After varying amounts of snowfall of up to 18 inches, freezing rain up to about one inch caused about a half million power outages, cancelled over 300 flights at SeaTac Airport and was responsible for one death.
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 SEW wrote it up.
After varying amounts of snowfall of up to 18 inches, freezing rain up to about one inch caused about a half million power outages, cancelled over 300 flights at SeaTac Airport and was responsible for one death.
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 Seattle, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 18, 8:30 PM PST, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
830 PM PST WED JAN 18 2012
.SYNOPSIS...LIGHT FREEZING RAIN OR SNOW WILL DIMINISH THIS EVENING.
ANOTHER WARM FRONT MOVING ACROSS NORTHERN OREGON WILL BRING MAINLY
RAIN TO THE SOUTH PART THURSDAY...WITH A CHANCE OF RAIN OR SNOW OVER
THE NORTH. A STRONGER WET AND WARMER FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL ARRIVE
FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT. THE ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN WILL CONTINUE
SATURDAY THROUGH MID NEXT WEEK.
&&
.SHORT TERM...FREEZING RAIN AND DRIZZLE HAVE BEEN REMARKABLY
PERSISTENT...THOUGH LIGHT...THIS EVENING. IN SOME PLACES THERE HAS
BEEN FREEZING PCPN SINCE AROUND NOON. RADAR SHOWS ECHOES SLOWLY
MOVING SOUTH. THE FORECAST CALLS FOR THE PCPN TO END BY 10 PM IN THE
SEATTLE AREA AND BY MIDNIGHT IN THE SOUTHWEST. THIS COULD BE A TAD
OPTIMISTIC FOR THE SOUTHWEST AND NEXT SHIFT WILL HAVE TO EVALUATE
THE SITUATION.
MAIN IMPACT OF THIS FREEZING RAIN AND THE SNOW BEFORE IT WILL BE ON
ROADS. OVERNIGHT LOWS WILL BE BELOW FREEZING EVERYWHERE. ANY MELTED
SNOW WILL LIKELY RE-FREEZE ON UNSALTED ROADS. THE FREEZING RAIN WILL
CERTAINLY NOT HELP MATTERS. EXPECT THE MORNING COMMUTE TO BE DICEY.
HIGHS THURSDAY WILL NOT BE MUCH ABOVE FREEZING THROUGH THE SEATTLE
METRO AREA. HOWEVER A WARMING TREND WILL BEGIN THURSDAY NIGHT WITH
TEMPERATURES REMAINING STEADY OR EVEN RISING THROUGH THE NIGHT. THE
REAL MELTING SHOULD OCCUR ON FRIDAY WITH RAIN AND HIGHS IN THE 40S.
THE STRONG SURFACE RIDGE OVER THE INTERIOR OF BRITISH COLUMBIA WILL
KEEP FRASER RIVER OUTFLOW GOING OVER WHATCOM COUNTY. A WIND ADVISORY
REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH TONIGHT FOR WESTERN WHATCOM COUNTY AND THE
SAN JUANS...AS WELL AS A GALE WARNING OVER THE NORTHERN INLAND
WATERS. BURKE
PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...THE NEXT WARM FRONT ON THURSDAY WILL CROSS
OREGON AS EXPECTED...BUT IT WILL BE CLOSE ENOUGH TO BRING
PRECIPITATION TO THE SOUTH PART OF WESTERN WA. FORECAST POPS WILL
SHOW A SHARP GRADIENT FROM CHANCE POPS OVER CENTRAL PUGET SOUND TO
NEAR 100 PERCENT OVER LEWIS COUNTY. THIS PRECIP WILL BE LIGHT AND
MUCH OF IT OVER THE SOUTH INTERIOR WILL FALL AS RAIN. NORTH WINDS
ACROSS THE AREA WILL MAINTAIN A LOW LEVEL WEDGE OF COOLER AIR OVER
PUGET SOUND...SO THERE IS A CHANCE OF LIGHT SNOW...AS WELL AS SOME
LIGHT RAIN OR FREEZING RAIN MIXED IN. THURSDAYS WARM FRONT WILL MOVE
EAST BY EVENING...BUT ANOTHER WEAK FRONT COMING IN FROM THE W WILL
REACH THE AREA THURSDAY NIGHT. EASTERLY OFFSHORE FLOW WILL INCREASE
THURSDAY NIGHT AS THE FRONT APPROACHES...MAINTAINING THE FEED OF
COLD AIR FROM THE FRASER VALLEY. THIS WILL BE ENOUGH TO KEEP A
RAIN-SNOW MIX OVER THE NORTH INTERIOR AND THE PUGET SOUND REGION
OVERNIGHT. PRECIP AMOUNTS WILL REMAIN LIGHT.
