Heavy Snow, Northern Oregon Cascades
- When
- February 16, 3:00 AM PST to February 18, 3:00 AM PST
- Where
- Northern Oregon Cascades forecast zone
- Reported by
- DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Heavy Snow in Oregon, February 16 to 18, 2003
A series of Pacific frontal systems moved into the North Oregon Cascades. In the two day period Timberline received 23 inches of snow, Mt Hood Meadows 21 inches, Santiam Pass 20 inches, Willamette and Bennett Pass 15 inches, White River and Government Camp 12 inches each.
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 PQR wrote it up.
A series of Pacific frontal systems moved into the North Oregon Cascades. In the two day period Timberline received 23 inches of snow, Mt Hood Meadows 21 inches, Santiam Pass 20 inches, Willamette and Bennett Pass 15 inches, White River and Government Camp 12 inches each.
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 Feb 16, 2:30 AM PST, 30 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Feb 16, 2:30 AM PST, 30 minutes before
NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
230 AM PST SUN FEB 16 2003
.SYNOPSIS...A PACIFIC FRONT ON THE CASCADES WILL MOVE EAST EARLY
THIS MORNING. AN ORGANIZED AREA OF COOLER AND UNSTABLE AIR OFF THE
COAST WILL MOVE ONSHORE TODAY AND CONTINUE TONIGHT FOR SHOWERS AND
POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS. ANOTHER FRONT SPREADS RAIN AND MOUNTAIN
SNOW ONSHORE MONDAY AND MONDAY NIGHT. ANOTHER WELL ORGANIZED FRONT
WILL BRING MORE RAIN AND MOUNTAIN SNOW TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY.
SNOW LEVELS WILL TEND TO BE NEAR OR BELOW CASCADE PASS LEVELS THROUGH
AT LEAST WEDNESDAY. ADDITIONAL SYSTEMS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE
REMAINDER OF THE WEEK.
.DISCUSSION...
.SHORT TERM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR IS NOW SHOWING
THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY THAT STALLED OVER OUR FORECAST AREA OVERNIGHT
WEAKENING AND MOVING EAST AS ECHOES COLLAPSE. AN AREA OF ORGANIZED
COLD TOPPED SHOWERS AND POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORMS CROSSING 130W WILL
SPREAD ONSHORE TODAY AND CONTINUE OVER THE AREA TONIGHT. GOOD
OROGRAPHICS DEVELOP THAT SHOULD GIVE AMPLE PRECIPITATION TO THE
MOUNTAINS AS WELL. CURRENT CASCADE SNOW ADVISORY STILL WARRANTED.
SNOW LEVELS WILL BE AROUND 3000 FEET TODAY AND 2500 FEET TONIGHT.
SUFFICIENT GRADIENT WITH THIS FEATURE TO SUPPORT STRONG SMALL CRAFT
ADVISORY WINDS OVER THE COASTAL WATERS AND BREEZY CONDITIONS ON LAND.
THE NEXT SYSTEM IS APPROACHING 140W ON A NEGATIVE TILT. THIS SYSTEM
WILL SPREAD PRECIPITATION ONSHORE MONDAY...WITH THE FRONT MOVING
INLAND MONDAY NIGHT. SNOW LEVELS WILL REMAIN BELOW THE PASSES...AND
SNOW ADVISORY AMOUNTS ARE LIKELY. BRISK WINDS ON THE COAST AGAIN.
SHOULD SEE SCATTERED SHOWERS PERSIST BEHIND THE SYSTEM TUESDAY.
SEAS GET ABOVE 10 FT BY TONIGHT.
.LONG TERM...THE GFS CONTINUES TO SHOW A RATHER VIGOROUS SYSTEM
ARRIVING TUE NIGHT INTO EARLY WEDNESDAY. THE NEW 06Z RUN IS A LITTLE
SLOWER AND MORE IN LINE WITH THE ECMWF AND CANADIAN MODELS. SOME RISK
OF STRONG WIND NEAR THE COAST...BUT THIS IS NOT CERTAIN DUE TO
VARIATIONS IN THE MODELS. THIS SYSTEM SHOULD BRING MORE SNOW TO THE
MOUNTAINS. AFTER THAT...MODELS WIDELY DIVERGE ON TIMING...STRENGTH...
AND OTHER DETAILS OF SYSTEMS. WILL STAY WITH BROAD BRUSH CHANCE POPS
FOR NOW. TOLLESON
AST 99995 PDX 88885 SLE 88885 EUG 88885
.PQR...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR COASTAL WATERS CAPE SHOALWATER
WASHINGTON TO FLORENCE OREGON.
...SNOW ADVISORY FOR THE SOUTH WASHINGTON AND THE NORTH OREGON
CASCADES FOR SUN AFTERNOON AND SUN NIGHT...Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 15, 6:00 AM PST, 21 hours before
ORZ001>013-WAZ019>023-039-040-161400- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR 600 AM PST SAT FEB 15 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON. .DAY ONE... TODAY * GALE WARNING...............SEE FZUS56 KPQR - CWFPQR FOR DETAILS * GALE FORCE WINDS OVER THE COASTAL WATERS THIS MORNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY POSSIBLE SNOW ADVISORY SNOW AMOUNTS IN THE CASCADES LATER SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT...AND AGAIN ON MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO SKYWARN PROCEDURES. TOLLESON
Event by event
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Storm Surge and Winter Storm in New Jersey, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Ice Storm in South Carolina, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Flooding in Kentucky, February 16 to 20, 2003
- Cold in Illinois, February 16, 2003
- Ice Storm in West Virginia, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Storm Surge and Winter Storm in Delaware, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Ice Storm in Ohio, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Winter Storm in West Virginia, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Ice Storm in Kentucky, February 16 to 17, 2003
- Winter Storm in Ohio, February 16, 2003
More
Every storm in Oregon in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, 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: 5340247.