Last significant winter storm of the season hit the Clearwater Mountains of Idaho the first week of March. Snowfall totals ranged from 7 to 9 inches at the lower elevations, up to 15 inches in the mountains.
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.
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.
The episode as NWS MSO wrote it up.
Last significant winter storm of the season hit the Clearwater Mountains of Idaho the first week of March. Snowfall totals ranged from 7 to 9 inches at the lower elevations, up to 15 inches in the mountains. Gusty southwest winds of 40 to 50 MPH occurred during the afternoon and evening hours of March 5th, causing areas of blowing and drifting snow.
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 Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 5, 1:45 PM MST, 2 hours 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
145 PM MST FRI MAR 5 2004
.SHORT TERM...FAST MOVING UPPER LEVEL TROUGH IS MOVING THROUGH
WASHINGTON AT THIS TIME AND PRODUCING A GOOD SWATH OF PRECIPITATION
ACROSS EASTERN WASHINGTON AND THE IDAHO PANHANDLE. RAIN AND SNOW IS
BEGINNING TO MOVE INTO WESTERN MONTANA AND THE CLEARWATER MOUNTAINS
OF IDAHO. THE RAIN WILL TURN OVER TO SNOW ACROSS THE VALLEYS OF
MONTANA THIS EVENING. ALL HIGHLIGHTS LOOK TO BE ON TRACK FOR THIS
EVENING. HEAVIER SNOW WILL BE CONFINED TO THE MOUNTAINS AS STRONG
WINDS ALOFT WILL PRODUCE OROGRAPHIC EFFECTS...ESPECIALLY ON WEST
FACING SLOPES. LOCAL BLOWING SNOW IS ALSO POSSIBLE. THE COLD FRONT
WILL MOVE THROUGH WESTERN MONTANA THIS EVENING AND WINDS WILL SHIFT
FROM A SOUTHERLY TO A NORTHWESTERLY DIRECTION. THIS DISTURBANCE WILL
QUICKLY MOVE OUT OF THE AREA SATURDAY MORNING WITH A RIDGE BUILDING
IN FOR A SHORT TIME. SATURDAY LOOKS FAVORABLE FOR SNOW BANDS TO
DEVELOP ACROSS WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO...WITH
ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS UP TO 4 INCHES WHERE HEAVIER BANDS
DEVELOP...BUT THIS WILL BE VERY LOCALIZED. SATURDAY NIGHT THE RIDGE
BEGINS TO FLATTEN AS ANOTHER WEATHER DISTURBANCE NEARS THE BRITISH
COLUMBIA COAST. PRECIPITATION WILL DECREASE...ESPECIALLY IN THE
SOUTH.
.LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY...OVERALL...AN UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH
BUILDS IN THE GULF OF ALASKA ON SUNDAY PRODUCING A BROAD UPPER-
LEVEL RIDGE OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. THIS SHOULD PRODUCE A
DRYING AND WARMING TREND THROUGH TUESDAY. BY LATE TUESDAY THIS FLOW
BEGINS TO SPLIT INTO A SOUTHERN AND NORTHERN BRANCH. WEAK
DISTURBANCES WITHIN THIS FLOW MAY PRODUCE MAINLY MOUNTAIN SNOW
THROUGH FRIDAY. IN ADDITION...THE JET STREAM BECOMES STRONGER AND
MORE WEST-TO-EAST ALIGNED BY FRIDAY BRINGING POSSIBILITY OF INCREASED
MOUNTAIN SNOW AND WINDS THAT DAY.
FINALLY...MODELS SHOWING SOME CHANGES IN THE PERIOD AFTER TUESDAY
FROM PREVIOUS RUNS. IN PARTICULAR...THE GFS MODEL IS DRIER THAN
PREVIOUS RUNS...SHUNTING THE BULK OF WEATHER ENERGY BOTH SOUTH AND
NORTH OF OUR AREA. SINCE THIS IS A CHANGE FROM LAST NIGHTS RUN...
CHOSE TO TREND MODELS DRIER THIS PERIOD VERSUS COMPLETELY DRYING
THINGS OUT.
&&
.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT...WINTER STORM WARNINGS AND WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR
PORTIONS OF WESTERN MONTANA THIS EVENING INTO SATURDAY
MORNING...SEE GTFWSWMSO FOR DETAILS...
ID...WINTER STORM WARNINGS AND WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR PORTIONS
OF NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO THIS EVENING INTO SATURDAY MORNING...
SEE GTFWSWMSO FOR DETAILS...
&&
SHORT TERM/KOCH
LONG TERM/MWJHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT 600 AM MST (500 AM PST) FRI MAR 5 2004 MTZ001>007-043-IDZ005>010-061300- KOOTENAI/CABINET REGION-WEST GLACIER REGION-FLATHEAD/MISSION VALLEYS- LOWER CLARK FORK REGION-MISSOULA/BITTERROOT VALLEYS- BITTERROOT/SAPPHIRE MOUNTAINS-BUTTE/PINTLAR REGION-BLACKFOOT REGION- NORTHERN CLEARWATER MOUNTAINS-SOUTHERN CLEARWATER MOUNTAINS- OROFINO/GRANGEVILLE REGION-LOWER HELLS CANYON/SALMON RIVER- WESTERN LEMHI COUNTY-EASTERN LEMHI COUNTY- 600 AM MST (500 AM PST) FRI MAR 5 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO .DAY ONE... TODAY A STRONG PACIFIC COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE REGION FROM THE WEST TODAY...AND MOVE THROUGH TONIGHT. WIDESPREAD VALLEY RAIN AND SNOW AND HEAVY MOUNTAIN SNOW WILL BE THE RESULT. IN ADDITION...STRONG WINDS WILL DEVELOP WHICH WILL CREATE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW...MAINLY OVER THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS. NUMEROUS WINTER WEATHER WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES ARE IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTHERN ROCKIES LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT. REFER TO GTFWSWMSO FOR DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY ACCUMULATING SNOW AND STRONG WINDS WILL LAST INTO SATURDAY BUT THE WEATHER IS EXPECTED TO IMPROVE SUNDAY AND BEYOND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, March 2004
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: 5387731, 5387732.