A strong Pacific storm system dumped heavy snow on nearly all of southeastern Idaho starting on Sunday the 21st and continuing through Monday the 22nd. More than a foot of snow was common in the mountains while 6 to 14 inches fell in the Snake River Plain.
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 PIH wrote it up.
A strong Pacific storm system dumped heavy snow on nearly all of southeastern Idaho starting on Sunday the 21st and continuing through Monday the 22nd. More than a foot of snow was common in the mountains while 6 to 14 inches fell in the Snake River Plain.
9 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Twelve inches of snow fell at the White Elephant SNOTEL. 14 inches fell at the Island Park SNOTEL, and 9 inches fell at Crab Creek. 9 inches was reported in Marysville.
Twelve inches of snow fell at Howell Canyon with 9 inches at the Oxford Spring, Howell Canyon, and Bostetter SNOTEL sites. Interstate 84 was closed at 11 am on the 22nd due to heavy snow and winds from mile post 222 to 275 or from the interstate 86 intersection to the Utah border.
Emigrant Summit SNOTEL reported 11 inches of snowfall.
Trained spotters reported 9 inches of snow at Ketchum, 10 inches were reported 9 miles northeast of Carey. 15 inches were reported 5 miles west southwest of Gannett, and 10 inches were reported in Bellevue. Selected SNOTEL amounts were: 9 inches at Swede Peak, 9 inches at Hyndman, 15 inches at Garfield Ranger Station, 15 inches at Galena Summit, 15 inches at Galena Lodge, 18 inches at Dollarhide, 9 inches at Chocolate Gulch, and 18 inches at Lost Wood Divide.
SNOTEL sites reporting heavy snow were Wildhorse Divide at 13 inches, Somsen Ranch 15 inches, Sheep Mountain 14 inches, and Sedgwick Peak 14 inches.
Spotters reported 10 inches of snow in Stanley. Nine inches fell at Smiley Mountain, Mill Creek Summit, and Bear Canyon.
A strong Pacific storm brought heavy snow to the Eastern Magic Valley. 13 inches fell in Burley and 12 inches fell in Shoshone. Amounts of greater than 8 inches were reported throughout the region.
A Pacific storm system brought heavy snow to the Lower Snake River Plain. Selected amounts were: 7.4 inches at the Pocatello Regional Airport, 10 inches in Chubbuck, 8 inches in American Falls, 7 inches in Blackfoot, 8 inches in Pocatello, and 10 to 12 inches in the Pocatello benches.
A powerful Pacific storm dropped 12 inches of snow in Rexburg, 10 inches in Idaho Falls, and 6 inches in Rigby.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, December 2008
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: 145237, 145253, 145259, 145265, 145257, 145236, 145244, 145241, 145240.