Winter Weather, Rabun
- When
- December 3, 10:00 PM EST to December 4, 6:00 AM EST
- Where
- Rabun forecast zone
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 34.882, -83.402 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Weather in Georgia, December 3 to 4, 2003
Light snow, mixed at times with sleet, fell across the Georgia mountains, accumulating up to an inch in some areas.
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
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 GSP wrote it up.
Light snow, mixed at times with sleet, fell across the Georgia mountains, accumulating up to an inch in some areas.
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 Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 3, 9:15 PM EST, 45 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 3, 9:15 PM EST, 45 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
915 PM EST WED DEC 3 2003
.DISCUSSION...
APPROACHING SYSTEM MOVING IN MUCH AS EXPECTED WITH LIGHT SLEET BEING
REPORTED OVER PARTS OF N GA LATE THIS EVENING. RADAR SHOWS ENHANCED
MOISTURE OVER N GA MOVG NE. SOME LOW CLOUDS NOW BEING REPORTED IN
UPSTATE SC AS MOISTURE IN LOWER ATMOSPHERE INCREASES. IT WILL STILL
TAKE A WHILE FOR MOST PRECIP TO MAKE IT TO THE SURFACE WITH VERY LOW
DEW POINTS ACROSS MUCH OF THE CWA. AFTER MIDNIGHT TIMING IN ZONES
LOOKS GOOD OVERALL...BUT WILL UPDATE ZONES AND WSW TO CLEAN UP
WORDING AND TWEAK TIMING A BIT.
&&
.GSP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
GA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR
GAZ010-017-018-026-028.
WINTER STORM WATCH THURSDAY FOR
GAZ010-017-018-026-028.
NC...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR
NCZ048-051>053-058-059-062>065.
WINTER STORM WARNING THURSDAY FOR
NCZ033>037-048>057-059-063>069.
WINTER STORM WATCH THURSDAY FOR
NCZ058-062-070>072.
SC...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR
SCZ001>006-010.
WINTER STORM WATCH FOR THURSDAY
SCZ001>010.
&&
RBHazardous weather outlook, Dec 3, 5:55 AM EST, 16 hours 5 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 555 AM EST WED DEC 3 2003 GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-031300- ABBEVILLE SC-ALEXANDER NC-ANDERSON SC-AVERY NC-BUNCOMBE NC-BURKE NC- CABARRUS NC-CALDWELL NC-CATAWBA NC-CHEROKEE SC-CHESTER SC- CLEVELAND NC-DAVIE NC-ELBERT GA-FRANKLIN GA-GASTON NC-GRAHAM NC- GREATER GREENVILLE SC-GREATER OCONEE SC-GREATER PICKENS SC- GREENVILLE MOUNTAINS SC-GREENWOOD SC-HABERSHAM GA-HART GA-HAYWOOD NC- HENDERSON NC-IREDELL NC-LAURENS SC-LINCOLN NC-MACON NC-MADISON NC- MCDOWELL NC-MECKLENBURG NC-MITCHELL NC-NORTHERN JACKSON NC- OCONEE MOUNTAINS SC-PICKENS MOUNTAINS SC-POLK NC-RABUN GA-ROWAN NC- RUTHERFORD NC-SOUTHERN JACKSON NC-SPARTANBURG SC-STEPHENS GA- SWAIN NC-TRANSYLVANIA NC-UNION SC-UNION NC-YANCEY NC-YORK SC- 555 AM EST WED DEC 3 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE... MOISTURE WILL INCREASE ABOVE COLD AIR NEAR THE SURFACE LATE TONIGHT. WINTRY PRECIPITATION SHOULD DEVELOP FROM THE SOUTHWEST AFTER MIDNIGHT. A COMBINATION OF SNOW...SLEET...FREEZING RAIN...AND RAIN WILL MOVE INTO THE MOUNTAINS BY SUNRISE THURSDAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... WINTRY PRECIPITATION IS POSSIBLE ACROSS THE CENTRAL AND NORTHERN MOUNTAINS...FOOTHILLS...AND NORTHWEST PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA...MAINLY THURSDAY MORNING. FOR MORE INFORMATION...REFER TO THE WINTER STORM WATCH (WSWGSP) ISSUED AT 526 AM. THE PRECIPITATION COULD ALSO BEGIN AS SLEET AND FREEZING RAIN ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE NORTH CAROLINA PIEDMONT...UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. MORE SNOW IS POSSIBLE ACROSS PARTS OF THE NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS OVER THE WEEKEND. FOR MORE INFORMATION...SEE THE SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT (SPSGSP) ISSUED AT 500 AM. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. MOORE
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Dec 3, 4:33 PM EST, 5 hours 27 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 433 PM EST WED DEC 3 2003 GAZ029-NCZ082-SCZ011>014-019-041000- ABBEVILLE SC-CHESTER SC-ELBERT GA-GREENWOOD SC-LAURENS SC-UNION SC- UNION NC- 433 PM EST WED DEC 3 2003 ...WINTRY WEATHER POSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY... A RIDGE OF COLD AND DRY HIGH PRESSURE CONTINUES TO EXTEND SOUTHWARD THROUGH THE PIEDMONT OF THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA LATE TODAY. ABUNDANT MOISTURE AHEAD OF A DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM IN THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY WILL SPREAD OVER THIS COLD AIR STARTING LATE TONIGHT. AS THIS PRECIPITATION SPREADS INTO THE REGION...A WINTRY MIX IS POSSIBLE AT THE ONSET. A MIXTURE OF LIGHT SLEET...FREEZING RAIN...OR RAIN COULD DEVELOP BEFORE DAYBREAK FROM ELBERTON TO LAURENS. THIS PRECIPITATION WILL LIKELY SPREAD QUICKLY NORTHEAST THROUGH CHESTER AND INTO MONROE IN THE NORTH CAROLINA PIEDMONT. WHILE THIS PRECIPITATION IS CURRENTLY EXPECTED TO CHANGE OVER TO RAIN DURING THE MORNING HOURS...THE POTENTIAL EXISTS THAT A LIGHT ACCUMULATION OF ICE COULD DEVELOP IN SOME LOCATIONS. ANY ICE ACCUMULATION WOULD BE LIMITED MAINLY TO TREES AND POWER LINES...WITH MINOR ICING POSSIBLE ON BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES. THE TIMING OF THIS STORM SYSTEM...AND THE STRENGTH OF THE COLD AIR IN PLACE ACROSS THE REGION...REMAIN QUITE UNCERTAIN. AS EVENTS COME MORE SHARPLY INTO FOCUS...A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MAY BE NEEDED IN THIS AREA FOR THURSDAY. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR FAVORITE MEDIA OUTLET FOR THE VERY LATEST ON THE POTENTIAL FOR WINTRY WEATHER. HG
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Weather, Habersham
- When
- December 3, 10:00 PM EST to December 4, 6:00 AM EST
- Where
- Habersham forecast zone
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 34.631, -83.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- 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
More
Every storm in Georgia in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, December 2003
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: 5380288, 5380289.