A cold front passing through the area allowed for rain to change to snow on the morning of February 2nd. A couple of inches of snow accumulation was reported over portions of the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 9 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 JKL wrote it up.
A cold front passing through the area allowed for rain to change to snow on the morning of February 2nd. A couple of inches of snow accumulation was reported over portions of the area.
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 Jackson, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 2, 2:55 AM EST, 1 hour 57 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 255 AM EST MON FEB 2 2009 .SHORT TERM.../TODAY THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/...UPDATED COLD FRONT CONTINUES TO WORK SOUTHEAST AND SHOULD CLEAR OUR FORECAST AREA OVER THE NEXT HOUR OR TWO. LIGHT RAIN IS EXPANDING NORTHEAST JUST BEHIND THE FRONT DUE IN LARGE PART TO A COUPLING OF H3 JETS AS THE TROUGH ALOFT SHARPENS UP OVER THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. WHILE THE PRECIP IS LIGHT... IT DOES LOOK WIDESPREAD ENOUGH TO NECESSITATE AN INCREASE TO CATEGORICAL POPS ACROSS EXTREME SOUTHEAST KENTUCKY... BUT A SHARP GRADIENT WILL BE PAINTED WITH JUST A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR A LEFT OVER SHOWER FOR THE I-64 CORRIDOR BY THE START OF THE FIRST PERIOD (12Z). TEMPERATURES ARE SLOWLY FALLING OFF BEHIND THE FRONT BUT REMAIN IN THE 40S FOR MOST OF THE AREA. THIS WARM BOUNDARY LAYER SHOULD KEEP MOST OF THE PRECIPITATION AS RAIN AS IT WORKS ACROSS EASTERN KENTUCKY THROUGH THE DAY. SNOW WILL MIX IN AT TIMES... ESPECIALLY FOR LOCATIONS WITH ANY ELEVATION TO THEM... BUT ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD REMAIN LIGHT AND CONFINED TO LOCATIONS ABOVE 2000 FEET. SOME BREAKS IN THE CLOUD COVER ARE LIKELY LATE TODAY AS HIGH PRESSURE BRIEFLY BUILDS INTO THE AREA... BUT CLOUDS SHOULD ONCE AGAIN INCREASE LATER TONIGHT AS THE FIRST IN A SERIES OF UPPER DISTURBANCES DROP SOUTHEAST INTO THE STATE. EACH ONE OF THESE DISTURBANCES WILL BRING AN UP TICK IN SNOW SHOWER ACTIVITY. THE MOST POTENT SYSTEM LOOKS TO ARRIVE DURING THE DAY ON TUESDAY. THE POTENCY OF THIS SHORTWAVE LOOKS RATHER IMPRESSIVE AND THE FACT THAT IT SHOULD SWING THROUGH DURING THE PEAK HEATING PERIOD OF THE DAY POINTS TO RATHER WIDESPREAD SNOW SHOWER ACTIVITY... SOME OF WHICH COULD BE BRIEFLY HEAVY. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SNOW SHOWERS SHOULD THEN CONTINUE INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS ON TUESDAY WITH GOOD UPSLOPE FLOW AND COLD ADVECTION. OVERALL... WE SHOULD SEE A FAIRLY WIDESPREAD 1 TO 2 INCH SNOWFALL TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT WITH SEVERAL INCHES LIKELY OVER THE FAVORED HIGHER TERRAIN ALONG THE VIRGINIA BORDER. BREEZY NORTHWEST WINDS WILL BLOW THE SNOW AROUND SOME AS WELL AND REDUCE WIND CHILLS INTO THE TEENS AND SINGLE DIGITS. .LONG TERM.../WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/...UPDATED THE MODELS ARE IN PRETTY GOOD AGREEMENT ON WEDNESDAY AND THEN START TO DIVERGE WITH TIME THROUGH THE END OF THE PERIOD. THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE IS WHERE THE COLD FRONT WILL BE ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE ECMWF HAS A STRONGER RIDGE AND KEEPS THE COLD FRONT TO THE NORTH AND THE WEST OF EASTERN KENTUCKY. SOME OF THE GFS ENSEMBLE MEMBERS DO THIS AS WELL...SO DECIDED TO GO WITH THE ECMWF AND KEEP THE FRONT OUT OF THE AREA UNTIL MONDAY. OTHER THAN TAKING OUT SOME POPS NEXT WEEKEND...WENT PRETTY WELL WITH PERSISTENCE AND THEN NUDGED TO MODEL TRENDS. STAYED ON THE COOL SIDE OF MOS AND HAD TO DO SOME BLENDING WITH THE RAW