A winter storm dumped heavy snow across Humboldt county, Northern Elko county, and Northern Lander and Northern Eureka counties. Many valley received 5 to 10 inches of snow, with 7 to 14 inches reported by many SNOTEL sites in the mountains.
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.
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 LKN wrote it up.
A winter storm dumped heavy snow across Humboldt county, Northern Elko county, and Northern Lander and Northern Eureka counties. Many valley received 5 to 10 inches of snow, with 7 to 14 inches reported by many SNOTEL sites in the mountains.
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 Elko, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 6, 7:07 PM PST, 53 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 707 PM PST FRI DEC 6 2013 .SYNOPSIS...A STRONG AND COLD STORM SYSTEM WILL IMPACT NEVADA TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY. SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED...ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHERN NEVADA. IN THE WAKE OF THIS STORM...BREEZY CONDITIONS MAY CREATE LOCAL AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. VERY COLD...SUB ZERO TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED FOR MANY VALLEYS SUNDAY AND MONDAY MORNING. && .AVIATION UPDATE...ADDED TEMPO GROUPS FOR HEAVY SNOW TO THE KWMC/KEKO TAFS, FOR THE 06-11Z SAT TIME FRAME. INTENSE DYNAMICS WILL QUICKLY SPREAD INTO NORTHERN NEVADA, WITH HEAVY SNOW BANDS AFFECTING BOTH TERMINALS TONIGHT. HIGH FORECASTER CONFIDENCE THAT BOTH AIRPORTS WILL REACH CATEGORY A LANDING MINIMUMS, CONTINUING THROUGH 18Z SAT. AFTER 18Z SAT, SNOW INTENSITY WILL DIMINISH AT KEKO/KWMC, BUT NW WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 10-20 MPH CREATING AREAS OF BLSN AND LIMITED VIS. IFR CIGS/VIS TO CONTINUE WELL INTO SATURDAY. RUNWAY PLOWING OPERATIONS WILL BE NEEDED AT BOTH KWMC/KEKO TERMINALS. TURNER && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED AT 352 PM / SYNOPSIS...STRONG AND COLD STORM SYSTEM TO IMPACT NEVADA TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY. SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE LIKELY...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE NORTHERNMOST NEVADA. IN THE WAKE OF THIS STORM...BREEZY CONDITIONS MAY CREATE LOCAL AREAS OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW SATURDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. VERY COLD...SUB ZERO TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED FOR MANY VALLEYS SUNDAY AND MONDAY MORNING. SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY. STRONG AND VERY COLD STORM SYSTEM ON THE WAY FOR NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NEVADA. BEHIND THE STORM SYSTEM...VERY COLD MORNING LOWS...WITH -10S TO -20S POSSIBLE IN THE MOST SHELTERED VALLEYS SUNDAY MORNING...ESPECIALLY MONDAY MORNING. THERE IS A CHANCE CLOUDS COULD BE STUBBORN TO CLEAR...WHICH WOULD HELP MODERATE SOME LOCATIONS. LATER SHIFTS WILL NEED TO KEEP AN EYE ON THAT. A SLIGHT WARMING TREND WILL RESULT AFTERWARD...WITH AFTERNOON HIGHS REBOUNDING INTO THE MID 20S BY THE END OF THE SHORT TERM. THIS EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING...STRONG STORM SYSTEM QUICKLY SLIDING SOUTH ALONG THE WEST COAST. LIGHTNING HAS BEEN OBSERVED OVER THE PAC OCEAN AND WIDESPREAD MOD TO HVY SNOW ALREADY BEING REPORTED IN MANY LOCATIONS IN WASHINGTON STATE AND OREGON. THIS AREA OF ACTIVITY WILL CONTINUE TO SLIDE SOUTH. AS 500MB HEIGHTS CONTINUE TO FALL...DIVERGENCE AND WAA/ISENTROPIC LIFT WILL BECOME QUITE STRONG ACROSS THE CWA. THIS WILL HELP TO RAPIDLY DEVELOP BANDS OF SNOW LATE THIS EVENING. BROAD MODERATE TO STRONG QG FORCING WILL ALSO AID IN SNOWFALL. THESE BANDS