A clipper system brought a brief period of snow for the morning hours of December 16th. An inch to an inch and a half of snow was common across much of the region.
Every event with a place to put it; 28 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 ILN wrote it up.
A clipper system brought a brief period of snow for the morning hours of December 16th. An inch to an inch and a half of snow was common across much of the region.
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 Wilmington, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 15, 10:49 PM EST, 1 hour 11 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH 1049 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 .SYNOPSIS... A SERIES OF DISTURBANCES WILL PASS ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH TUESDAY. SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW WILL DEVELOP BY MID WEEK...BRINGING MILDER CONDITIONS TO THE AREA FOR THE LATTER HALF OF THE WEEK. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM MONDAY MORNING/... NORTHWEST FLOW IN THE MID LEVELS WITH A CLIPPER TYPE DISTURBANCE DROPPING SE FROM THE NRN PLAINS INTO THE OHIO VALLEY MONDAY MORNING. FAVORABLE LIFT AHD OF THIS SYSTEM HAS LEAD TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SWATH OF SNOW ACRS IA AND NRN IL...WITH THE LEADING EDGE PUSHING INTO WEST CENTRAL INDIANA. EXPECT SNOW TO PUSH INTO EASTERN INDIANA AND SW OHIO AFTER MIDNIGHT AND SPREAD EAST ACRS ILN/S FA OVERNIGHT AS FAVORABLE ISENTROPIC LIFT COMES INTO PLAY. LATEST MODEL SOLNS A LTL HIGHER ON QPF. HAVE ADJUSTED SNOWFALL TO BRING HIGHEST TOTALS UP TO 1.5 INCHES. MODEL CONSENSUS POINTS TO THE BEST BAND OF 1 TO 1.5 INCHES OF SNOW FROM EAST CENTRAL INDIANA... THRU THE NRN SUBURBS OF CINCINNATI/SOUTHERN SUBURBS OF DAYTON TO WILMINGTON AND WAVERLY. EXPECT GENERALLY LESS THAN AN INCH SOUTH OF THE OHIO RIVER AND LESS THAN AN INCH NORTH OF I-70. BEST MOISTURE AND LIFT TO AFFECT THE REGION BETWEEN 3 AM AND 8 AM...SO THIS SNOW WILL IMPACT THE MORNING COMMUTE. HAVE ISSUED AN SPS HIGHLIGHTING THIS IMPACT. REGARDING TEMPERATURES...HAVE ADJUSTED READINGS SLIGHTLY WARMER OVERNIGHT WITH WAA OCCURRING AHD THIS SYSTEM. EXPECT LOWS TO RANGE FROM NEAR 10 NW TO THE LOWER/MID 20S SOUTH. && .SHORT TERM /6 AM MONDAY MORNING THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT/... THE DEEP UPPER LOW WILL CONTINUE ITS PROGRESS EASTWARD AND ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ON MONDAY. THE DISTURBANCE WILL FOLLOW SUIT AND SNOW WILL TAPER OFF IN THE MORNING FROM WEST TO EAST. THERE MAY BE SOME LINGERING FLURRIES INTO THE MIDDAY AS THE LOWER LEVELS REMAIN SATURATED UNDER THE NORTHWESTERLY FLOW REGIME. WAS PESSIMISTIC REGARDING MANY BREAKS IN CLOUD COVER ON MONDAY AND THEREFORE WENT BELOW GUIDANCE FOR HIGHS BY A COUPLE OF DEGREES. 500-1000 HPA HEIGHTS WOULD HAVE RISEN BEHIND THE DEPARTING UPPER LOW ON MONDAY. ANOTHER DISTURBANCE WILL APPROACH THE REGION MONDAY AFTERNOON INTO MONDAY NIGHT. WITH THE HIGHER HEIGHTS ACROSS THE AREA...THIS DISTURBANCE WILL TRACK A BIT FARTHER NORTH THAN TONIGHTS SYSTEM. THE BULK OF SNOW WILL STAY NORTH OF OUR AREA BUT IS EXPECTED TO CLIP OUR AREA. AM FORECASTING LIKELY POPS ACROSS THE NORTH AND SLIGHT CHANCE POPS ACROSS THE SOUTH...WITH MAINLY LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. THIS SECOND DISTURBANCE WILL EXIT THE REGION ON TUESDAY WHICH SHOULD BRING SOME CLEARING TO OUR AREA AND ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO REBOUND INTO THE 30S DURING THE AFTERNOON. MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES ARE EXPECTED INTO TUESDAY NIGHT...WHICH SHOULD ALLOW TEMPERATURES TO DROP INTO THE UPPER TEENS ACROSS THE NORTH...TO THE UPPER 20S ACROSS THE SOUTH. && .LONG TERM /THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE WILL SLIDE OFF TO THE EAST THROUGH THE DAY ON WEDNESDAY. EXPECT DRY CONDITIONS AND