A major late season storm dumped up to 2 feet of snow over portions northern and central Nevada.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 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 LKN wrote it up.
A major late season storm dumped up to 2 feet of snow over portions northern and central Nevada.
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 Elko, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 14, 1:24 PM PST, 36 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 224 PM PDT TUE APR 14 2009 .SYNOPSIS...A STRONG STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION TONIGHT...AND IS EXPECTED TO LINGER INTO EARLY THURSDAY MORNING. RAIN SHOWERS...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS...AND STRONG WINDS ARE EXPECTED AHEAD OF THIS STORM LATE THIS AFTERNOON WITH RAIN EVENTUALLY CHANGING TO SNOW THIS EVENING. SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS PORTIONS OF EASTERN AND NORTHEASTERN NEVADA AS THE STORM MOVES THROUGH THE STATE. DRIER WEATHER AND WARMER TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO RETURN BY THE WEEKEND. && .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...STRONG STORM SYSTEM JUST BEGINNING TO IMPACT NRN AND CNTRL NV THIS AFTERNOON. CURRENT RADAR LOOP SHOWS WIDELY SCT TSTORMS DEVELOPING ACROSS CNTL NV...WITH MAIN BAND OF SNOW JUST NOW STARTING TO DEVELOP OVER NORTHWESTERN NV WITH 1/2 MILE AND MODERATE SNOW BEING REPORTED AT WINNEMUCCA. IMPRESSIVE LLVL FRONTOGENESIS OCCURRING WITH THIS SYSTEM...AS WINNEMUCCA IS SHOWING 28 DEGS AT 1 PM PDT...COMPARED TO 48 DEGS AT ELKO LAPS SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS SURFACE LOW PRESSURE QUICKLY DEVELOPING ACROSS CNTRL NV...WITH TONOPAH OBS SHOWING THE SURF PRESSURE QUICKLY DROPPING TO 996MB SLP IN THE LAST SEVERAL HOURS. SURFACE LOW AND STRONG LLVL CONVERGENCE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO INTENSIFY THROUGH THIS EVENING...WITH STRONG COLD FRONT EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO ERN NV EARLY TONIGHT. WITH SYSTEM EVOLVING AS PLANNED...ONLY MADE MINOR TWEAKS TO THE CURRENT FORECAST...MAINLY TO PRECIP/SNOW FALL AMOUNTS AND TEMPS. KEPT WIND ADV FOR CNTRL NV AND KEPT ALL WINTER WEATHER HEADLINES AS WELL. EXPECT HIGH POP...SO KEPT VALUES NEAR 100 PCT THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THE BIGGEST CONCERN NOW BECOMES PRECIP/SNOW AMOUNTS...AND SNOWFALL RATES. WITH MODELS CONTINUING TO SHOW 700-500MB OMEGA BETWEEN 20 TO 25 UB/S TONIGHT...COMBINED WITH SOME LLVL INSTABILITY AND CURRENT DYNAMICS...EXPECT SNOWFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR...POSSIBLY EVEN HIGHER IN SOME LOCATIONS THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT. ALSO...VERY COLD AIR IS PUSHING INTO THE REGION WITH DAYTIME TEMPS IN THE 20S ACROSS HUMBOLDT COUNTY. SNOW IS EXPECTED TO ACCUMULATE ON THE ROADWAYS WITH THIS AMOUNT OF COLD AIR ENTERING THE REGION. MODEL QPF HAS BEEN PERSISTENTLY SHOWING AROUND 1 INCH OF LIQUID WITH THE 18Z NAM SHOWING EVEN HIGHER AMOUNTS IN THE WARNING AREA...NW OF THE SURFACE LOW. GENERALLY EXPECT 5 TO 10 INCHES OF SNOW IN THE WINTER STORM WARNING AREA WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS UP TO 15 INCHES POSSIBLE WITHIN THESE VERY HEAVY SNOW BANDS. IN THE HIGHER MOUNTAINS ABOVE 7000 FEET...EXPECT 1 TO 2 FEET OF SNOW WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS IN THE NRN ELKO COUNTY MOUNTAINS...ESPECIALLY THE RUBIES. WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE ISOLD LIGHTNING STRIKES WITH THE HEAVIEST SNOW BANDS AS WELL. WHITE PINE COUNTY WILL MAINLY BE IN THE WARM SECTOR OF THE STORM INITIALLY...SO EXPECT LOWER SNOW AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 5 INCHES LATER TONIGHT INTO TOMORROW. WRAP AROUND BAND IS EXPECTED TO BE NORTH OF WHITE PINE COUNTY AS WELL...LIMITING HEAVY SNOW ACCUMULATIONS. MOST OF NRN NYE COUNTY WILL LIKELY SEE 1 TO 3 INCHES OF SNOW...BUT THE NRN MOUNTAINS WILL RECEIVING LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS NEAR WINTER WX ADV CONDITIONS. BLOWING SNOW IS ALSO A CONCERN IN THE HIGHER ELEVATION MOUNTAIN PASSES WITH STRONG WINDS ACROSS THE AREA DUE TO THE STRENGTHENING LOW ACROSS CNTRL NV. BEYOND WEDNESDAY MORNING...MODELS ARE STILL SHOWING A LONG DURATION EVENT...WITH THE STRONG STORM STALLING OVER UTAH AND SLOWLY DRIFTING EAST OUT OF THE REGION BY LATE THURSDAY. MODELS SHOW WRAP AROUND SNOW BAND ACROSS NRN AND CNTRL NV...WITH SEVERAL MORE INCHES OF SNOW POSSIBLE BY THURSDAY MORNING. CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO IMPROVE LATE THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH ALL MODELS SHOWING AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE PUSHING INTO NV. EXPECT TEMPS TO RETURN TO NEAR NORMAL BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON. .LONG TERM...FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH NEXT TUESDAY. MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT THROUGH THE PERIOD. UPPER RIDGE CONTINUES TO STRENGTHEN OVER THE REGION THROUGH THE WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK FOR DRY WEATHER AND ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES. HIGHS TEMPERATURES IN THE 60S AND 70S WILL BE COMMON THROUGH THE LONG TERM WITH THE WARMEST DAYS PROBABLY BEING MONDAY AND TUESDAY WHEN BOTH THE GFS AND ECMWF ADVERTISE A 582-584DM UPPER RIDGE OVER NV. THE WARMEST VALLEYS OF HUMBOLDT AND NORTHERN NYE COUNTIES WILL FLIRT WITH 80 DEGREES BOTH OF THESE DAYS. && .AVIATION...A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BE IMPACTING THE REGION THROUGH WEDNESDAY. ALREADY SEEING ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON OVER CENTRAL NV AHEAD OF THIS STORM SYSTEM. CONVECTION MAY IMPACT KELY BETWEEN 22Z-00Z THIS AFTERNOON. WITH THE STORM SYSTEM CURRENTLY MOVING INTO WESTERN NV...SNOW HAS ALREADY BEGUN AT KWMC WITH WINDS GUSTING TO 45 MPH. THESE CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE EASTWARD INTO THIS EVENING. ANY RAIN WILL QUICKLY CHANGE TO SNOW AT KEKO BETWEEN 00Z-02Z WITH SNOW CONTINUING HEAVY AT TIMES THIS EVENING. SNOW IS EXPECTING TO REACH KTPH AND KELY BETWEEN 02Z-05Z THIS EVENING. THE HEAVIEST SNOW WILL OCCUR OVER NORTHEASTERN NV WHERE WIDESPREAD IFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT. WIND GUSTS TO 55 MPH ARE ALSO EXPECTED AT KTPH LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. && .LKN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 7 PM THIS EVENING TO 7 PM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR NVZ031-032-034-036-037. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO MIDNIGHT PDT WEDNESDAY NIGHT FOR NVZ035. WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR NVZ013-035. && 95/99/99
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 437 AM PDT TUE APR 14 2009 NVZ013-030>037-151145- NORTHERN NYE COUNTY-HUMBOLDT COUNTY-NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY- SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY- EXTREME EASTERN ELKO COUNTY-RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE- WHITE PINE COUNTY- NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- 437 AM PDT TUE APR 14 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NEVADA...NORTH CENTRAL NEVADA...NORTHEAST NEVADA...NORTHWEST NEVADA AND SOUTH CENTRAL NEVADA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. A STRONG STORM SYSTEM AND ITS ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT WILL BRING SHOWERS ALONG WITH AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM TO THE REGION TODAY. COLDER AIR WILL QUICKLY LOWER SNOW LEVELS AND TRANSITION THE RAIN TO SNOW FROM THE MOUNTAIN TOPS TO THE VALLEY FLOOR THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT. THE SNOW MAY BE HEAVY FOR A TIME TONIGHT. TEMPERATURES WILL GENERALLY REMAIN ABOVE FREEZING TODAY THEN QUICKLY FALL TO AT OR BELOW FREEZING BEHIND THE COLD FRONT TONIGHT. IN ADDITION... GUSTY WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED TODAY AND TONIGHT. PLEASE SEE THE WIND ADVISORY PRODUCT /RNONPWLKN/ FOR SPECIFIC WIND INFORMATION FOR WHITE PINE AND NORTHERN NYE COUNTIES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THE STORM WILL SLOWLY EXIT THE STATE THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. SNOW WILL LINGER ACROSS EASTERN NEVADA INTO THURSDAY MORNING WITH SOME LIGHT ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS POSSIBLE. PLEASE SEE THE WINTER STORM WARNING PRODUCT /RNOWSWLKN/ FOR SPECIFIC SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS. HIGH PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO BUILD OVER THE REGION LATER THIS WEEK BRINGING DRIER WEATHER AND MUCH WARMER TEMPERATURES BY FRIDAY AND DURING THE WEEKEND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO REPORT WEATHER PHENOMENA ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE. MF
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
6 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Battle Mountain received 7 inches of snow and Emigrant Pass 15 inches.
Snowfall ranged from 1 to 2 feet.
Snowfall amounts included 8 inches at the Elko Weather Forecast Office and 20 inches in Spring Creek and Lamoille.
Eureka received 26 inches of new snow and Austin 15 inches.
Wild Horse Reservoir reported 6 inches of new snow. Other data sources indicated the northeastern portion of the zone around Jackpot received 8 to 12 inches of snow.
The National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Centers Interactive Snow Information Map indicated a large portion of western and northern White Pine County received 8 to 12 inches of snow. This area is lacking in weather spotters and Coop observers so no ground truth reports were received.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, April 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: 154692, 154685, 154683, 154693, 154682, 154689.