Winter Storm, Dorchester
- When
- February 6, 11:00 PM EST to February 7, 10:00 AM EST
- Where
- Dorchester forecast zone
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 38.423, -76.083 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm in Maryland, February 6 to 7, 2003
A winter storm produced 3 to 7 inches of snow across Dorchester county. 5" and Vienna reported 3".
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
- 1
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 AKQ wrote it up.
A winter storm produced 3 to 7 inches of snow across Dorchester county. Cambridge reported 6.5" and Vienna reported 3". Local law enforcement agencies reported numerous accidents.Most, if not all schools in the area, were closed Friday, February 7th due to very slippery road conditions.
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 Wakefield, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 6, 9:30 PM EST, 1 hour 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 6, 9:30 PM EST, 1 hour 30 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD, VA 930 PM EST THU FEB 6 2003 MODELS CONTINUE TREND OF BRINGING A PRECIP MAX UP THE WRN PART OF THE CWA. THE GFS IS LESS BUT DOES SHOW VERY GOOD ISENTROPIC LIFT CENTERED ACRS THE CNTRL PART OF THE CWA 06Z-12Z. NEW RUC MORE IN LINE WITH GFS PRECIP AND LOWER. WITH THAT SAID WL NOT MAKE MUCH OF A CHG IN QPF. NOW THE REAL QUESTION WHERE DOES THE RN SNOW LINE FINALLY STAY. THE LINE HAS BEEN MOVG NW WITH TIME. AKQ HAS SWITCHED TO RN THIS HOUR AND MOST STATIONS ALG THE NC/VA BORDER NOW HAVE SWITCHED OVR IN OUR CWA. ALL MODELS SHOW THE LINE MOVG N THRU 06Z-09Z THEN STOPPING SOMEWHERE NR OR A LITTLE N RIC TO W OF SBY. CAN ALREADY SEE TEMPS HAVE FALLEN MORE IN THE N BACK TO BELOW FREEZING. HOWEVER PROFILER DOES SHOW WARMING NOW AT RIC SO CONTINUE WITH CURRENT FCST THERE. ALL THIS SAID LITTLE CHG TO CURRENT FCST. FCSTID = 92 SBY 29 37 20 39 / 100 80 10 0 OXB 31 37 25 39 / 100 80 10 0 ECG 37 45 28 44 / 100 60 10 0 ORF 36 41 28 42 / 100 60 10 0 PHF 33 42 24 42 / 100 40 10 0 AKQ 33 42 24 43 / 100 40 0 0 RIC 30 39 25 42 / 100 40 0 0 FVX 30 41 23 43 / 100 30 0 0 .AKQ... MD...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THIS EVENING THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING FOR ZONE MDZ021. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THIS EVENING THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING FOR ZONES MDZ022>025. SCA ATLC CSTL WATERS. NC...SCA ATLC CSTL WATERS N CURRITUCK BCH LGT ANC CURRITUCK SOUND. VA...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES VAZ048>049...VAZ060>064...VAZ068>069...VAZ074>076. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES VAZ065>067...VAZ070>073...VAZ077>078...VAZ082>083...VAZ085. SCA ATLC CSTL WTRS AND CHES BAY. JAB
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 6, 2:53 PM EST, 8 hours 7 minutes before
MDZ021>025-NCZ012>017-030>032-102-VAZ048-049-060>100-062130- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED EXPIRATION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA 549 AM EST THU FEB 06 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN VIRGINIA... NORTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA AND THE LOWER MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE. .DAY ONE...TODAY STEADY SNOW IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP DURING THE EVENING ACROSS PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN VIRGINIA...ALONG WITH THE LOWER MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE BETWEEN 3 AND 5 INCHES FROM FLUVANNA COUNTY EAST THROUGH THE INTERIOR PORTION OF THE NORTHERN NECK...AND NORTHEAST TO INCLUDE DORCHESTER COUNTY MARYLAND. SOUTH OF THIS REGION...TO INCLUDE FARMVILLE...RICHMOND...AND SALISBURY...AN ACCUMULATION OF 2 INCHES OR LESS IS EXPECTED AS THE SNOW MIXES WITH THEN EVENTUALLY CHANGES TO RAIN OVERNIGHT. PLEASE REFER TO THE LATEST WINTER STORM WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES FROM THE WAKEFIELD NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE FOR FURTHER DETAILS ON THE IMPENDING WINTER STORM. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... SNOW SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED TONIGHT. HURLEY THIS PRODUCT...ALONG WITH OTHER WATCHES...WARNINGS...ADVISORIES...AND STATEMENTS ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN WAKEFIELD, VA CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT THE FOLLOWING (LOWER CASE): HTTP://WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/AKQ.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Winter Storm
- A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Damaging Wind in Louisiana, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Tennessee, February 6, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in New Jersey, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Winter Weather in Georgia, February 6, 2003
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Maryland, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Winter Storm in Virginia, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, February 6 to 7, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Missouri, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, February 6, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Oklahoma, February 6, 2003
More
Every storm in Maryland in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Maryland, February 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: 5344943.