AS WE GET INTO SOME LOW LEVEL WAA ON THE BACK SIDE OF THE HIGH...TEMPERATURES SHOULD PUSH UP INTO THE UPPER 30S TO LOWER 40S ACROSS OUR SOUTH...WITH LOW TO MID 30S IN THE NORTH. SHORT WAVE ENERGY MOVING ACROSS THE NORTHERN PLAINS WILL HELP PUSH A COLD FRONT SOWN INTO OUR AREA THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY. SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW OUT AHEAD OF THIS WILL LEAD TO INCREASING MOISTURE TRANSPORT UP INTO THE MID OHIO VALLEY THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY...ALONG WITH AN INCREASING CHANCE OF RAIN. MODEL DIFFERENCES THEN ARISE AS THE 12Z GFS CONTINUES TO PUSH THE FRONT ON THROUGH OUR AREA AND KEEPING THE DEEPER MOISTURE WELL TO OUR SOUTH THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEKEND. HOWEVER...BOTH THE 12Z ECMWF AND 12Z CMC ARE STILL TRYING TO LIFT THE FRONT BACK TO THE NORTH AS THE STRONGER SOUTHERN STREAM SYSTEM MOVES OUT OF THE SOUTHWEST US. THIS WOULD BRING PLENTY OF MOISTURE INTO AT LEAST OUR SOUTHERN AREAS AND LIKELY LEAD TO SOME HYDRO ISSUES OVER THE WEEKEND. WILL CONTINUE TO TREND THE FORECAST IN THE DIRECTION OF THE ECMWF GIVEN ITS CONSISTENCY. TEMPERATURES WILL DEPEND ON THE EXACT TIMING/PLACEMENT OF THE FRONT. LEANING TOWARD THE ECMWF...WILL TREND TEMPS A LITTLE WARMER AND KEEP PCPN ALL RAIN ACROSS AT LEAST THE SOUTHEAST HALF OF OUR FA THROUGH THE WEEKEND. && .AVIATION /04Z MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/... NORTHWEST FLOW IN THE MID LEVELS WITH A CLIPPER TYPE DISTURBANCE DROPPING SE FROM THE NRN PLAINS INTO THE OHIO VALLEY MONDAY MORNING. FAVORABLE LIFT AHD OF THIS SYSTEM WILL DEVELOP OVER THE TAF SITES LATE TONIGHT. LATEST NUMERICAL MODEL SOLNS BRING FAVORABLE BAND OF SNOW BETWEEN KCVG AND KDAY...MOVING ACRS KILN. EXPECT VFR CIGS TO DROP INTO MVFR CAT AFTER 06Z WITH IFR CIGS AND VSBYS DEVELOPING AT KCVG/KLUK/KILN AND KDAY. THE BEST TIME FOR IFR CONDITIONS AND ACCUMULATING LIGHT SNOW WILL BE BETWEEN 08Z AND 12Z. IN THE WAKE OF THIS SNOW EXPECT MVFR CONDITIONS TO LINGER THRU THE MORNING WITH AN IMPROVEMENT TO VFR LKLY IN THE AFTN. ADDITIONAL LIGHT SNOW WILL BE POSSIBLE MONDAY NIGHT WITH THE NEXT FAST MOVG WEAK SYSTEM. HAVE ALLOWED CIGS TO DROP BACK TO MVFR AND INTRODUCED FLURRIES AT THE 30 HR KCVG TAF SITES MONDAY EVENING. OUTLOOK...MVFR CIGS MONDAY NIGHT. && .ILN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OH...NONE. KY...NONE. IN...NONE. && SYNOPSIS...LATTO NEAR TERM...AR SHORT TERM...LATTO LONG TERM...JGL AVIATION...AR
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH 1029 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 OHZ026-034-035-042>046-051>056-170330- HARDIN-MERCER-AUGLAIZE-DARKE-SHELBY-LOGAN-UNION OH-DELAWARE-MIAMI- CHAMPAIGN-CLARK-MADISON-FRANKLIN OH-LICKING- 1029 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL OHIO...MIAMI VALLEY OF OHIO AND WEST CENTRAL OHIO. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. A DISTURBANCE MOVING ACROSS THE REGION WILL BRING LIGHT SNOW TO THE AREA LATE TONIGHT. CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT LESS THAN AN INCH OF SNOWFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS DISTURBANCE. SOME OF THIS SNOW WILL LIKELY STICK TO UNTREATED ROADWAYS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. LIGHT SNOW WILL TAPER OFF WEST TO EAST DURING THE MORNING...ENDING BY MID MORNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. INZ050-058-059-066-073>075-080-KYZ089>100-OHZ060>065-070>074-077>082- 088-170330- WAYNE-FAYETTE IN-UNION IN-FRANKLIN IN-RIPLEY-DEARBORN-OHIO- SWITZERLAND-CARROLL-GALLATIN-BOONE-KENTON-CAMPBELL-OWEN-GRANT- PENDLETON-BRACKEN-ROBERTSON-MASON-LEWIS-PREBLE-MONTGOMERY-GREENE- FAYETTE OH-PICKAWAY-FAIRFIELD-BUTLER-WARREN-CLINTON-ROSS-HOCKING- HAMILTON-CLERMONT-BROWN-HIGHLAND-ADAMS-PIKE-SCIOTO- 1029 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EAST CENTRAL INDIANA...SOUTHEAST INDIANA...NORTHEAST KENTUCKY...NORTHERN KENTUCKY...CENTRAL OHIO...MIAMI VALLEY OF OHIO...SOUTH CENTRAL OHIO AND SOUTHWEST OHIO. