Heavy Snow in Minnesota, January 13 to 14, 2004

Name: Heavy Snow in Minnesota, January 13 to 14, 2004
Start: 2004-01-13T20:00
End: 2004-01-14T11:00
Location: Minnesota

January 13 to 14, 2004 · NWS DLH · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

5 inches of snow fell across the Minnesota Arrowhead. The highest amounts were just inland from Lake Superior.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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: 7

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 DLH wrote it up.

Six to 10.5 inches of snow fell across the Minnesota Arrowhead. The highest amounts were just inland from Lake Superior. Finland had 10". International Falls set a new record for daily snowfall after receiving 5.5 inches. They ended up with a total of 8 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 Duluth, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 13, 3:20 PM CST, 4 hours 40 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 13, 3:20 PM CST, 4 hours 40 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
320 PM CST TUE JAN 13 2004

.DISCUSSION...FORECAST CONCERNS ARE ON HEADLINES IN THE SHORT TERM.
POTENT SHORTWAVE CAUSING ALL THE HEADLINES HAS CLEARED THE CANADIAN
ROCKIES AND MOVED OUT INTO THE PLAINS. CYCLOGENESIS IS UNDERWAY
ACCORDING TO THE LATEST WATER VAPOR IMAGERY. PROBLEM WITH THIS
SYSTEM IS WHERE IS THE MOISTURE COMING FROM? WITH A TYPICAL ALBERTA
CLIPPER...WHICH IS WHAT THIS SYSTEM APPEARS TO BE...HAS VERY
LIMITED MOISTURE BY THE TIME IT TRAVELS ACROSS THE CANADIAN PLAINS
AND REACHES THE UPPER MIDWEST. HOWEVER...MODELS HAVE BEEN
INDICATING ABOUT 0.3 INCHES OF PRECIPITABLE WATER ASSOCIATED WITH
IT. COMBINE THAT WITH COLD TEMPERATURES IN PLACE AND SNOW RATIOS OF
20 TO 1 CANNOT BE RULED OUT. WITH THAT SAID HAVE DECIDED TO GO WITH
A HEAVY SNOW WARNING WHERE PREVIOUS ADVISORIES WERE IN PLACE. SNOW
FALL AMOUNTS IN THE WARNING AREA SHOULD REACH AROUND 6 INCHES. THE
EXCEPTION WILL BE ALONG THE SOUTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR WHERE THE
WARNING WILL LAST THROUGH THE DAY WEDNESDAY. AFTER THE SYNOPTIC
EVENT HAS ENDED BY 18Z WEDNESDAY...LAKE EFFECT SNOW MACHINE WILL
CRANK UP AND PRODUCE ANOTHER 3 INCHES BRINGING THE TOTALS TO
AROUND 9 INCHES FOR THE SOUTH SHORE. NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST TIGHT
BAROCLINIC ZONE OVER THE CWFA TONIGHT WILL DETERMINE WHO GETS THE
MOST SNOW. HAVE GONE WITH A SNOW ADVISORY FOR NORTHERN CASS AND
NORTHERN AITKIN COUNTIES IN MN AND WASHBURN...SAWYER AND PRICE
COUNTIES IN WI LATE TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING FOR 3 TO 5
INCHES.

THE CLIPPER WILL DEPART ON WEDNESDAY BRINGING AN END TO THE SNOW
FROM NW TO SE...EXCEPT FOR THE AFOREMENTIONED SOUTH SHORE AREA. THIS
ALLOWS A BRIEF BREAK AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS SOUTH FROM CANADA.
FAST NW FLOW CONTINUES THROUGH SUNDAY WITH CLIPPERS EXPECTED TO
AFFECT THE FA ABOUT EVERY OTHER DAY.

