A winter storm struck Middle Tennessee producing 4 to 12 inches of snow in the Western Part of Middle Tennessee and 1 to 4 inches elsewhere. There was a combination of freezing rain and sleet during the beginning of this winter storm event.
Every event with a place to put it; 39 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 OHX wrote it up.
A winter storm struck Middle Tennessee producing 4 to 12 inches of snow in the Western Part of Middle Tennessee and 1 to 4 inches elsewhere. There was a combination of freezing rain and sleet during the beginning of this winter storm event. The county that had the most snow was Houston County with 12 inches, and snow drifts ranging from 2 to 3 feet. This was confirmed by two different observers.
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 Nashville, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 7, 3:15 PM CST, 1 hour 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 315 PM CST FRI MAR 7 2008 .DISCUSSION...A MAJOR WINTER STORM WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE MID STATE THIS EVENING. BY NOON SATURDAY...SNOWFALL TOTALS ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 1-4 INCHES ALONG THE AL LINE...TO 4-6 INCHES ALONG THE KY LINE. THESE ARE SMOOTHED VALUES...CERTAINLY THERE WILL BE POCKETS OF LIGHTER/HEAVIER SNOWFALL. SOME POCKETS OF 6+ INCHES ARE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY OVER THE NORTHWEST COUNTIES. CROSS SECTIONS INDICATE SOME POCKETS OF SIGNIFICANT DECREASING THETA E WITH HEIGHT...POSSIBLY SUGGESTING CONVECTIVE POTENTIAL. THIS IS CERTAINLY BELIEVABLE SINCE PARTS OF ARKANSAS ARE EXPERIENCING THUNDER SNOW. IN THE DETAILS...SURFACE LOW PRESSURE WAS LOCATED ALONG THE AL/GA LINE. UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE WAS OVER AR...MOVING TOWARD WEST TN AND MS. AN ARCTIC HIGH PRESSURE SYSTEM WAS CENTERED OVER THE UPPER MIDWEST. CIRCULATION AROUND THE SURFACE LOW WAS HELPING PULL COLD AIR DOWN INTO THE REGION. EARLIER TODAY...MID TN STARTED WITH A BATCH OF MODERATE RAINFALL...FOLLOWED BY SOME PATCHES OF LIGHT SNOW/SLEET. THE CLARKSVILLE AREA PICKED UP ABOUT ONE HALF INCH OF SNOW...AND A FEW SLICK SPOTS WEER REPORTED. THESE PATCHES OF PRECIP DID NOT PERSIST...BUT TEMPERATURES HAVE ALREADY STARTED TO FALL WITH CLOUDY SKIES AND COLD ADVECTION. THE TEMPERATURES WILL FALL BELOW FREEZING QUICKLY AS SNOW STARTS SPREADING ACROSS THE AREA THIS EVENING. SNOW HAD OCCURRED THROUGH THE AFTERNOON ACROSS AR WITH UPPER LOW AND DEFORMATION ZONE. THESE FEATURES WILL MOVE TO MID TN TONIGHT. SNOW WAS ALREADY MOVING INTO WEST TN...AND SHOULD REACH THE TN RIVER BY 4 OR 5 PM. THE SNOW WILL SPREAD TO BNA AREA AROUND 6 OR 7 PM...THEN TO CSV ABOUT 10 PM. ACCUMULATIONS HAVE BEEN ADJUSTED HERE AND THERE...BUT THE OVERALL FORECAST HAS STAYED PRETTY MUCH THE SAME AS PREVIOUS SHIFTS. LATEST GFS AND NAM CONTINUE TO SUPPORT WARNING CRITERIA SNOWFALL...WITH THE NAM GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND WITH ITS PROJECTIONS. VARIOUS SNOW ACCUM TECHNIQUES SUCH AS THE GARCIA METHOD STILL SUPPORT ABOUT 6 INCH MAX FOR SYNOPTIC SITUATION. AS MENTIONED BEFORE...IN ADDITION TO ADVERTISED WIDESPREAD ACCUMULATIONS...A FEW SPOTS MAY HAVE CONVECTIVE ENHANCEMENT LATE THIS EVENING. THIS COULD MEAN A COUPLE OF SPOTS WITH 6-8 INCHES...BUT THESE WOULD BE THE EXTREME VALUES. ALONG WITH SNOW TONIGHT...GUSTY NORTH WINDS WILL CAUSE THE FALLING SNOW TO BLOW AROUND A BIT AND MAKE IT FEEL QUITE COLD. THE SNOW SHOULD INITIALLY BE WET...BUT LATER TONIGHT SOME MINOR DRIFTING MAY OCCUR. BY 12Z SATURDAY...THE UPPER LOW WILL BE NEAR THE PLATEAU WITH DEEP MOISTURE COVERING THE MID STATE. SNOW SHOWERS MAY GENERATE ANOTHER INCH OR 2 OF ACCUMULATION BETWEEN 12Z-18Z. NOT MUCH MORE IS EXPECTED AFTER THAT. TEMPERATURES WILL BE COLD...PERHAPS