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. A DISTURBANCE MOVING ACROSS THE REGION WILL BRING LIGHT SNOW TO THE AREA LATE TONIGHT. CURRENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT ABOUT ONE HALF TO ONE INCH TO 1.5 INCHES OF SNOWFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS DISTURBANCE. SOME OF THIS SNOW WILL LIKELY STICK TO UNTREATED ROADWAYS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. LIGHT SNOW WILL TAPER OFF WEST TO EAST DURING THE MORNING...ENDING BY MID MORNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH 1025 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 INZ050-058-059-066-073>075-080-KYZ089>100-OHZ060>065-070>074- 077>082-088-161200- WAYNE-FAYETTE IN-UNION IN-FRANKLIN IN-RIPLEY-DEARBORN-OHIO- SWITZERLAND-CARROLL-GALLATIN-BOONE-KENTON-CAMPBELL-OWEN-GRANT- PENDLETON-BRACKEN-ROBERTSON-MASON-LEWIS-PREBLE-MONTGOMERY-GREENE- FAYETTE OH-PICKAWAY-FAIRFIELD-BUTLER-WARREN-CLINTON-ROSS-HOCKING- HAMILTON-CLERMONT-BROWN-HIGHLAND-ADAMS-PIKE-SCIOTO- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...RICHMOND...CONNERSVILLE...LIBERTY... BROOKVILLE...VERSAILLES...LAWRENCEBURG...RISING SUN...VEVAY... CARROLLTON...WARSAW...BURLINGTON...INDEPENDENCE...ALEXANDRIA... OWENTON...WILLIAMSTOWN...FALMOUTH...BROOKSVILLE...MOUNT OLIVET... MAYSVILLE...VANCEBURG...EATON...DAYTON...XENIA... WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE...CIRCLEVILLE...LANCASTER...HAMILTON... LEBANON...WILMINGTON...CHILLICOTHE...LOGAN...CINCINNATI... MILFORD...GEORGETOWN...HILLSBORO...WEST UNION...PIKETON... PORTSMOUTH 1025 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 ...LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED TO AFFECT THE MORNING COMMUTE... SNOW WILL DEVELOP LATE TONIGHT ACROSS THE REGION AS A CLIPPER TYPE WEATHER SYSTEM TRACKS SOUTHEAST FROM THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY INTO THE OHIO VALLEY. SNOW WILL DEVELOP AND SPREAD WEST TO EAST AFTER MIDNIGHT...LASTING INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS MONDAY BEFORE TAPERING OFF. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM LESS THAN AN INCH ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE OHIO RIVER TO BETWEEN 1 AND 1.5 INCHES THE FROM RICHMOND...INDIANA THROUGH THE NORTHERN SUBURBS OF CINCINNATI...THE SOUTHERN DAYTON METRO AREA...WILMINGTON AND WAVERLY AREAS. WITH COLDER TEMPERATURES IN PLACE...THIS SNOW WILL LIKELY STICK TO MOST SURFACES...INCLUDING UNTREATED ROADWAYS. THE GREATEST INTENSITY AND COVERAGE OF SNOW WILL OCCUR BETWEEN 3 AM AND 8 AM...WHICH WILL IMPACT THE MORNING COMMUTE. THOSE TRAVELING MONDAY MORNING SHOULD PLAN ON ALLOWING EXTRA TIME TO REACH YOUR INTENDED DESTINATION. OHZ026-034-035-042>046-051>056-161200- HARDIN-MERCER-AUGLAIZE-DARKE-SHELBY-LOGAN-UNION OH-DELAWARE-MIAMI- CHAMPAIGN-CLARK-MADISON-FRANKLIN OH-LICKING- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...KENTON...CELINA...WAPAKONETA... GREENVILLE...SIDNEY...BELLEFONTAINE...MARYSVILLE...DELAWARE... PIQUA...URBANA...SPRINGFIELD...LONDON...COLUMBUS...NEWARK 1025 PM EST SUN DEC 15 2013 ...LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED TO AFFECT THE MORNING COMMUTE... SNOW WILL DEVELOP LATE TONIGHT ACROSS THE REGION AS A CLIPPER TYPE WEATHER SYSTEM TRACKS SOUTHEAST FROM THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY INTO THE OHIO VALLEY. SNOW WILL DEVELOP AND SPREAD WEST TO EAST AFTER MIDNIGHT...LASTING INTO THE EARLY MORNING HOURS MONDAY BEFORE TAPERING OFF. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO BE LESS THAN AN INCH. WITH COLDER TEMPERATURES IN PLACE...THIS SNOW WILL LIKELY STICK TO MOST SURFACES...INCLUDING UNTREATED ROADWAYS. THE GREATEST INTENSITY AND COVERAGE OF SNOW WILL OCCUR BETWEEN 3 AM AND 8 AM...WHICH WILL IMPACT THE MORNING COMMUTE. THOSE TRAVELING MONDAY MORNING SHOULD PLAN ON ALLOWING EXTRA TIME TO REACH YOUR INTENDED DESTINATION.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