WILL MOVE INTO HUMBOLDT COUNTY FIRST...AND BE IN ELKO/SPRING CREEK AROUND MIDNIGHT. THE SNOW WILL BE IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS FOR EUREKA...AUSTIN...AND ELY. THIS IS QUITE A DYNAMIC SYSTEM...THINKING THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME 0.5 INCH TO 1.5 INCH PER HR SNOW RATES ARE POSSIBLE IN HEAVIER BANDS ALONG THE HUMBOLDT RIVER BASIN AND THE I-80 CORRIDOR. ALSO...GIVEN THE VERY HIGH SNOW RATIOS OF 20:1 TO 25:1...THERE WILL BE NO PROBLEM SEEING SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 4-8 INCHES IN MOST NORTHERN NV VALLEYS. CENTRAL NEVADA REMAINS UNDER AN ADVISORY...WITH GENERALLY 2-6 INCHES OF SNOW. BETTER DYNAMICS WILL BE ACROSS THE NORTH. SATURDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING...SNOW WILL BE TAPERING OFF IN NW PART OF CWA...WITH A DOWNWARD TREND IN THE LOWER/UPPER HUMBOLDT RIVER VALLEY. THIS IS WHEN SPRING CREEK AND LAMOILLE COULD SEE SOME ADDITIONAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS...LATER IN THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. WINDS WILL SWITCH AROUND TO THE NW...FAVORING NW SLOPE AREAS. WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE SOME 10 INCH TOTALS IN FAVORED AREAS LIKE LAMOILLE...GIVEN THE HIGH SNOW RATIOS. ANOTHER CONCERN WILL BE GUSTY WINDS IN THE WAKE OF THE STORM SYSTEM/PASSAGE OF BOUNDARY. GUSTY WINDS OF 25 MPH WILL BE MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR BLOWING/DRIFTING SNOW. DRIVING COULD BECOME QUITE HAZARDOUS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. STRONG SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL DEVELOP...WITH AROUND AN 11MB PRESSURE CHANGE OVER 6HRS ACROSS CWA. THIS SHOULD BOLSTER WINDS...AND LATER SHIFTS WILL HAVE TO CONSIDER WORDING/HEADLINES/SPS FOR GUSTY WINDS CREATING HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY...IF THERE ARE ANY SNOW SHOWERS...THEY WILL BE FOCUSED ON FAVORED NW SLOPES...WITH LITTLE ADDITIONAL SNOWFALL IN THE VALLEYS EXPECTED. MONDAY MORNING WILL BE VERY COLD...LATEST MEX GUIDANCE FORECAST -18 FOR KEKO. ALTHOUGH NOT A RECORD...THANKS TO THE 1972 ARCTIC OUTBREAK...THIS IS DANGEROUSLY COLD. AGAIN EXPECTING DANGEROUS WIND CHILLS...ESPECIALLY OVER WHITE PINE COUNTY. LATER SHIFTS MAY NEED TO CONSIDER WIND CHILL ADV/WARNINGS. RECORDS AT OTHER CLIMATE SITES WILL BE THREATENED DURING THESE VERY COLD TEMPS. THE LAST CONCERN WILL BE PATCHY AREAS OF FRZ FOG SUNDAY/MONDAY/TUESDAY MORNING...BUT THAT WILL DEPEND ON RESIDUAL MOISTURE AND SKY COVER. LONG TERM...MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. UPPER RIDGE OFF THE WEST COAST WILL PUT NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NV UNDER A DRY NWLY FLOW ALOFT AT LEAST THROUGH WEDNESDAY THEN MODELS DIVERGE WITH REGARDS TO SHORT WAVE APPROACHING THE COAST ON THURSDAY. THE GFS BRINGS THIS SHORT WAVE ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA LATE THURSDAY AND EARLY FRIDAY SPREADING SNOW ACROSS THE AREA WHILE THE ECMWF SPLITS THE WAVE DIGGING MOST OF THE ENERGY SOUTH ALONG THE CA COAST WITH THE NRN PIECE OF ENERGY MOVING THROUGH THE PAC NW AND BRUSHING NORTHERN NV FRIDAY FOR A FEW SNOW SHOWERS. THE DETERMINISTIC ECMWF DIGS THIS SHORT WAVE FURTHER SOUTH THEN THE ENSEMBLE MEAN WHICH IS MORE PROGRESSIVE AND IN LINE WITH THE GFS. HOWEVER THE DETERMINISTIC ECMWF HAS SUPPORT FROM SOME OF ITS ENSEMBLE MEMBERS AND EVEN A FEW OF THE GFS ENSEMBLE MEMBERS SO CANT DISCOUNT IT COMPLETELY. THEREFORE DID A COMPROMISE BETWEEN THE ALMOST DRY ECMWF AND THE MUCH WETTER GFS WITH 15-30 POPS FAVORING THE NORTH. VERY COLD TEMPS WILL BEGIN THE PERIOD WITH LOWS CONTINUING TO DROP BELOW ZERO AND HIGHS ONLY IN THE UPPER TEENS TO MID 20S. TEMPS WILL MODERATE THROUGH THE PERIOD BUT HOW FAST