Idaho, 2008Heavy Snow in Idaho, December 12 to 14, 2008
December 12 to 14, 2008 · NWS PIH · 4 events in 4 counties and zones
A strong cold front moved through southeast Idaho during the evening and morning of the 12th and 13th and brought with it heavy snow and strong winds. Heavy snow fell in high elevations, with strong winds causing power outages to 15,000 people in Bingham County on the morning of the 13th.
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 4
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.
A strong cold front moved through southeast Idaho during the evening and morning of the 12th and 13th and brought with it heavy snow and strong winds. Heavy snow fell in high elevations, with strong winds causing power outages to 15,000 people in Bingham County on the morning of the 13th. Although heavy snow did not fall in the Snake River Plain, 30 to 40 minor accidents occurred on icy roadways.
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 Pocatello, ID wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 12, 2:11 PM MST, 5 hours 49 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 12, 2:11 PM MST, 5 hours 49 minutes before
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</html>Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 12, 6:06 AM MST, 13 hours 54 minutes before
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</html>Heavy Snow, Upper Snake Highlands
- When
- December 12, 8:00 PM MST to December 14, 1:30 PM MST
- Where
- Upper Snake Highlands forecast zone
- Reported by
- Mesonet
Eleven inches of snow fell at the Crab Creek SNOTEL with 21 inches at the White Elephant SNOTEL. The town of Island Park received 12 inches according to spotters.
Heavy Snow, Wasatch Mountains/Iadho Portion
- When
- December 12, 9:00 PM MST to December 14, 3:00 PM MST
- Where
- Wasatch Mountains/Iadho Portion forecast zone
- Reported by
- Mesonet
Heavy snow fell in the Wasatch. 11 inches was recorded at Slug Creek with 20 inches at Franklin Basin and 14 inches at Emigrant Summit.
Heavy Snow, South Central Highlands
- When
- December 12, 10:00 PM MST to December 14, 8:00 PM MST
- Where
- South Central Highlands forecast zone
- Reported by
- Mesonet
Twelve inches of snow was reported at the Oxford Spring SNOTEL site. Twelve inches was also reported in Malad City.
Heavy Snow, Caribou Highlands
- When
- December 12, 10:00 PM MST to December 14, 6:00 PM MST
- Where
- Caribou Highlands forecast zone
- Reported by
- Mesonet
Twelve inches of snow fell at Pine Creek Pass. Ten inches fell at Sedgwick Peak and ten inches fell at Somsen Ranch.
- 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.
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Montana, December 12 to 13, 20081 death · $200,000 · 7 events
- High Wind in Washington, December 12 to 13, 2008$300,000 · 72 kt wind · 5 events
- Damaging Winds in Delaware, December 12, 2008$100,000 · 65 kt wind · 2 events
- Winter Weather in Michigan, December 12, 20086 injured · 1 event
- Flooding in Rhode Island, December 12, 2008$57,000 · 4 events
- Blizzard and Winter Storm in Wyoming, December 12 to 13, 20083 injured · 9 events
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in New York, December 12, 2008$23,000 · 9 events
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Colorado, December 12 to 14, 200819 events
- Blizzard in Montana, December 12 to 14, 200816 events
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Washington, December 12 to 14, 200810 events
- Flood in Connecticut, December 12, 2008$15,000 · 1 event
- High Surf in Hawaii, December 12 to 13, 20086 events
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: 145055, 145067, 145062, 145080.