Heavy Snow in Ohio, January 7, 2002

Name: Heavy Snow in Ohio, January 7, 2002
Start: 2002-01-07T06:00
End: 2002-01-07T08:00
Location: Ohio

January 7, 2002 · NWS PBZ · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A winter storm spread heavy snow across portions of east central Ohio. The snow started falling during the early morning hours of the 6th, and continued into the overnight hours of the 7th.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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: 2

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 PBZ wrote it up.

A winter storm spread heavy snow across portions of east central Ohio. The snow started falling during the early morning hours of the 6th, and continued into the overnight hours of the 7th. By the early morning hours of the 7th, snowfall totals at Belmont and Harrison Counties ranged between 4 and 7 inches, with surrounding counties generally reporting between 3 and 5 inches of accumulation.

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 Pittsburgh, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 7, 4:15 AM EST, 1 hour 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 7, 4:15 AM EST, 1 hour 45 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
415 AM EST MON JAN 7 2002

WILL KEEP WINTER STORM WARNING AND ADVISORY GOING UNTIL 10AM. SEE
BELOW FOR COUNTY LISTING.

LOW MOVING UP THE NEW ENGLAND COAST. BACK EDGE OF WRAP AROUND STEADY
SNOW STRETCHES TO OUR WEST INTO CENTRAL OHIO. HEAVIEST SNOW IS EAST OF
KPBZ IN OUR RIDGES. SHORT WAVE PASSES THROUGH CWA THIS AM WITH HIGH
PRESSURE BUILDING IN FROM THE NORTHWEST. WILL KEEP WINTER STORM WARNING
GOING TIL 10 AM THIS MORNING DUE TO AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES...STORM
TOTAL SNOW IN ZONES FIRST PD. FOR MUCH OF OUR FA TODAY WILL GO WITH
SNOW THIS AM TAPERING TO FLURRIES THIS AFTN.

CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS LATE TUESDAY NIGHT IN WSW FLOW AND APPROACHING
SHORT WAVE. 1000-850 THICKNESSES BELOW 1295 12Z WED. H8 TEMPS AROUND
ZERO. RAIN OR SNOW FOR WEDNESDAY LOOKS GOOD WITH MARGINAL TEMPS AND
THICKNESSES.

FOR THE EXTENDED ON THE BIG PICTURE THROUGH SUNDAY THERE IS A RIDGE IN
THE WEST AND A TROUGH IN THE EAST. ABOUT EVERY 24 TO 30 HOURS A RIPPLE
MOVES THROUGH.

PIT   28  17  33  30 / 100  10  10  30
HLG   29  18  33  28 / 100  10  10  30
MGW   28  18  34  29 / 100  10  10  30
ZZV   30  18  34  29 / 100  10  10  40
PHD   30  18  34  29 / 100  10  10  40
FKL   26  16  30  24 / 100  10  10  30
DUJ   27  16  31  25 / 100  10  10  30
LBE   27  16  31  25 / 100  10  10  30
BTP   26  16  30  24 / 100  10  10  30
IDI   27  16  31  25 / 100  10  10  30
ODM   26  16  30  23 / 100  10  10  30

.PBZ...
MD...WINTER STORM WARNING THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING MDZ001.
OH...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING
     OHZ040-O41-O49-O50-O59-O69.
PA...WINTER STORM WARNING THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING
     PAZ016-023-030>032.
     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING
     PAZ007>009-013>015-020>022-029.
WV...WINTER STORM WARNING THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING
     WVZ004-O12-021>023-041.
     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY THROUGH 1000 AM MONDAY MORNING
     WVZ001>003.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Belmont

When: January 7, 6:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Belmont forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 40.016, -80.988 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Harrison

When: January 7, 6:00 AM EST to 8:00 AM EST
Where: Harrison forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 40.294, -81.091 (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 Ohio in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Ohio, 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: 5278324, 5278325.