DEPENDS ON WHICH MODEL SOLUTION VERIFIES WITH THE GFS WARMING TEMPS UP FASTER DUE TO MORE CLOUDS AND MIXING AHEAD OF NEXT SYSTEM. AVIATION...STORM SYSTEM WILL SPREAD SNOW ACROSS NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NV TONIGHT AND SATURDAY. SNOW WILL BEGIN A KWMC AROUND 03Z THEN SPREAD EWD TO KEKO AROUND 06Z AND INTO THE KTPH/KELY TERMINALS AROUND 12Z. WIDESPREAD IFR CONDITIONS WILL ACCOMPANY THIS STORM. NORTHERN NV VALLEYS ARE EXPECTED TO RECEIVE 4-8 INCHES OF SNOW BY LATE SATURDAY WITH CENTRAL NV IN THE 2-6 INCH RANGE. && .LKN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO MIDNIGHT PST SATURDAY NIGHT FOR NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY...NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY...RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE...SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY...SOUTHWESTERN ELKO COUNTY. WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 4 PM PST SATURDAY FOR HUMBOLDT COUNTY. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 2 AM SATURDAY TO MIDNIGHT PST SATURDAY NIGHT FOR NORTHEASTERN NYE COUNTY...SOUTHEASTERN ELKO COUNTY...WHITE PINE COUNTY. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO MIDNIGHT PST SATURDAY NIGHT FOR NORTHWESTERN NYE COUNTY...SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY. && 99/99
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 333 AM PST FRI DEC 6 2013 NVZ030-031-033>041-071300- HUMBOLDT COUNTY-NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY-SOUTHEASTERN ELKO COUNTY- RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE-WHITE PINE COUNTY- NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- SOUTHWESTERN ELKO COUNTY-SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY- NORTHWESTERN NYE COUNTY-NORTHEASTERN NYE COUNTY- 333 AM PST FRI DEC 6 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL NEVADA...NORTH CENTRAL NEVADA...NORTHEAST NEVADA...NORTHWEST NEVADA AND SOUTH CENTRAL NEVADA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. A WINTER STORM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN BEGINNING TODAY. WIDESPREAD SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED FOR NORTHERN AND WESTERN NEVADA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. A WINTER STORM WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN SATURDAY. WIDESPREAD SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED ACROSS ALL OF NORTHERN AND CENTRAL NEVADA WITH EXCEPTION OF HUMBOLDT COUNTY WHERE SNOW SHOWERS WILL BE TAPERING OFF. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT THROUGH EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. EXTREMELY COLD TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING. WIDESPREAD TEMPERATURES BELOW-ZERO CAN BE EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO REPORT WEATHER PHENOMENA ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE. LW
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
A winter storm brought heavy snow to much of Humboldt county. In Winnemucca 8 to 11 inches of snow was reported, while 8 to 14 inches was reported by many SNOTEL sites.
A winter storm brought heavy snow to much of northern Elko county. Some valley locations received 6 to 9 inches of snow, while many SNOTEL's reported 7 to 13 inches of snow. Some amounts included 6 inches at Tuscarora, and 9 inches at Mountain city.
A winter storm brought 5 to 8 inches of snow to much of Northern Lander and northern Eureka counties. Some amounts include 5 to 6 inches in Battle Mountain, 7 inches at the North Area Mine, and 8 inches at Emigrant Pass.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, December 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: 480214, 480215, 480216.