Heavy Snow in Oregon, March 15 to 17, 2002

Name: Heavy Snow in Oregon, March 15 to 17, 2002
Start: 2002-03-15T03:00
End: 2002-03-17T12:00
Location: Oregon

March 15 to 17, 2002 · NWS PQR · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

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 PQR wrote it up.

A powerful Pacific storm dumped very heavy snow over Northwest Oregon, particularly in the Cascades. Storm snowfall totals in the Cascades included 32 inches at Timberline Lodge on Mt Hood, 28 inches at Santiam Pass, 25 inches at Willamette Pass, 21 inches at Tombstone Summit and Mt Hood Meadows, 20 inches at Bennett Pass, and 17 inches at Government Camp. In the Coast Mountains, 5 inches fell at Sunset Summit and Wilson River Summit, 4 inches at Vernonia, and 3 inches at Swiss Home and Mist. In the Cascade Foothills, 9 inches fell at Brightwood, 5 inches at Detroit, 4 inches at McKenzie Bridge, and 3 inches at Estacada. In the Columbia River Gorge, Corbett reported 3 inches.

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 Portland, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 15, 2:30 AM PST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 15, 2:30 AM PST, 30 minutes before

NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
230 AM PST FRI MAR 15 2002

.SYNOPSIS...A COLD UPPER LOW DROPPING INTO PAC NORTHWEST LATER TODAY
THROUGH THE WEEKEND WILL GIVE SHOWERS TO THE FORECAST AREA ALONG WITH
UNSEASONABLY LOW SNOW LEVELS. COOL UNSETTLED CONDITIONS ARE LIKELY TO
CONTINUE INTO NEXT WEEK.

.DISCUSSION...
.SHORT TERM...MODELS CONSISTENT SHOWING COLD UPPER TROUGH DEEPENING
INTO COLD UPPER LOW OVER PAC NORTHWEST BY SAT. AS SYSTEM DEEPENS
STRONG ONSHORE FLOW AND GOOD WESTERLY OROGRAPHIC FLOW DEVELOPS
TONIGHT AND SAT. WITH VERY COLD AIR MASS MOVING OVER DISTRICT HEAVIER
SHOWERS WILL BE CAPABLE OF OVERCOMING THE WARMING EFFECT OF ONSHORE
FLOW...BUT THE FICKLE NATURE OF LOW LEVEL SNOW PRECLUDES ISSUING
COAST OR INLAND VALLEY SNOW ADVISORIES TILL PATTERN BECOMES MORE
CERTAIN. OVER COAST RANGE...FOOTHILLS AND CASCADES THE SNOW ADVISORY
ALREADY IN EFFECT A GOOD BET TO VERIFY...AND COULD APPROACH WINTER
STORM LEVELS ALTHOUGH CURRENT AVN RUN SUGGESTS BEST ONSHORE FLOW MAY
BE SOUTH OF DISTRICT.

SHOWERS SHOULD DECREASE SUN AS MODELS SHOW UPPER LOW DIGGING SOUTH OF
AREA BY EVENING.

.LONG TERM...MODELS FAIRLY SIMILAR FIRST PART OF WEEK SHOWING FAVORED
LOCATION OF NEXT UPPER TROUGH/LOW VICINITY OF PAC NORTHWEST...BUT BY
MIDWEEK DIFFERENCES ESCALATE LEADING TO LOWER CONFIDENCE IN
PRECIPITATION POSSIBILITIES. TEMPERATURES REMAINING BELOW NORMAL.
WILLIS

AST 99975  PDX 99975  SLE 99985  EUG 99996

.PQR...GALE WARNING CAPE SHOALWATER TO FLORENCE.
       SNOW ADVISORIES CASCADES...FOOTHILLS...AND COAST RANGE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Mar 14, 9:50 PM PST, 5 hours 10 minutes before

ORZ001-002-005>009-WAZ020>023-039-160545-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
950 PM PST THU MAR 14 2002

...AN UNSEASONABLY COLD STORM SYSTEM STILL EXPECTED TO PRODUCE VERY
LOW SNOW LEVELS FRIDAY NIGHT INTO THE WEEKEND...

A VERY COLD STORM SYSTEM IS STILL EXPECTED TO ORGANIZE NEAR
VANCOUVER ISLAND ON FRIDAY THEN DROP SOUTH INTO THE AREA FRIDAY
NIGHT INTO THE WEEKEND.  SNOW LEVELS WILL INITIALLY FALL TO 1000
FEET BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON...THEN DOWN TO 500 FEET LATE FRIDAY NIGHT
THROUGH SATURDAY.  THIS SHOULD STILL ALLOW SNOW TO MIX WITH RAIN IN
THE LOWER VALLEYS WITH MOSTLY SNOW ABOVE 500 FEET WHERE SOME
ACCUMULATION IS POSSIBLE.  IT STILL REMAINS POSSIBLE THAT MIXED
PRECIPITATION IN THE LOWER VALLEYS COULD TURN TO ALL SNOW FOR A
TIME...ESPECIALLY SATURDAY MORNING PRODUCING LIGHT STICKING SNOW.
THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE SATURDAY AS THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BE
VERY UNSTABLE.

THE LATEST RECORDED SNOWFALL AT THE PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
STANDS AT NEARLY 1 INCH ON THE 10TH OF MARCH 1951.  ANY ACCUMULATION
WOULD SET A NEW RECORD FOR THE LATEST SNOWFALL AT THE AIRPORT.

PEOPLE EXPECTING TO TRAVEL...ESPECIALLY ROUTES ABOVE 500 FEET FRIDAY
NIGHT THROUGH THE WEEKEND SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR WINTRY WEATHER
CONDITIONS. BE SURE TO LISTEN TO THE LATEST FORECASTS AND STATEMENTS
FOR THE LATEST ON THIS DEVELOPING STORM.

MERCER

Event by event

4 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Coast Range of Nw Oregon

When: March 15, 3:00 AM PST to March 17, 12:00 PM PST
Where: Coast Range of Nw Oregon forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Heavy Snow, Northern Oregon Cascades

When: March 15, 3:00 AM PST to March 17, 12:00 PM PST
Where: Northern Oregon Cascades forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Heavy Snow, North Oregon Cascades Foothills

When: March 15, 3:00 AM PST to March 17, 12:00 PM PST
Where: North Oregon Cascades Foothills forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Heavy Snow, Western Columbia River Gorge

When: March 15, 3:00 AM PST to March 17, 12:00 PM PST
Where: Western Columbia River Gorge forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

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 Oregon in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Oregon, 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: 5286200, 5286201, 5286202, 5286203.