A cold winter storm dropped significant snowfall amounts over Northwest California. This resulted in chain restrictions on the higher elevation roads.
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 EKA wrote it up.
A cold winter storm dropped significant snowfall amounts over Northwest California. This resulted in chain restrictions on the higher elevation roads.
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 Eureka, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 16, 2:17 PM PST, 3 hours 43 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA
217 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011
.SYNOPSIS...A LARGE WINTER STORM WILL PRODUCE PERIODS OF RAIN AND
LOW ELEVATION SNOW THROUGH THE MORNING HOURS BEFORE TAPERING OFF
DURING THE DAY ON THURSDAY.
&&
.SYNOPSIS...A LARGE WINTER STORM WILL PRODUCE ADDITIONAL RAIN AND
SNOW TODAY TAPERING OFF TONIGHT. A COLDER AIR MASS WILL SETTLE
OVER THE REGION TONIGHT AND REMAIN THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
&&
.DISCUSSION...FOCUS OF THIS FCST PACKAGE IS ONGOING WINTER WX AND
INCREASED POTENTIAL FOR ACCUMULATING SNOWFALL THROUGH THE MORNING
HOURS ON TUESDAY AS SNOW LEVELS FALL THROUGH THE NIGHT.
FIRST SHORTWAVE IS IN THE PROCESS OF EXITING THE AREA WITH COLD AIR
RAPIDLY FILLING IN IN ITS WAKE. A RELATIVE LULL IN SHRA ACTIVITY IS
EVIDENT ON RADAR/SAT THOUGH COOLING TEMPS ALOFT AND STEEPENING
MID-LEVEL LAPSE RATES NEAR OR EXCEEDING 8C/KM WILL CONTINUE TO
SUPPORT SCT SHRA CONTAINING SMALL HAIL AND OCCL LIGHTNING THROUGH
THE NEAR TERM. BRIEF NON-ACCUMULATING SNOWFALL HAS ALREADY BEEN
REPORTED AS LOW AS 800 FT INVOF BLUE LAKE EARLY THIS AFTN. ANOTHER
ROUND OF ENHANCED SHRA/SHSN WILL PUSH THRU AFTER 6Z/10PM THIS
EVENING.
BETTER CONSENSUS AMONG NAM/GFS/EC THAN YESTERDAY... WITH MODELS
DEPICTING YET ANOTHER S/W EMBEDDED IN NW FLOW ALOFT TO PROVIDE
ENOUGH LIFT FOR ANOTHER ROUND OF PRECIP LATE TONIGHT AND EARLY
TOMORROW MORNING...THIS TIME INTO NOTABLY COOLER AIR. THIS IS SEPARATE
FROM THE MUCH STRONGER AND WELL-ADVERTISED WAVE THAT WILL TRIGGER
SHRA/SHSN IN FAR SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA AND INTO MTR'S CWA. THE
S/W NOW WARRANTING THE MOST ATTN HERE FOR MOST OF THE AREA IS
PROGGED TO BE NEAR 130W AFTER MIDNIGHT TONIGHT WITH SYNOPTIC SCALE
FORCING (H7-H3 Q) OVERSPREADING THE AREA THROUGH THE MORNING
TOMORROW. TO VARYING EXTENTS...ALL THREE OF THE AFOREMENTIONED
MODELS SUGGEST SOME DEGREE OF SFC LOW DEVELOPMENT... WITH THE
NAM12 THE MOST AGGRESSIVE. NAM/GFS BOTH INDICATE AN AREA OF
DEFORMATION OVER EXTREME N PARTS OF THE CWA...MAINLY ACROSS DEL
NORTE COUNTY AND INTO SW MFR THAT WILL ENHANCE/FOCUS PRECIP IN
THAT AREA LEADING TO POTENTIALLY INCREASED RAIN AND SNOWFALL
RATES. IN BETWEEN...SHOULD STILL BE ENOUGH INSTABILITY AND LIFT TO
PROMOTE SHRA THRU AT LEAST MID-MORNING. THUS...EXTENDED WINTER WX
ADVISORY THROUGH 18Z TOMORROW...A BIT LONGER THAN IT CURRENTLY
APPEARS THE MAIN SHOT OF PRECIP WILL LAST JUST TO ENSURE THAT THE
FULL EVENT IS CAPTURED. IN ADDITION...ALSO ADDED AREAS ABOVE 2KFT
TO THE ADVISORY...MAINLY DUE TO PRECIP THAT WILL DEVELOP OVER THE
AREA LATE TONIGHT AND TOMORROW MORNING. FOR NOW...THOSE IN THE LOWER
ELEVATIONS OF THE ADVISORY ARE LIKELY TO CONTINUE SEE A MIX OF
RAIN AND SNOW.