A WARMER FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL ARRIVE FRIDAY FOLLOWED CLOSELY BY AN
UPPER LEVEL TROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT AND A THIRD TROUGH SATURDAY. THERE
WILL BE ENOUGH WARMING SO THAT RAIN WILL FALL EVERYWHERE OVER THE
LOWLANDS. THIS SYSTEM WILL CREATE SOME LOWLAND URBAN AND SMALL
STREAM FLOODING PROBLEMS AS FRONTAL RAIN FALLS ON THE SLOWLY MELTING
SNOW PACK OVER THE LOWLANDS. AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD
ADVISORY MAY BE ISSUED AS FRIDAY APPROACHES. HEAVY SNOW OVER
THE MOUNTAINS FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY MAY REQUIRE A WINTER STORM
WARNING FOR THE CASCADES. MODELS ARE IN OVERALL AGREEMENT WITH THIS
SERIES OF SYSTEMS THROUGH SATURDAY...BUT THERE WILL STILL BE
UNCERTAINTY REGARDING WHERE THE RAIN SNOW LINE ENDS UP EACH PERIOD
AND THE TIMING OF EACH FEATURE. KAM
.LONG TERM...PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...UNLESS TIMING CHANGES...THERE MAY
BE A SHORT LULL BETWEEN SYSTEMS SATURDAY NIGHT...BUT STRONG WEST
FLOW ALOFT DEVELOPING OVER THE NE PACIFIC WILL SEND ANOTHER WARM WET
SYSTEM ACROSS THE AREA SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY. SNOW LEVELS WILL
RETURN TO CLOSER TO NORMAL WITH THIS SYSTEM...LOW ENOUGH TO BRING
SNOW TO THE PASSES...BUT KEEP PRECIP AS RAIN OVER THE LOWLANDS. BOTH
GFS/ECMWF HAVE A STRONGER AND MUCH WARMER SYSTEM ARRIVING TUESDAY
AND WEDNESDAY. SNOW LEVELS WILL LIKELY RISE TO ABOVE 5000 FEET WITH
THIS SYSTEM...AND STRONG W TO SW LOW LEVEL WINDS COULD BRING HEAVY
RAIN TO THE MOUNTAINS. THIS SYSTEM BEARS WATCHING...BUT THERE IS
AMPLE TIME FOR THE MODELS TO CHANGE SOLUTIONS SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE
NEARLY NEXT WEEK. KAM
&&
.HYDROLOGY...MINOR URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOODING IS POSSIBLE
FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT AS THE SNOW MELTS AND A FRONTAL SYSTEM
BRINGS RAIN TO THE AREA. THERE COULD BE HEAVY ENOUGH RAIN FRIDAY
NIGHT...SO THAT COMBINED WITH LOWLAND SNOW MELT...SOME RIVER
FLOODING COULD OCCUR IN LOW ELEVATION RIVER BASINS OVER THE SOUTHERN
PART OF THE AREA. THE SERIES OF WARMER AND WET WEATHER SYSTEMS
WILL CONTINUE INTO MID NEXT WEEK...WITH AN INCREASING CHANCE OF
FLOODING AS EACH SYSTEM ADDS MORE RAIN TO THE RIVERS. COMPUTER
MODELS SHOW A PARTICULARLY MOIST AND STRONG SYSTEM AFFECTING THE
AREA TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. A FLOOD POTENTIAL OUTLOOK HAS BEEN
ISSUED WITH MORE SPECIFICS. KAM
&&
.AVIATION...STRONG WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT WILL CONTINUE TONIGHT AND
THURSDAY. AT THE SURFACE MODERATE NORTHEAST FLOW WILL CONTINUE...AS
HIGH PRESSURE REMAINS OVER BRITISH COLUMBIA AND A SURFACE LOW MOVES
INLAND ACROSS OREGON ON THURSDAY. STRONG NORTHEAST WINDS NEAR KBLI
FROM FRASER CANYON OUTFLOW WILL MODERATE SOMEWHAT TONIGHT. THE AIR
MASS IS MOIST AND STABLE.