&&

.DLH...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MN...HEAVY SNOW WARNING LATE TONIGHT THRU WED MORNING ZONES 10>12-
18>21-26-37. SNOW ADVISORY LATE TONIGHT THRU WED MORNING ZONES 25-35.
WI...HEAVY SNOW WARNING LATE TNGT THRU WED MORNING ZONE 1. HEAVY SNOW
WARNING LATE TONIGHT THRU WED ZONES 2>4. SNOW ADVISORY LATE TONIGHT
THRU WED MORNING ZONES 7>9.

GSF

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 13, 8:05 AM CST, 11 hours 55 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
805 AM CST TUE JAN 13 2004

MNZ010>012-018>021-025-026-033>038-WIZ001>004-006>009-141330-
ASHLAND-BAYFIELD-BURNETT-C. ST. LOUIS-CROW WING-DOUGLAS-IRON-
KOOCHICHING-N. AITKIN-N. CASS-N. ITASCA-N. LAKE/N. COOK-N. ST. LOUIS-
PINE-PRICE-S. AITKIN-S. CASS-S. COOK/LAKESHORE-S. ITASCA-
S. LAKE/LAKESHORE-S. ST. LOUIS/CARLTON-SAWYER-WASHBURN-
805 AM CST TUE JAN 13 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEASTERN MINNESOTA AND
NORTHWESTERN WISCONSIN.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

LIGHT SNOW WILL FALL ACROSS AREAS OF NORTHWESTERN WISCONSIN NEAR
LAKE SUPERIOR TODAY. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS IN THIS AREA WILL GENERALLY BE
FROM ONE TO 2 INCHES.

WIDESPREAD SNOW WITH ACCUMULATIONS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES WILL DEVELOP
TONIGHT NORTH OF A LINE FROM GRAND RAPIDS TO CLOQUET IN MINNESOTA
AND ALONG THE SOUTH SHORE COUNTIES IN NORTHERN WISCONSIN. A SNOW
ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR THE ABOVE AREAS. OTHER AREAS CAN EXPECT 1
TO 4 INCHES OF SNOW TONIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

LIGHT SNOW IS EXPECTED TO DECREASE IN MINNESOTA THROUGH THE DAY
WEDNESDAY...WITH LITTLE ADDITIONAL SNOW...HOWEVER IT WILL CONTINUE
IN WISCONSIN. TOTAL SNOWFALL IN WISCONSIN WILL BE 5 TO 7 INCHES
ALONG THE LAKE SUPERIOR SNOWBELT AND 2 TO 4 INCHES SOUTH OF THIS
REGION.

LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE WEDNESDAY NIGHT...ALONG
BOTH THE SOUTH AND NORTH SHORES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.  THERE IS A CHANCE
FOR LIGHT SNOW IN ALL AREAS THURSDAY.  SOME LIGHT ACCUMULATIONS ARE
POSSIBLE THEN.  A CHANCE FOR LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE
THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY...MAINLY FROM THE TWIN PORTS ON UP THE
NORTH SHORE.  SOME ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE THEN.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY OR TONIGHT.

&&

MORE INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED AT THE FOLLOWING URL:

HTTP://WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/DLH

TRIPOLI

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Koochiching

When: January 13, 8:00 PM CST to January 14, 8:00 AM CST
Where: Koochiching forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 48.245, -93.783 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern St. Louis

When: January 13, 8:00 PM CST to January 14, 8:00 AM CST
Where: Northern St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Central St. Louis

When: January 13, 9:00 PM CST to January 14, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Central St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Cook / Northern Lake

When: January 13, 10:00 PM CST to January 14, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern Cook / Northern Lake forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.670, -90.975 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Lake / North Shore

When: January 13, 10:00 PM CST to January 14, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Lake / North Shore forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.557, -91.935 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Cook / North Shore

When: January 13, 10:00 PM CST to January 14, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Cook / North Shore forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.817, -90.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern St. Louis / Carlton

When: January 13, 10:00 PM CST to January 14, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Southern St. Louis / Carlton forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.091, -92.569 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

Every storm in Minnesota in 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Minnesota, January 2004

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: 5383056, 5383057, 5383059, 5383058, 5383060, 5383061, 5383062.