A Pacific storm system brought heavy snow to southeasd Idaho's mountains. 10 to 40 inches of snow fell over a two day period in many locations.
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 PIH wrote it up.
A Pacific storm system brought heavy snow to southeasd Idaho's mountains. 10 to 40 inches of snow fell over a two day period in many locations.
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 Pocatello, ID wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 15, 1:08 PM MST, 4 hours 52 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 208 PM MDT THU MAR 15 2012 .SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY. EXPECT WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THE PERIOD. LOOK FOR THE FIRST PUSH OF MOISTURE MOVING THROUGH THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON INTO TOMORROW. CURRENT RADAR IMAGERY SHOWS LIGHT SHOWERS MOVING INTO THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS. EXPECT THESE SHOWERS TO INTENSIFY THROUGH THE EVENING INTO TOMORROW WITH THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS GETTING 6 TO 12 INCHES OF SNOW ABOVE 6500FT. HAVE CONTINUED THE WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS FOR TONIGHT THROUGH TOMORROW. ANOTHER PULSE OF PRECIPITATION WILL OCCUR SATURDAY AND ANOTHER ON SUNDAY. EXPECT A TOTAL OF UP TO 30 INCHES OF SNOW THROUGH SUNDAY ABOVE 6500 FT FOR THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS. EXPECT 4 TO 10 INCHES ABOVE 6500 FT ACROSS THE REST OF THE AREA. EXPECT 1 TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN BELOW 6500 FT THROUGH THE PERIOD ACROSS THE AREA. RAIN ON SNOW PACK WILL INTENSIFY SNOW MELT CAUSING PONDING OF WATER IN LOW LYING AREAS AND CAUSING RISES IN STREAMS AND RIVERS. PLEASE SEE THE HYDROLOGY SECTION FOR CURRENT WATCHES AND WARNINGS. EXPECT ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES THROUGH THE PERIOD. WYATT .LONG TERM...SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY. DUE TO EXTENSIVE FOCUS ON THE WEEKEND STORM...NO CHANGES WERE MADE BEYOND MONDAY. IT STILL APPEARS THAT WE WILL START OUT NEXT WEEK COOLER WITH SOME RAIN AND SNOW ESPECIALLY OVER THE MOUNTAINS. THERE APPEARS TO BE SOME CONSENSUS ON WARMER WEATHER AND SOMEWHAT DRIER POSSIBLY TOWARD THE MIDDLE AND END OF NEXT WEEK. ANOTHER LARGE SYSTEM DEVELOPS OFFSHORE AND HELPS BUILD A RIDGE ACROSS OUR AREA. THIS WOULD SERVE EVENTUALLY WARM TEMPERATURES DUE TO SOUTH/SOUTHWEST FLOW. THE CURRENT FORECAST STILL HAS A LOW CHANCE OF RAIN OR SNOW ESPECIALLY IN THE MOUNTAINS...BUT WITH THE CURRENT TRENDS SHOWING UP...THAT WOULD EVEN NEED TO BE LOWERED. THE PREVIOUS FORECAST DOES SHOW SOME WARMING INTO THE 40S AND 50S BY A WEEK FROM NOW...BUT THAT LIKELY NEEDS TO BE RAISED. KEYES && .AVIATION...RAIN AND SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TOMORROW...WITH AN INCREASE AREA WIDE LATER TONIGHT. WE ARE EXPECTING RAIN AT ALL TAF SITES INCLUDING KSUN DUE TO THE VERY WARM AIR IN PLACE ACROSS THE AREA. KSUN IS ALREADY AT MVFR AND SHOULD STAY MVFR/HIGH END IFR THROUGH THE EVENING. LATER TONIGHT...MAINLY AT OR AFTER MIDNIGHT THROUGH NOON TOMORROW...KSUN IS FORECAST TO DROP NEAR BELOW MINIMUMS DUE TO LOW CEILING AND LOW VISIBILITY EVEN WITH RAIN VERSUS SNOW. IT APPEARS THERE SHOULD BE SLIGHT IMPROVEMENT IN THE AFTERNOON. KBYI/KPIH/KIDA WILL SEE MVFR/HIGH END IFR WEATHER BEGIN AFTER MIDNIGHT AND CONTINUE THROUGH EARLY AFTERNOON. KEYES && .HYDROLOGY...WITH MODERATE TO HEAVY PRECIPITATION EXPECTED OVER THE AREA EVERY 12 HOUR PERIOD THROUGH SUN AFTERNOON...HAVE EXTENDED FLOOD WATCH TO COVER THAT PERIOD...BUT KEPT THE STAGGERED START AND END TIMES AND THE CURRENT FLOOD WATCH CONFIGURATION. LATEST