THE FRONTAL SYSTEM THAT BROUGHT SNOWFALL HAS MOVED EAST OF THE
CASCADES...BUT WE STILL HAVE A MOIST AIR MASS WITH AREAS OF LIGHT
PRECIPITATION...MOSTLY FALLING AS FREEZING RAIN. THIS SHOULD END
WITHIN THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS. IFR CONDITIONS ARE WIDESPREAD FROM
THE PUGET SOUND AREA SOUTHWARD...WITH VISIBILITY MOSTLY 1-3SM AND
CEILINGS MOSTLY 300-1000 FT. MVFR CONDITIONS PREVAIL NORTH OF
EVERETT. PERSISTENCE IS PROBABLY A FAIRLY GOOD FORECAST THROUGH
THURSDAY MORNING...WITH IMPROVEMENT EXPECTED THURSDAY AFTERNOON.
KSEA...NORTHERLY WIND 6-10 KT. IFR CONDITIONS SHOULD CONTINUE
TONIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING...WITH IMPROVEMENT AFTER 18Z THURSDAY.
LIGHT FREEZING RAIN SHOULD END BY 06Z TONIGHT. THERE IS A GOOD
CHANCE KSEA WILL REMAIN DRY AS THE NEXT SYSTEM MOVES THROUGH OREGON
ON THURSDAY...WITH PRECIPITATION REMAINING JUST TO THE SOUTH. AT
WORST THERE WILL BE AROUND 0.10 INCH OF PRECIPITATION....WHICH COULD
FALL AS AN INCH OF SNOW AT MOST OR AS LIGHT FREEZING OR RAIN.
&&
.MARINE...NORTHEAST FLOW ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA WILL GRADUALLY
EASE TONIGHT AS THE SURFACE HIGH OVER BRITISH COLUMBIA WEAKENS
SLIGHTLY. THE 997 MB SURFACE LOW OF THE NEXT FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL
MOVE ACROSS THE OREGON COASTAL WATERS THURSDAY MORNING AND THEN
INLAND...MAINTAINING LIGHTER NORTHERLY FLOW.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT TONIGHT FOR MOST OF THE
MARINE ZONES...WITH A GALE WARNING IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTHERN INLAND
WATERS AS FRASER RIVER OUTFLOW GRADUALLY EASES.
A VIGOROUS FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL SWITCH THE FLOW TO SOUTHERLY AS IT
MOVES THROUGH THE AREA FRIDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. THIS FEATURE WILL
LIKELY BRING GALES TO MOST OF THE MARINE FORECAST ZONES. WE ALSO
EXPECT WESTERLY SWELLS OF 20 TO 23 FT TO MOVE INTO THE COASTAL
WATERS THIS WEEKEND. THE PATTERN WILL REMAIN ACTIVE WITH ANOTHER
FRONTAL SYSTEM MOVING THROUGH LATE SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY. MCDONNAL
&&
.AVALANCHE...VERY HEAVY SNOWFALL RECEIVED IN THE NORTH-CENTRAL WA
CASCADES SOUTHWARD PAST 36 HOURS WITH AMOUNTS RANGING FROM AROUND 18
TO OVER 36 INCHES. COMBINED WITH PERIODICALLY STRONG WINDS AND SLOW
WARMING THIS HAS OVERLOADED FRAGILE SNOW LAYERS WEAKLY ATTACHED TO
OLD CRUSTS AND PRODUCED WIDESPREAD AND SENSITIVE AVALANCHE ACTIVITY.
SINCE LAST SATURDAY...MOST MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS IN THE SOUTHERN AND
CENTRAL WA CASCADES HAVE RECEIVED FROM AROUND 30 TO OVER 50 INCHES
OF SNOW...WITH THE MT HOOD AREA TOTALING OVER 60 INCHES.
WITH SLOW WARMING...FURTHER WINDS AND ADDITIONAL MODERATE TO HEAVY
SNOW....OR RAIN...RECEIVED WEDNESDAY...AVALANCHE ACTIVITY HAS BECOME
MORE WIDESPREAD AND SEVERE LATER WEDNESDAY MORNING AND EARLY
AFTERNOON FROM THE CENTRAL WA CASCADES SOUTHWARD. THOUGH TRUE BC
OBSERVATIONS OF AVALANCHE ACTIVITY HAVE BEEN LIMITED DUE TO POOR
VISIBILITY AND OBSERVER SAFETY...INFORMATION THAT HAS BEEN RECEIVED
INDICATES VERY SENSITIVE AND SLOWLY THICKENING SLABS ARE EITHER
RELEASING NATURALLY OR BEING EASILY TRIGGERED BY SKI OR SNOWCAT. DUE
TO VERY DANGEROUS CONDITIONS GETTING WORSE...BACK COUNTRY TRAVEL
SHOULD BE AVOIDED WEDNESDAY. DECREASING SHOWERS AND SOME COOLING IN
MOST LOCATIONS IN WA OVERNIGHT SHOULD HELP EASE THE DANGER BY EARLY
THURSDAY. HOWEVER...ONLY A BRIEF PRECIPITATION DECREASE IN OREGON
SHOULD KEEP AVALANCHE WARNING GOING THERE ON THURSDAY FOR CONTINUED
HIGH DANGER. SEE NWAC.US FOR MORE INFO. MOORE
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY GREATER PUGET SOUND REGION AND THE
SOUTHWEST INTERIOR THROUGH MIDNIGHT.
