A powerful winter storm pulled through a cold front and heavy snow and strong winds caused blizzard conditions at times throughout southeast Idaho. Some roads were closed in the Upper Snake and Caribou Highlands.
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 powerful winter storm pulled through a cold front and heavy snow and strong winds caused blizzard conditions at times throughout southeast Idaho. Some roads were closed in the Upper Snake and Caribou Highlands. The heavy snow and winds even reached the Snake River Plain and Eastern Magic Valley where 4 to 8 inches of snow fell with strong winds and below 1/4 mile visibility. Several mountain locations received over 10 inches of snowfall.
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 Feb 22, 1:56 PM MST, 4 hours 4 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 156 PM MST FRI FEB 22 2013 .SHORT TERM...A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM IS MOVING INTO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST THIS AFTERNOON. LIGHT SNOW ALREADY BEING OBSERVED IN EASTERN OREGON AND WASHINGTON...ALSO MCCALL AREA. OVERALL...MODELS SUGGEST A LITTLE SLOWER TIMING THIS EVENING...WILL LOOK FOR SNOW MOVING INTO THE EASTERN MAGIC VALLEY AND LOWER SNAKE PLAIN CLOSE TO 11 PM THIS EVENING. FORECAST TIMING WAS SLOWED TO REFLECT THIS WHICH LOOKS TO SHAVE A HALF INCH OR SO OFF THE SNOW TOTALS THROUGH SATURDAY AFTERNOON. TRIED TO BE CAREFUL IN THAT RESPECT...THE NAM IS PERHAPS A LITTLE LIGHTER ON SNOW ACCUMULATION WHILE THE GFS REMAINS WETTER. THERE IS AS MUCH AS 3 OR 4 INCHES DIFFERENCE IN MODELS IN SOME PARTS OF THE SNAKE PLAIN SO TRIED TO USE PERSISTENCE AND STAY THE COURSE WITH CURRENT WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES. TIMING OF SURFACE FRONT THROUGH POCATELLO AND IDAHO FALLS 5 TO 6 AM SATURDAY MORNING LOOKS GOOD. QUITE BREEZY WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH BETWEEN BURLEY AND POCATELLO...UP TO 50 MPH NEAR YALE ON INTERSTATE 84 AND FAVORED TERRAIN SPOTS IN CASSIA COUNTY LATE TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY AFTERNOON MAKING FOR BLOWING AND DRIFTING PROBLEMS. SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS LINGER OVER THE EASTERN HIGHLANDS IN NORTH TO NORTHWEST FLOW. SOME LOW STATUS IN THE SNAKE PLAIN WITH A FEW FLURRIES POSSIBLE. MODELS ARE A BIT QUICKER WITH TIMING OF THE DISTURBANCE ARRIVING MONDAY. POPS WERE INCREASED IN THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS...MONIDA PASS AND ISLAND PARK MONDAY MORNING. RS RS .LONG TERM...MONDAY EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY. AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL BEGIN TO MOVE INTO THE AREA MONDAY EVENING BRINGING BREEZIER CONDITIONS AS WELL AS A CHANCE OF SNOW FOR THE ENTIRE AREA. THE SYSTEM MOVES OUT QUICKLY ON TUESDAY SO QPF WILL GENERALLY BE ON THE LOWER SIDE. BEHIND IT...A COLDER NORTHWEST FLOW WILL SET UP WITH SHOWERS LINGERING IN THE HIGHLANDS. MODELS BEGIN TO DIVERGE WEDNESDAY AND BEYOND BUT KEPT A SMALL AMOUNT OF POPS IN HIGHER ELEVATIONS AS MINOR SYSTEMS PASS BY TO THE NORTH. BOTH THE GFS AND ECMWF INDICATING A RIDGING PATTERN SETTING UP AT THE END OF THE WEEK. TEMPERATURES WILL GRADUALLY WARM THROUGH THE WEEK. EP/JM && .AVIATION... ALL SITES CURRENTLY VFR. THIS EVENING CEILINGS ARE EXPECTED TO LOWER TO MVFR THEN SNOW SHOWERS OVERNIGHT. VIS MAY BE REDUCED TO IFR AT ALL SITES DURING THE NIGHT... ESPECIALLY KBYI AS BLOWING SNOW WILL BECOME A POSSIBILITY AS WELL. CONDITIONS EXPECTED TO IMPROVE TOMORROW MORNING. EP/JM && .PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 5 PM MST SATURDAY IDZ017-021. WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 5 PM MST SATURDAY IDZ019-022>025. WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 11 AM MST SATURDAY IDZ018-031. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID 351 AM MST FRI FEB 22 2013 IDZ017-020-021-032-231100- EASTERN MAGIC VALLEY-UPPER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN- LOWER SNAKE RIVER PLAIN-LOST RIVER/PAHSIMEROI- 351 AM MST FRI FEB 22 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN IDAHO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .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. IDZ018-019-022>025-031-231100- SAWTOOTH MOUNTAINS-UPPER SNAKE HIGHLANDS-SOUTH CENTRAL HIGHLANDS- CARIBOU HIGHLANDS-CACHE VALLEY/IDAHO PORTION- WASATCH MOUNTAINS/IDAHO PORTION-BIG AND LITTLE WOOD RIVER REGION- 351 AM MST FRI FEB 22 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN IDAHO. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA SATURDAY BRINGING GUSTY WINDS AND SNOW. CONDITIONS SHOULD IMPROVE BY SATURDAY EVENING. ANOTHER SYSTEM IS EXPECTED ON TUESDAY BRINGING MORE SNOW...BUT LIGHTER WINDS. .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.
5 winter storm, 1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy snow and winds created visibilities near zero causing US Route 26 to be closed from Ririe to Swan Valley. 9 inches of snow fell at Sheep Mountain with 14 inches at Wildhorse Divide.
Nine inches of snow fell at Dollarhide with 11 inches at Vienna Mine.
Blizzard conditions affected much of the region. 13 inches of snow fell in Ashton with 11 inches at Crab Creek and 15 inches at the White Elephant SNOTEL. Idaho route 32 was closed from Tetonia to Ashton due to reduced visibilities and blowing snow. At times snow fell at the rate of 2 inches per hour in Ashton.
Seventeen inches of snow fell at Howell Canyon. 50 to 70 mph wind gusts were common throughout the morning of the 23rd throughout the South Central Highlands.
Four to 6 inches of snow fell in Idaho Falls with 8 inches in Rexburg. Strong winds brought several minor accidents on roadways. Wind gusts up to 40 mph caused visibilities to drop to under 1/4 of a mile. The winds caused three cross-arms supporting power lines to break around 2:47 a.m. The break caused a power outage for 181 customers until 2:30 p.m.
Strong winds and heavy snow caused blizzard conditions with the visibility at the Pocatello regional airport 1/4 mile or less for 3 hours in the morning. 4 to 6 inch snowfall was common in Chubbuck and Pocatello during the day on the 23rd. Several minor traffic accidents were reported.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, February 2013
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: 437052, 437057, 437024, 437047, 437029, 437037.