Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, January 6, 2002

Name: Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, January 6, 2002
Start: 2002-01-06T12:00
End: 2002-01-06T21:00
Location: Virginia

January 6, 2002 · NWS LWX · 12 events in 12 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 9 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 LWX wrote it up.

Low pressure moved from the Gulf Coast through the Eastern Seaboard on the 6th and brought a mixed bag of precipitation to the region. From the Blue Ridge west, the precipitation fell mainly in the form of snow with a period of sleet and freezing rain at the onset. The Shenandoah Valley received a few hours of freezing rain at the beginning of the event which resulted in several accidents. One hundred wrecks were reported on Interstate 81 between southern Rockingham County and northern Shenandoah County. Multi-car crashes temporarily closed the southbound lanes of I-81 near Mount Crawford and Woodstock. East of the Blue Ridge, a mix of rain, freezing rain, and sleet changed over to snow and sleet late in the day. In Rockingham County, snow and sleet accumulations ranged from 3 to 5 inches. Twelve traffic accidents were reported in Harrisonburg. In Shenandoah County, accumulations averaged around 4 inches. In Frederick County, accumulations ranged from 4.5 to 6 inches. In Highland County, 4 to 6 inches was reported. In Augusta County, accumulations of 2 to 4 inches were noted. A thin coating of ice on roads caused as many as 50 accidents in the Staunton and Waynesboro areas. Across the county on I-81, 59 accidents were reported. In Madison County, a trace of snow and sleet fell on a thin coating of ice. Slick roads were reported countywide. In Page County, snow and sleet accumulations averaged around 2 inches. In Rappahannock and Fauquier Counties, only about 1/2 inch of snow and sleet fell. However, a coating of ice was reported on trees and power lines in Fauquier County. In Warren County, about 1.5 inches of snow and sleet was reported. In Clarke County, about 1 inch fell. In Loudoun County, accumulations ranged from a trace to 2 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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 6, 11:20 AM EST, 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 6, 11:20 AM EST, 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
1120 AM EST SUN JAN 6 2002

BRIGHTER RADAR ECHOS MOVNG INTO STHRN MD AT 11AM HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED
AS RAIN AND SLEET. OTW LIGHTER PRECIP HAVNG TROUBLE REACHING THE
GROUND INITIALLY.  THAT WILL CHANGE AS HEAVIER PRECIP SETS IN DURING
THE EARLY AFTERNOON. EXPECTING RAIN INITALLY EAST OF THE BLUE
RIDGE...CHANGING TO SNOW GRADUALLY DURING THE AFTERNOON FROM WEST TO
EAST. FOR WEST OF THE BLUE RIDGE EXPCTNG PRIMARLY SNOW..ALTHOUGH THE
SHEN VALLY MAY START AS RAIN SNOW MIX. WILL ALSO MONITOR POSSBLTY
FOR FREEZNG RAIN IN SCATTERED AREAS AS EVAP COOLNG DROPS
TMPS...WHICH ARE CURRNTLY ABOVE FREEZNG. NOT EXPCTN FREEZNG RAIN TO
BE A WIDESPRD PROB THOUGH...MORE CONCERND WITH THE DIFFCLT RAIN
CHNGNG TO SNOW PROBLEM. THIS IS ALWAYS A DIFFCLT TASK EAST OF THE
RIDGE...ESP IN DC.  WILL BE AN INTERSTG STORM TO WATCH EVOLVE.  WILL
AWAIT THE NEXT SLEW OF MODL DATA AND CONFCE CALLS FOR UPDATED INFO.

UPDATED ZFP EOL WSW AND OPU HAVE BEEN ISSUED. NO CHANGS TO ACCUMS ON
THIS UPDATE...JUST WORDNG CHNGES.

STRONG

PREV AFD FOLLOWS...
***
310 AM WBCAFDLWX

MODELS COMING INTO SLIGHTLY BETTER AGREEMENT WITH REGARDS TO TIMING
AND TRACK OF SURFACE LOW MOVING FROM THE GULF COAST ACROSS THE MID
ATLANTIC COAST TODAY AND THIS EVENING. ETA HAD A WARMER SOULTION
THROUGH DAYTIME MODEL RUNS YESTERDAY BUT AT 00Z CAME IN WITH A
COOLER SOLUTION... SIMILAR TO THE AVN AND CANADIAN WHICH HAVE
MANTAINED CONSISTENCY THROUGH THE PAST FEW RUNS.