WIND ADVISORY WESTERN WHATCOM COUNTY AND THE SAN JUAN ISLANDS
THROUGH TONIGHT.
PZ...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY COASTAL WATERS...WEST ENTRANCE STRAIT...
CENTRAL STRAIT THROUGH 4 AM THU.
GALE WARNING NORTH INLAND WATERS THROUGH 4 AM THU.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY ADMIRALTY INLET AND PUGET SOUND THROUGH
MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY EAST ENTRANCE THROUGH 4 AM THU.
YOU CAN SEE AN ILLUSTRATED VERSION OF THE FORECAST DISCUSSION AT
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE/GAFD/LATEST_WEBAFD.HTMLPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
608 PM PST WED JAN 18 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0607 PM FREEZING RAIN 5 NE BALLARD 47.74N 122.32W
01/18/2012 M0.13 INCH KING WA TRAINED SPOTTER
MEASURED ONE EIGHTH OF AN INCH.
&&
GRUBPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
615 PM PST WED JAN 18 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0614 PM FREEZING RAIN 2 NNE PUYALLUP 47.21N 122.26W
01/18/2012 M0.10 INCH PIERCE WA TRAINED SPOTTER
ONE TENTH OF AN INCH OF LIGHT FREEZING RAIN.
&&
GRUBPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
740 PM PST WED JAN 18 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0546 PM BLIZZARD 5 WNW KENT 47.43N 122.33W
01/18/2012 KING WA TRAINED SPOTTER
0546 PM FREEZING RAIN ISSAQUAH 47.53N 122.04W
01/18/2012 E0.25 INCH KING WA TRAINED SPOTTER
FREEZING RAIN FOR THE LAST HOUR IN ISSAQUAH. ICE
ACCRETION ON BRANCHES NEAR 1/4 OF AN INCH THICK. SOME
TREE BRANCHES ARE BEGINNING TO SNAP DUE TO THE WEIGHT OF
ICE AND SNOW.
&&
DDAMICOPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
1017 PM PST WED JAN 18 2012
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0900 PM HEAVY SNOW CHEHALIS 46.66N 122.96W
01/18/2012 M16.0 INCH LEWIS WA TRAINED SPOTTER
STORM TOTAL 16 INCHES SOMEWHERE IN CHEHALIS
0950 PM FREEZING RAIN 2 SE NORTH BEND 47.48N 121.76W
01/18/2012 M0.30 INCH KING WA TRAINED SPOTTER
.3 INCHES OF NEW ICE IN LAST 6 HOURS. UNKNOWN IF PRECIP
ENDED OR NOT.
&&
JNEHER6 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Two buildings in the GH county fairgrounds, and a school gym, collapsed from the ice and snow. Power infrastructure was also damaged.
About 310 flights were cancelled at SeaTac Airport due to the ice storm. The storm cost Alaska airlines about 3.5 million dollars alone. An elderly man was killed by a falling tree as he was backing his all-terrain vehicle out of a backyard shelter near Issaquah. Power infrastructure was also damaged.
Falling trees due to ice caused damage at Wolf Haven Int. in Tenino and a large greenhouse south of Olympia. Power infrastructure was also damaged.
Downed trees and damaged exhibits and fences totaled about 200,000 at Northwest Trek in Eatonville. A WSDOT employee was injured by an ice coated tree limb, and another was injured in an icy crash on I-405. Power infrastructure was also damaged.
Broken tree limbs at Lake Spanaway golf course caused about 4000 in damage. Power infrastructure was also damaged.
Trained spotter 4 miles northeast of Shelton reported 0.50 inch ice accretion.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ice Storm, East Puget Sound Lowlands | 2012-01-19 | 61 | Male | Under Tree | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, January 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: 363534, 361914, 361915, 361916, 361917, 364986.