NOT EVEN INTO THE 30S MANY AREAS. ALSO...NORTHWEST WINDS WILL BE BRISK AT TIMES. SATURDAY NIGHT WILL BE QUITE COLD WITH LOW IN THE TEENS TO LOWER 20S AS A SURFACE RIDGE CROSSES MID TN. SUNDAY WILL BE A LITTLE WARMER...BUT SOME CLOUDS AND LINGERING SNOW COVER SHOULD KEEP TEMPS UNDER MOS GUIDANCE. A WEAK FRONT WILL PUSH THROUGH SUNDAY EVENING FOLLOWED BY HIGH PRESSURE MONDAY AND TUESDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL CLIMB INTO THE 50S MONDAY AND TUESDAY...THEN INTO THE 60S MIDWEEK. A COUPLE OF SHORTWAVE TROUGHS COULD PRODUCE SOME PERIODS OF CLOUDINESS AND RAIN CHANCES MID-LATE WEEK. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT WILL BRING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ON THURSDAY. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... NASHVILLE 26 33 22 46 / 100 60 10 0 CLARKSVILLE 23 30 21 43 / 100 50 0 0 CROSSVILLE 22 26 18 42 / 100 70 10 0 COLUMBIA 27 35 23 48 / 100 50 10 0 LAWRENCEBURG 27 35 23 50 / 100 50 10 0 WAVERLY 25 32 23 46 / 100 50 0 0 && .OHX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 12 PM CST SATURDAY FOR TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095. && 13
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 345 PM CST FRI MAR 7 2008 TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-081130- STEWART-MONTGOMERY-ROBERTSON-SUMNER-MACON-CLAY-PICKETT-BENTON- HOUSTON-HUMPHREYS-DICKSON-CHEATHAM-DAVIDSON-WILSON-TROUSDALE- SMITH-JACKSON-PUTNAM-OVERTON-FENTRESS-PERRY-HICKMAN-LEWIS- WILLIAMSON-MAURY-MARSHALL-RUTHERFORD-CANNON-DEKALB-WHITE- CUMBERLAND-BEDFORD-COFFEE-WARREN-GRUNDY-VAN BUREN-WAYNE-LAWRENCE- GILES- 345 PM CST FRI MAR 7 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR MIDDLE TENNESSEE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FOR THE MID STATE... LIGHT RAIN OVER THE AREA WILL GRADUALLY TRANSITION TO SNOW BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE NIGHT. EXPECT 2 TO 5 INCHES OF SNOW OVER THE NORTH AND 1 TO 3 INCHES ACROSS THE SOUTH. SNOWFALL MAY MAKE ROAD CONDITIONS HAZARDOUS BY LATE TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY SNOWFALL WILL BEGIN TO TAPER OFF FROM THE WEST ON SATURDAY. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATION WILL RANGE FROM 1 TO 4 INCHES ACROSS THE SOUTH, TO 3 TO 6 INCHES OVER THE NORTH. ROAD CONDTIONS MAY BE HAZARDOUS THROUGH SUNDAY WHEN SOME MELTING OF SNOW IS EXPECTED. STAY TUNED TO LOCAL MEDIA OR NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION ON THIS DEVELOPING WINTER WEATHER EVENT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS AND OTHER SIGNIFICANT WINTER WEATHER REPORTS SHOULD BE PASSED ON TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. MAG
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NASHVILLE TN 350 PM CST FRI MAR 7 2008 TNZ005>011-022>034-056>066-075-077>080-093>095-080900- STEWART-MONTGOMERY-ROBERTSON-SUMNER-MACON-CLAY-PICKETT-BENTON- HOUSTON-HUMPHREYS-DICKSON-CHEATHAM-DAVIDSON-WILSON-TROUSDALE- SMITH-JACKSON-PUTNAM-OVERTON-FENTRESS-PERRY-HICKMAN-LEWIS- WILLIAMSON-MAURY-MARSHALL-RUTHERFORD-CANNON-DEKALB-WHITE- CUMBERLAND-BEDFORD-COFFEE-WARREN-GRUNDY-VAN BUREN-WAYNE-LAWRENCE- GILES- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...DOVER...CLARKSVILLE...SPRINGFIELD... GALLATIN...LAFAYETTE...CELINA...BYRDSTOWN...CAMDEN...ERIN... WAVERLY...DICKSON...ASHLAND CITY...KINGSTON SPRINGS...NASHVILLE... LEBANON...MOUNT JULIET...HARTSVILLE...CARTHAGE...GAINESBORO... COOKEVILLE...LIVINGSTON...JAMESTOWN...ALLARDT...LINDEN... LOBELVILLE...CENTERVILLE...HOHENWALD...FRANKLIN...BRENTWOOD... COLUMBIA...LEWISBURG...MURFREESBORO...WOODBURY...SMITHVILLE... SPARTA...CROSSVILLE...FAIRFIELD GLADE...SHELBYVILLE...TULLAHOMA... MANCHESTER...MCMINNVILLE...TRACY CITY...ALTAMONT...COALMONT... SPENCER...WAYNESBORO...LAWRENCEBURG...PULASKI 