NWRFC FORECAST INDICATES THAT TETON RIVER NEAR ST ANTHONY AND HENRYS FORK AT REXBURG ARE MOST AT-RISK MAINSTEM RIVERS FOR FLOODING. BOTH EVENTUALLY EXPECTED TO REACH ACTION STAGE. PORTNEUF AT POCATELLO ALSO REACHING ACTION STAGE THIS WEEKEND. BUT NONE ARE EXPECTED TO REACH FLOOD STAGE UNTIL WELL AFTER THE WEEKEND. WILL CONTINUE FLOOD WARNING FOR FREMONT COUNTY BASED ON CONTINUED DAMAGE TO ROADS AND RAILWAYS. ALSO US HIGHWAY 20 NOW THREATENED. MESSICK && .PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... FLOOD WATCH FROM 6 PM MDT THIS EVENING THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON IDZ017-020-031-032. FLOOD WATCH FROM FRIDAY MORNING THROUGH LATE SUNDAY NIGHT IDZ019-022>025. WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 PM MDT FRIDAY IDZ018-031. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 146 PM MDT THU MAR 15 2012 IDZ017>025-031-032-162000- EASTERN MAGIC VALLEY-SAWTOOTH MOUNTAINS-UPPER SNAKE HIGHLANDS- UPPER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN-LOWER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN- SOUTH CENTRAL HIGHLANDS-CARIBOU HIGHLANDS- CACHE VALLEY/IDAHO PORTION-WASATCH MOUNTAINS/IDAHO PORTION- BIG AND LITTLE WOOD RIVER REGION-LOST RIVER/PAHSIMEROI- 146 PM MDT THU MAR 15 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN IDAHO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT LOCALIZED FLOODING IS CONTINUING WITHIN FREMONT COUNTY AND AN AREAL FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES IN THAT REGION TODAY DUE TO CONTINUED LOW ELEVATION SNOW MELT AND RAINFALL. A WINTER STORM WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 6500 FEET FOR THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS WHERE ANOTHER 10 TO 15 INCHES OF SNOW IS EXPECTED TONIGHT AND CONTINUING INTO FRIDAY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY PERIODS OF MOUNTAIN SNOW AND VALLEY RAIN WILL CONTINUE THROUGHOUT MUCH OF THE PERIOD. A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS IS IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY. HEIGHTENED AREAL FLOOD POTENTIAL IS ANTICIPATED FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AS THE MOIST PACIFIC STORM TRACK CONTINUES ACROSS THE REGION. AN AREAL FLOOD WATCH HAS BEEN EXTENDED FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST IDAHO STARTING AS EARLY TONIGHT AND CONTINUING THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WE ASK TRAINED SPOTTERS AND CITIZENS TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS WHEN IT IS SAFE TO DO SO. THESE CONDITIONS MAY INCLUDE HAIL...TORNADOES...STRONG WIND...DUST STORMS...SNOWFALL... EXTREME COLD TEMPERATURES...FREEZING RAIN OR HEAVY RAIN...DENSE FOG...AND FLOODING OR ICE JAMS. INFORMATION ABOUT THESE HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS SHOULD BE CALLED INTO YOUR NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN POCATELLO USING THE 1-800 SEVERE WEATHER HOTLINE...OR 208-233-0834.
4 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Nine inches of snow fell at Banner Summit. 16 inches fell at Bear Canyon with 34 inches at Stickney Mill and 26 inches at Smiley Mountain.
Ten inches fell at White Elephant and 11 inches at Black Bear SNOTEL.
Sixteen inches of snow fell at Vienna Mine. Other significant totals were: Swede Peak 10 inches, Hyndman 9 inches, Lost Wood Divide 16 inches, Galena Summit 12 inches, Galena 11 inches, and Dollarhide Summit 14 inches.
Nine inches of snow fell at Medow Lake SNOTEL with 17 inches at Hilts Creek.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, March 2012
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: 371104, 371105, 371106, 371107.