Heavy Snow in Michigan, November 29 to 30, 2011

Name: Heavy Snow in Michigan, November 29 to 30, 2011
Start: 2011-11-29T15:00
End: 2011-11-30T01:00
Location: Michigan

November 29 to 30, 2011 · NWS IWX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Rain changed over to heavy wet snow during the afternoon and evening hours of November 29th as an intensifying low pressure system lifted north through Ohio. Snowfall amounts generally ranged between 6 and 9 inches.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS IWX wrote it up.

What forecasters said that day

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 Northern Indiana wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 29, 1:25 PM EST, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 29, 1:25 PM EST, 1 hour 35 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Nov 29, 2:38 PM EST, 22 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

INZ006>009-015>018-022>027-032>034-MIZ080-081-OHZ001-002-004-015-
301945-
LAGRANGE-STEUBEN-NOBLE-DE KALB-FULTON IN-KOSCIUSKO-WHITLEY-ALLEN IN-
CASS IN-MIAMI-WABASH-HUNTINGTON-WELLS-ADAMS-GRANT-BLACKFORD-JAY-
BRANCH-HILLSDALE-WILLIAMS-FULTON OH-DEFIANCE-PAULDING-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...LAGRANGE...TOPEKA...ANGOLA...
KENDALLVILLE...LIGONIER...AUBURN...GARRETT...ROCHESTER...WARSAW...
WINONA LAKE...COLUMBIA CITY...SOUTH WHITLEY...FORT WAYNE...
LOGANSPORT...PERU...WABASH...NORTH MANCHESTER...HUNTINGTON...
BLUFFTON...OSSIAN...DECATUR...BERNE...MARION...HARTFORD CITY...
MONTPELIER...PORTLAND...COLDWATER...HILLSDALE...BRYAN...WAUSEON...
ARCHBOLD...DEFIANCE...PAULDING...ANTWERP
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST OHIO...
NORTHERN INDIANA AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

RAIN WILL SWITCH TO SNOW BY LATE AFTERNOON...WITH THE SNOW
BECOMING HEAVY AT TIMES INTO THIS EVENING. A WINTER STORM WARNING
IS IN EFFECT WITH TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED TO RANGE
BETWEEN 4 AND 8 INCHES...WITH SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS TO TRAVEL
EXPECTED. MONITOR THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER PRODUCT FOR FURTHER
DETAILS.

IN ADDITION...MANY RIVERS AND LOW AREAS IN NORTHEASTERN INDIANA
AND NORTHWESTERN OHIO WILL SEE FLOODING THROUGH TONIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

RECENT HEAVY RAINFALL WILL LIKELY RESULT IN FLOODING ACROSS THE
MAUMEE AND WABASH BASINS FOR THE LATEST RIVER LEVELS...MONITOR
LOCAL FLOOD WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SNOW SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RELAY THEIR SNOWFALL REPORTS TO
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX

INZ003-MIZ077-301945-
LA PORTE-BERRIEN-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...MICHIGAN CITY...LA PORTE...NILES...
BENTON HARBOR...ST. JOSEPH...BUCHANAN
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011 /138 PM CST TUE NOV 29 2011/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN INDIANA
AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

RAIN WILL LIKELY CHANGE OVER TO SNOW THIS AFTERNOON BEFORE
TAPERING OFF THIS EVENING. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE FORECAST
TO RANGE FROM A TRACE ALONG THE LAKESHORE TO BETWEEN 1 AND 4
INCHES ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN PORTIONS OF LA PORTE AND BERRIEN
COUNTIES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX

OHZ005-016-024-025-301945-
HENRY-PUTNAM-VAN WERT-ALLEN OH-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...NAPOLEON...OTTAWA...PANDORA...VAN WERT...
DELPHOS...LIMA
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST OHIO.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

RAIN WILL CHANGE OVER TO SNOW LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE
INTO TONIGHT. SNOWFALL AMOUNTS ARE FORECAST TO RANGE BETWEEN 1 AND
3 INCHES.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

RECENT HEAVY RAINFALL WILL RESULT IN RENEWED MINOR TO MODERATE
RIVER FLOODING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SNOW SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RELAY THEIR SNOWFALL REPORTS TO
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX

LMZ043-046-301945-
NEW BUFFALO MI TO ST JOSEPH MI-MICHIGAN CITY IN TO NEW BUFFALO MI-
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE NEARSHORE WATERS OF
SOUTHEASTERN LAKE MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

A GALE WARNING IS IN EFFECT TODAY THROUGH 10 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING.
GUSTS BETWEEN 35 AND 45 KNOT GALES CAN BE EXPECTED.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX

INZ004-005-012>014-020-MIZ078-079-301945-
ST. JOSEPH IN-ELKHART-STARKE-PULASKI-MARSHALL-WHITE-CASS MI-
ST. JOSEPH MI-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...SOUTH BEND...MISHAWAKA...ELKHART...
GOSHEN...KNOX...NORTH JUDSON...WINAMAC...FRANCESVILLE...PLYMOUTH...
BREMEN...MONTICELLO...BROOKSTON...DOWAGIAC...CASSOPOLIS...STURGIS...
THREE RIVERS
238 PM EST TUE NOV 29 2011 /138 PM CST TUE NOV 29 2011/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN INDIANA
AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT

RAIN WILL CHANGE TO SNOW BY LATE AFTERNOON. THE SNOW WILL BECOME
HEAVY AT TIMES THIS AFTERNOON INTO EARLY THIS EVENING. A WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR 3 TO 6 INCHES OF SNOW ACROSS THE
AREA. MONITOR THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER PRODUCT FOR FURTHER
DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

RECENT HEAVY RAINFALL WILL LIKELY RESULT IN MINOR TO MODERATE
RIVER FLOODING ALONG AREA RIVERS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SNOW SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RELAY THEIR SNOWFALL REPORTS TO
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX

In the hours before

Local storm report, Nov 29, 10:50 AM EST, 4 hours 10 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
1050 AM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0630 AM     FLOOD            1 WSW TEXAS             41.41N  83.97W
11/29/2011                   HENRY              OH   EMERGENCY MNGR

            ST RT 110 AND COUNTY ROAD 5A WATER OVER ROADWAY. CAR
            OVERTURNED AFTER DRIVING INTO THE WATER COVERED ROAD.

&&

LEWIS

Local storm report, Nov 29, 10:56 AM EST, 4 hours 4 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
1056 AM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1028 AM     FLOOD            2 NNW NAPOLEON          41.41N  84.13W
11/29/2011                   HENRY              OH   EMERGENCY MNGR

            WATER COVERED ROAD AT CO. RD. R AND ST. RT. 108. CREEK
            IS OUT OF BANKS.

&&

LEWIS

Local storm report, Nov 29, 11:33 AM EST, 3 hours 27 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
1133 AM EST TUE NOV 29 2011

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1120 AM     NON-TSTM WND DMG N DEFIANCE              41.28N  84.36W
11/29/2011                   DEFIANCE           OH   EMERGENCY MNGR

            TREE BLOWN DOWN IN DEFIANCE BLOCKING 4 LANES OF
            TRAFFIC.

&&

LEWIS

Local storm report, Nov 29, 12:23 PM EST, 2 hours 37 minutes before

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Local storm report, Nov 29, 12:28 PM EST, 2 hours 32 minutes before

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Local storm report, Nov 29, 2:52 PM EST, 8 minutes before

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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, St. Joseph

When: November 29, 3:00 PM EST to 11:00 PM EST
Where: St. Joseph forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 41.914, -85.528 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Rain changed over to heavy wet snow Tuesday afternoon and continued into the evening hours before ending. There was a tight snowfall gradient across the county, with total snow accumulation ranging from around an inch or two in the far northwest to as much as 8 inches in far eastern portions of St. Joseph county. A trained spotter 3 miles south of Colon reported 7.5 inches of total snow accumulation, with snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour at times. The heavy wet snow created localized power outages, along with hazardous driving conditions which resulted in accidents and slide-offs. There were also reports of school delays and cancellations the next morning, mainly across far eastern St. Joseph County.

Heavy Snow, Branch

When: November 29, 3:00 PM EST to November 30, 12:00 AM EST
Where: Branch forecast zone
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 41.916, -85.059 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Rain changed over to heavy wet snow Tuesday afternoon and continued into the evening hours before ending. Total snow accumulations ranged between 5 and 9 inches across the county. There was a public report of 8.0 inches of total snow accumulation at Sherwood with snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour at times. The heavy wet snow created localized power outages, along with hazardous driving conditions which resulted in accidents and slide-offs. There were also reports of school delays and cancellations the next morning.

Heavy Snow, Hillsdale

When: November 29, 3:00 PM EST to November 30, 1:00 AM EST
Where: Hillsdale forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 41.888, -84.593 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Rain changed over to heavy wet snow Tuesday afternoon and continued into the evening hours before ending. Total snow accumulations ranged between 6 and 9 inches across the county. A trained spotter reported 8.5 inches of total snow accumulation 9 miles east of Jonesville, with snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour at times. The heavy wet snow created localized power outages, along with hazardous driving conditions which resulted in accidents and slide-offs. There were also reports of school delays and cancellations the next morning.

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Michigan in 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Michigan, November 2011

Sources

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 350733, 350735, 350736.