SINCE FOCUS TODAY HAS MAINLY BEEN ON NOWCASTING AND THE NEAR
TERM...MADE VERY FEW CHANGES TO EXTENDED GRIDS. PER HPC MODEL
DIAGNOSTIC DISCUSSION...12Z NAM HAS TRENDED LESS AMPLIFIED AND MORE
PROGRESSIVE WITH S/W ENERGY DROPPING OUT OF THE N ON FRI WHILE THE
OPERATIONAL GFS CONTINUES TO BE AN OUTLIER. PREFERRED GUIDANCE IS A
NON-GFS BLEND AND TRENDED THE GOING FCST IN THIS DIRECTION.
EXTENDED... AFTER ANOTHER...POTENTIALLY QUITE COLD...LOW DROPS OUT
OF N EARLY NEXT WEEK THE PATTERN WILL RELAX FOR A FEW DAYS BEFORE
THE GOA LOW RELOADS. CLARK
&&
.AVIATION...A COUPLE OF UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES ENHANCED SHOWER
ACTIVITY EARLIER THIS AFTERNOON...PROMPTING GENERALLY MVFR CONDITIONS
DUE TO REDUCED VSBYS AND CIGS FROM HEAVY SHOWERS AND SMALL HAIL AT
ALL TAF SITES. THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS SHOULD SEE SLIGHTLY BETTER
CONDITIONS BEFORE ANOTHER UPPER IMPULSE BRINGS MORE ENHANCEMENT
(6Z-9ZISH). SNOW LEVELS DROPPED TO NEAR 1500 FEET LATE THIS
MORNING...SHOULD RISE A BIT THROUGH THE AFTERNOON THEN FALL AGAIN
OVERNIGHT...THUS INTERIOR TERMINALS MAY ALSO SEE SOME OBSCURATION
DUE TO BRIEF BUT HEAVY SNOW SHOWERS.
&&
.MARINE...WINDS OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS WILL BE RELATIVELY LIGHT AS A
LOW APPROACHES THE WA AND ORE COASTS. FORECAST MODELS IN GOOD
AGREEMENT ON A STRONGER STORM WINDING UP EARLY NEXT WEEK...WITH A
COUPLE OF FRONTS BRINGING ROBUST SOUTH WIND MON AND TUE. LONGER
PERIOD SMALL SWELL NOW FILTERING ACROSS THE WATERS FROM THE WEST
WILL PEAK AROUND MIDNIGHT TONIGHT...THEN GRADUALLY SUBSIDE THROUGH
THU. SWAN AND ENP INDICATE ANOTHER LARGER WEST SWELL (10-12 FT)
ARRIVING SAT / SUN.
&&
.EKA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 10 AM PST THURSDAY ABOVE 2000 FEET
FOR THE CAZ003-004-076.
NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA COASTAL WATERS...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 9 PM PST THURSDAY PZZ450-455-470-475.
&&
VISIT US AT HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/EUREKAHAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EUREKA CA 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 CAZ001-180045- REDWOOD COAST- 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED AT THE COAST TONIGHT. SOME OF THE HEAVIER SHOWERS WILL CONTAIN SMALL HAIL THAT MAY QUICKLY COVER ROADWAYS AND CREATE HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. FOR FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE REFER TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR WEATHER.GOV/EUREKA. CAZ002-180045- MENDOCINO COAST- 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST THURSDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT ABOVE 1500 FEET. SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED AT THE COAST TONIGHT. SOME OF THE HEAVIER SHOWERS WILL CONTAIN SMALL HAIL THAT MAY QUICKLY COVER ROADWAYS AND CREATE HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 1 TO 2 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 1500 FEET THROUGH LATE THURSDAY MORNING. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. FOR FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE REFER TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR WEATHER.GOV/EUREKA. CAZ003-180045- NORTH COAST INTERIOR- 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST THURSDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT ABOVE 2000 FEET. SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH TONIGHT. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH LATE THURSDAY MORNING. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. FOR FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE REFER TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR WEATHER.GOV/EUREKA. CAZ076-180045- MENDOCINO INTERIOR- 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST THURSDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH TONIGHT. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH LATE THURSDAY MORNING. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. FOR FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE REFER TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR WEATHER.GOV/EUREKA. CAZ004-180045- UPPER TRINITY RIVER- 432 PM PST WED FEB 16 2011 ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST THURSDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH TONIGHT. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. ADDITIONAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES IS POSSIBLE ABOVE 2000 FEET THROUGH LATE THURSDAY MORNING. MINOR ACCUMULATIONS...GENERALLY AN INCH OR LESS... ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 1000 FEET. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. FOR FURTHER DETAILS PLEASE REFER TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR WEATHER.GOV/EUREKA.
1 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Several spotters reported snowfall meeting warning criteria. Chain restrictions were also required on some of the main roads.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in California, February 2011
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: 296794.