A slow moving storm system entered the state of Utah on April 14th, with snow continuing through April 16th. The heaviest snow was observed in the Cottonwood Canyons and the Uinta Mountains.
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 SLC wrote it up.
A slow moving storm system entered the state of Utah on April 14th, with snow continuing through April 16th. The heaviest snow was observed in the Cottonwood Canyons and the Uinta Mountains.
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 Salt Lake City, UT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 14, 4:42 AM MST, 18 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT
542 AM MDT TUE APR 14 2009
.SYNOPSIS...MOISTURE WILL INCREASE ACROSS THE AREA TODAY AHEAD OF
A DEVELOPING COLD UPPER LOW. THIS LOW WILL SLOWLY CROSS THE GREAT
BASIN LATE TODAY THROUGH THURSDAY. HIGH PRESSURE WILL RETURN NEXT
WEEKEND.
&&
.DISCUSSION...A COLD UPPER TROF IS DEEPENING ALONG THE WEST COAST
THIS MORNING WHILE A WEAK SHORT WAVE EJECTS ACROSS THE GREAT BASIN
AHEAD OF IT. THIS WEAK WAVE DOES CARRY CONSIDERABLE MID AND HIGH
LEVEL MOISTURE THAT WILL MIX DOWNWARD THROUGH TODAY. EXPECT
SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS LIGHT SHOWERS ACROSS MAINLY NORTHERN
PORTIONS OF OUR CWA BUT THE BEST LIFT STAYS TO OUR WEST TODAY AND
ANY PRECIP OVER UT WONT AMOUNT TO MUCH. THIS IS COMPOUNDED BY THE
HIGH SNOW LEVELS SO HAVE PUSHED THE WATCH BACK TO NOW START AT 06Z
WED.
WITH THE UPPER LOW NOW FORECAST TO TRACK ACROSS SRN UT...HAVE
ADDED THE SOUTHERN MTS TO THE WATCH. I DONT HAVE A LOT OF
CONFIDENCE THAT WE WILL REACH WARNING AMOUNTS IN ANY 12 OR 24 HR
PERIOD OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS ALTHO IT IS NOT OUT OF THE
QUESTION.
THE SURFACE LOW WITH THIS FEATURE IS FORECAST TO DEEPEN RAPIDLY
OVER SRN NV TODAY AND THIS PLUS STRONG WINDS ALOFT MIXING DOWN
WILL GENERATE STRONG SURFACE WINDS ACROSS CENTRAL AND SRN UT. HAVE
OPTED TO GO WITH A WIND ADVISORY FOR ALL CENTRAL AND SRN VALLEYS.
SNOW LEVELS ARE STILL FORECAST TO REACH VALLEY FLOORS IN SWRN UT
BUT THE AIRMASS IS NOT FORECAST TO BE QUITE AS COLD ACROSS THE
NORTH SO THE THREAT OF VALLEY ACCUMULATION IS LESS THERE.
WHOLE SYSTEM MOVES EAST BY FRI AND A RIDGE IS FORECAST TO DOMINATE
THE AREA FOR THE WEEKEND.
&&
.AVIATION...VIRGA FLOATING AROUND WITH OCCASIONAL CEILINGS AROUND
8000FT AGL. CEILINGS ARE EXPECTED TO APPROACH 6-7000FT AGL BY MID
MORNING WITH INCREASING SOUTH WINDS. WINDS REACHING AIRPORT WEATHER
WARNING CRITERIA AROUND 15Z AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT
REMAINS ON TRACK. THERE IS A 30 PERCENT CHANCE THAT A SHALLOW
NORTHWEST WIND SWITCH WILL OCCUR MIDDAY. ANY PRECIPITATION THAT
FALLS TODAY AT THE AIRPORT WILL BE IN THE FORM OF RAIN.
&&
.SLC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
UT...WIND ADVISORY FROM 11 AM TUESDAY TO 7 PM TUESDAY FOR UTZ013-
UTZ014-UTZ015-UTZ016-UTZ019-UTZ020-UTZ021.
WINTER STORM WATCH FROM MIDNIGHT WEDNESDAY TO MIDNIGHT FRIDAY
FOR UTZ007-UTZ008-UTZ009-UTZ010-UTZ517-UTZ518.
WY...NONE.
&&
WILENSKY/YOUNG
FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT...
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE)2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Five Points Lake SNOTEL received 2.70 inches liquid equivalent precipitation, or approximately 25 inches of new snow for the storm.
Brighton and Alta received a storm total of 39 inches new snow, while Park City Jupiter Peak received 34 new inches.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Utah in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Utah, 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: 167688, 167687.