MODEL OUTPUT IN ORDER TO GET THE TEMPERATURES WHERE I WANTED THEM. CONFIDENCE FOR THIS WEEKEND DECREASES SOME...BUT GOT TO SEE THE 00Z ECMWF AND IT CONTINUES THE TREND FOR THE DRIER WEEKEND. WOULD NOT BE SURPRISE TO SEE DAY SHIFT TAKE OUT THE POPS FOR SUNDAY AS WELL. && .AVIATION.../06Z TO 06Z/ COLD FRONT IS PROGRESSING SOUTHEAST ACROSS THE AREA AT THIS TIME WITH WINDS VEERING AROUND TO THE NORTHWEST AT THE TAF SITES OVER THE NEXT HOUR OR SO. A BAND OF MAINLY LIGHT RAIN WILL FOLLOW THE FRONT INTO THE TAF SITES AFTER 08Z AND CIGS WILL LIKELY FLIRT WITH THE MVFR CATEGORY IN THE RAIN. EXPECT THE RAIN WILL MIX WITH SNOW AT TIMES BEFORE ENDING BY 14Z AS COLDER AIR FILTERS IN. OTHERWISE... SKIES SHOULD SCATTER OUT FOR A TIME DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING HOURS ON MONDAY BEFORE NEXT UPPER DISTURBANCE DROPS INTO THE REGION BRINGING A ANOTHER INCREASE IN CLOUDS TO END THE TAF PERIOD. && .JKL WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && SHORT TERM...ABE LONG TERM...JJ AVIATION...ABE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON KY 422 AM EST MON FEB 2 2009 KYZ044-050>052-058>060-068-069-079-080-083>088-104-106>120-031200- FLEMING-MONTGOMERY-BATH-ROWAN-ESTILL-POWELL-MENIFEE-ROCKCASTLE- JACKSON-PULASKI-LAUREL-WAYNE-MCCREARY-WHITLEY-KNOX-BELL-HARLAN- ELLIOTT-MORGAN-JOHNSON-WOLFE-MAGOFFIN-FLOYD-LEE-BREATHITT-KNOTT- OWSLEY-PERRY-CLAY-LESLIE-LETCHER-MARTIN-PIKE- 422 AM EST MON FEB 2 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN KENTUCKY. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. AN AREA OF LIGHT RAIN...MIXED WITH SNOW AT TIMES...WILL MOVE ACROSS EAST KENTUCKY THIS MORNING AND THEN TAPER OFF DURING THE AFTERNOON. THE PRECIPITATION WILL LINGER THE LONGEST OVER SOUTHEAST KENTUCKY. NO SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED FOR MOST LOCATIONS...HOWEVER...UP TO AN INCH OF SNOW MAY FALL OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF SOUTHEAST KENTUCKY...GENERALLY AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE 2000 FEET. AFTER A BRIEF LULL IN THE PRECIPITATION LATE TODAY AND EARLY TONIGHT...SNOW SHOWERS WILL INCREASE IN COVERAGE ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA AGAIN LATE TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SNOW SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT. ONE TO TWO INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED FOR MOST LOCATIONS...ALTHOUGH HIGHER TOTALS ARE LIKELY FOR THE HIGHER TERRAIN ALONG THE VIRGINIA BORDER. ADDITIONAL LIGHT SNOW SHOWER ACTIVITY IS THEN EXPECTED DURING THE DAY ON WEDNESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSON. ABE
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
9 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
One inch of snow fell at the Jackson weather office.
The public reported that eight tenths of an inch of snow had accumulated in Frozen Creek.
The public reported that an inch of snow had fallen on Pine Mountain.
A trained spotter reported that 1.8 inches of snow had fallen 1 mile south southeast of Mount Vernon.
A trained spotter reported that six tenths of an inch of snow had fallen in Somerset.
A trained spotter reported that 3 inches of snow had fallen in Roark.
The public reported that two and a half inches of snow had fallen in Frakes.
A spotter reported 1 inch of new snowfall since 8 am local time.
A trained spotter reported that two and a half inches of snow had fallen 4 miles northeast of Blackey.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Kentucky in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Kentucky, February 2009
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: 150313, 150314, 150315, 150316, 150317, 150320, 150319, 150312, 150321.