STRONG UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT COMBINING WITH FRONTOGENETICAL FORCING
NEAR DEVELOPING SURFACE CYCLONE RESULTING IN FAIRLY IMPRESSIVE OMEGA
FIELDS ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. BOTH ETA AND
AVN THROWING OVER A HALF INCH OF PRECIP AT LEAST AS FAR WEST AS THE
SHENANDOAH VALLEY THROUGH THE STORM... WITH SLIGHTLY LESSER AMOUNTS
ACROSS THE POTOMAC HIGHLANDS. STILL SOME QUESTIONS TOWARD RAIN/SNOW
LINE... AND ITS EVOLUTION. 06Z IAD SOUNDING INDICATING THAT 00Z ETA
HAVING A GOOD HANDLE ON LOW LEVEL TEMPS. ETA BUFR SOUNDINGS SHOWING
ALL SNOW FOR LOCATIONS WEST OF THE BLUE RIDGE. PRECIP LIKELY TO
BEGIN AS RAIN OR A RAIN/SNOW MIX FROM IAD DOWN TO CHO... BUT LOW
LEVEL DRY AND WET BULB TEMPS ALONG WITH STRENGTH OF OMEGA FIELDS
SUGGEST THAT IN THIS AREA PRECIP SHOULD TURN QUICKLY OVER TO SNOW.
PRECIP A LITTLE SLOWER TO CHANGEOVER TO SNOW FROM DCA/BWI SOUTHEAST
AS LOW LEVEL TEMPS A LITTLE WARMER HERE.

END RESULT IS WARNINGS BEING ISSUED FROM CHO/IAD WESTWARD... WITH AN
ADVISORY BEING ISSUED FOR THE IMMEDIATE METRO AREAS. SHOULD BE A
BAND OF HEAVY SNOWFALL FROM THE FAR WESTERN METRO AREAS OVER THROUGH
THE SHENANDOAH BASED ON QPF AND THERMAL FIELDS. 6-9 INCHES ACROSS
THE NORTHERN SHENANDOAH VALLEY WHERE MID LEVEL TEMPS SUGGESTING
STRONGER POTENTIAL FOR EFFICIENT SNOW GROWTH AND WHERE LOW LEVEL
TEMPS A LITTLE COOLER THEN OTHER AREAS. SHARP GRADIENT WITH REGARDS
TO SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OVER THE METRO AREAS... DUE TO CHANGEOVER FROM
RAIN TO SNOW.

TIMING OF MODELS SUGGESTS PRECIP ENDING FROM SW TO NE BETWEEN 00Z
AND 06Z TONIGHT. LOW AND MID LEVEL FLOW NOT FAVORABLE FOR CLEARING
OUT... AND DRY SLOT APPEARS AS IF IT MAY MISS US TO THE SOUTH AND
EAST.

ETA/AVN IN AGREEMENT IN BRINGING A SECONDARY TROUGH OVER THE AREA
MID DAY TOMORROW WITH SOME DECENT QG FORCING. WILL BE ADDING
SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS TO MONDAY FORECAST... BUT QPF AMOUNTS SUGGEST
AN INCH OR LESS MOST AREAS.

ONLY OTHER CHANGE TO FORECAST COMES LATER IN THE WEEK. 00Z AVN HAS A
COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH THE AREA THURSDAY MORNING... AND THERE MAY
BE A FEW SHOWERS ALONG WITH IT. FMR TEMPS INDICATING RAIN EVENT SO
WILL REMOVE MENTION OF WINTRY PRECIP.

.LWX...
DC...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING
FOR ZONE DCZ001.

MD...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
ZONE MDZ002>005.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
ZONES MDZ006>007...MDZ009>011...MDZ013>014.

VA...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
ZONE VAZ021...VAZ025>031...VAZ036>042...VAZ050>051.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
ZONES VAZ052>056.

WV...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THIS MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR
ZONES WVZ048>055.

MARGRAF

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 winter weather, 4 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Rockingham

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Rockingham forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.481, -78.872 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Shenandoah

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Shenandoah forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.858, -78.571 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Frederick

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Frederick forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 39.195, -78.213 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Highland

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Highland forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Weather, Warren

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Warren forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.909, -78.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Augusta

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Augusta forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.109, -78.974 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Madison

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Madison forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.414, -78.279 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Page

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Page forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.620, -78.484 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Rappahannock

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Rappahannock forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 38.685, -78.159 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Fauquier

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Fauquier forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Weather, Clarke

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Clarke forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 39.112, -77.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Loudoun

When: January 6, 12:00 PM EST to 9:00 PM EST
Where: Loudoun forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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: 5276457, 5276458, 5276459, 5276460, 5276461, 5276462, 5276463, 5276464, 5276465, 5276466, 5276467, 5276468.