Heavy Snow in Virginia, January 2 to 3, 2002

Name: Heavy Snow in Virginia, January 2 to 3, 2002
Start: 2002-01-02T22:00
End: 2002-01-03T12:00
Location: Virginia

January 2 to 3, 2002 · NWS RNK · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Snow developed during the late evening on the 2nd and accumulated 5 to 10 inches before ending midday on the 3rd.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 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: 6

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 RNK wrote it up.

Snow developed during the late evening on the 2nd and accumulated 5 to 10 inches before ending midday on the 3rd.

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 Blacksburg, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 2, 9:30 PM EST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 2, 9:30 PM EST, 30 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG, VA
930 PM EST WED JAN 2 2002

SNOW JUST BEGINNING TO FALL ACROSS OUR SOUTHEAST COUNTIES...TOOK
AWHILE FOR ECHOES TO SATURATE COLUMN. RADAR TRENDS APPEAR VERY CLOSE
TO LATEST MESOETA SOLUTION.  PCPN MOVING A TAD FASTER BUT FCST STILL
LOOKS ON TRACK.  DO NOT WANT TO CHANGE GOING FCST...OTHER THAN
ADJUST WORDING FOR THE OVERNIGHT PD.

FCSTID = 9/JDS
ROA   22  28  20  43 /  40  40  10   0
LYH   20  28  17  43 /  60  60  10   0
DAN   24  30  18  45 /  90  90  10   0
BLF   17  23  17  35 /  20  20  10   0
LWB   14  22  14  33 /  20  20  10   0
BCB   18  25  16  38 /  30  30  10   0
TNB   14  25  14  35 /  60  40  20  10

.RNK...
NC...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TONIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
NCZ005>006.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR TONIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
NCZ003...NCZ004...NCZ019...NCZ020.

VA...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR LATE TONIGHT AND THURSDAY FOR ZONES
VAZ044...VAZ058...VAZ059.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR LATE TONIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING FOR
ZONES VAZ032>034...VAZ043...VAZ045>047.

WV...NONE.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Patrick

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Patrick forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 36.678, -80.284 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Campbell / Lynchburg

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Campbell / Lynchburg forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 37.310, -79.119 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Charlotte

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Charlotte forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 37.012, -78.662 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Halifax

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Halifax forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 36.767, -78.937 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pittsylvania / Danville

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Pittsylvania / Danville forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 36.704, -79.396 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Henry / Martinsville

When: January 2, 10:00 PM EST to January 3, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Henry / Martinsville forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 36.689, -79.926 (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 Virginia in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Virginia, 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: 5276475, 5276476, 5276477, 5276478, 5276479, 5276480.