350 PM CST FRI MAR 7 2008 ...WINTER STORM WARNINGS POSTED FOR MID STATE THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING... HEAVY SNOW HAS BEEN FALLING ACROSS MUCH OF THE SOUTHERN PLAINS INTO WEST TENNESSEE FROM LAST NIGHT INTO FRIDAY AFTERNOON. LOW PRESSURE OVER WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA IS EXPECTED TO TRACK NORTHEAST TONIGHT...AND PRECIPITATION BEHIND IT WILL CHANGE OVER TO SNOW ACROSS THE MID STATE. THIS SNOW WILL LINGER INTO THE MORNING HOURS...BUT MOST OF THE ACCUMULATION WILL BE OVERNIGHT. AT THIS TIME IT APPEARS THAT ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM 3 TO 6 INCHES ACROSS MUCH OF THE NORTH...TO 1 TO 4 INCHES OVER SOUTHERN SECTIONS. THE LAST TIME NASHVILLE MEASURED 3 INCHES OR MORE OF SNOW FROM A SINGLE STORM WAS BACK ON FEBRUARY 9TH 2003...WHEN 4.1 INCHES FELL. THE LAST 7 INCH SNOWFALL IN NASHVILLE OCCURRED ON JANUARY 16TH 2003. NASHVILLE HAS MEASURED SOME HEAVY SNOWFALLS IN THE MONTH OF MARCH. ON MARCH 19TH AND 20TH IN 1996...NASHVILLE MEASURED 9.3 INCHES OF SNOW. THIS STILL RANKS...AS THE 3RD LARGEST SNOWFALL IN LAST 60 YEARS. THE LARGEST SNOWFALL ON RECORD IN A 24 HOUR PERIOD...OCCURRED ON MARCH 17TH 1892...WHEN 17.0 INCHES FELL. ON AVERAGE...THE NASHVILLE AREA GETS ABOUT 9.0 INCHES OF SNOW DURING A WINTER SEASON. SO FAR THIS WINTER...SNOWFALL HAS BEEN RATHER SKIMPY...WITH ONLY 2.4 INCHES BEING MEASURED THUS FAR. GIRODO
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
39 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Benton county received a total of 4 to 8 inches of snow from this storm.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were 6 to 12 inches with drifts of 2 to 3 feet by 640 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 5 to 12 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 4 to 8 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 4 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 4 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were 3 to 7 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 9 inches across the county by 640 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were 3 to 7 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 4 to 8 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were 1 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 to 4 inches across the county by noon CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about one to two inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about one inch across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 inches across the county by noon CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 3 inches across the county by noon CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 inch across the county by 7 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 3 to 6 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 3 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 to 4 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 2 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 5 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
A mixture of sleet, snow and freezing rain hit the county. Snow accumulations were about 1 to 4 inches across the county by 10 AM CST Sat. March 8. Driving was treacherous due to the snow and ice.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Tennessee in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Tennessee, March 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: 90344, 90374, 90940, 90948, 90953, 90352, 90367, 90372, 90375, 90378, 90935, 90936, 90937, 90346, 90348, 90353, 90357, 90369, 90376, 90377, 90939, 90941, 90943, 90951, 90952, 90954, 90363, 90365, 90366, 90368, 90370, 90380, 90945, 90946, 90947, 90949, 90950, 90955, 90956.