coastal Rockingham

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Coastal Rockingham forecast zone
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
42.985, -71.089 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Coos

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to 2:00 PM EST
Where
Southern Coos forecast zone
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
44.690, -71.305 (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.
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 New Hampshire in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in New Hampshire, 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5280271, 5280272, 5280273, 5280274, 5280275, 5280276, 5281972, 5281973, 5281974, 5281975, 5281976, 5281977.