28 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
The county garage in West Union measured 0.8 inches of snow.
The county garage near Georgetown measured an inch of snow.
A spotter in Wetherington measured 1.3 inches of snow. Other reports from 5 miles east of Hamilton, 2 miles west-southwest of Maustown and 3 miles north-northeast of Collinsville all measured 1.2 inches of snow.
In Urbana, a public report of an inch of snow came in. The highway department west of Urbana only measured 0.2 inches, with a trace of snowfall measured by the cooperative observer south of Kiser Lake State Park.
The CoCoRaHS observer located 3 miles south-southeast of Springfield measured a half inch of snow. The cooperative north-northwest of Springfield only measured 0.2 inches.
The CoCoRaHS observer near Willowville measured 1.5 inches of snow, while the county garage measured an inch in Amelia.
An employee 2 miles west of Wilmington measured 1.5 inches of snow. The office on the south side of town measured 1.2 inches, with the county garage measuring an inch.
The county garage east of Greenville measured an inch of snow. A social media post on the west side of town measured 0.9 inches.
The county garage near Delaware measured a half inch of snow.
The county garage near Washington Court House measured inch of snow.
A spotter northwest of Columbus and a public report from Canal Winchester both measured 0.8 inches of snow. A half inch was measured at the Columbus international airport KCMH and by the highway department north of Gahanna.
The observer southwest of Xenia measured 1.7 inches of snow while the highway department east of town measured 1.5 inches. A spotter and a media report from southwest of Xenia and Cedarville both measured an inch of snow.
A media report near Blue Ash measured 1.3 inches of snow. The cooperative observer near Cheviot measured 0.9 inches.
The county garage near Kenton measured 0.3 inches of snow.
The cooperative observer in Hillsboro measured an inch of snow while the county garage near town measured 0.3 inches.
The county garage west of Logan measured 0.3 inches of snow.
The observer located 4 miles north of Granville measured a half inch of snow.
A spotter in Bellefontaine and the highway department north of town measured a half inch of snow.
The highway department near Lafayette measured an inch of snow.
A spotter near Tipp City measured 0.9 inches of snow while the highway department near Troy measured 0.4 inches of snow.
An employee 3 miles south of Miamisburg measured 2.3 inches of snow. The highway dapartment in Englewood measured 2 inches. A public report of 1.6 inches came from near Shiloh, with an inch and a half measured west of Germantown, east of Farmersville, and near the Wright Brothers airport KMGY.
The highway department in Circleville measured an inch of snow. The cooperative observer near town measured a half inch.
The highway department 5 miles south-southwest of Piketon measured 2 inches of snow.
The highway department northwest of Chillicothe measured a half inch of snow.
An inch of snow was measured in Minford, near Lucasville, and in Portsmouth.
The highway department east of Sidney measured 0.8 inches of snow while the CoCoRaHS observer near Russia measured a half inch.
The highway department in Marysville measured 0.3 inches of snow.
A spotter near Waynesville measured 2.1 inches of snow. In Five Points and near Genntown, 1.6 inches of snow was measured.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Ohio in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Ohio, 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: 488677, 488678, 488679, 488680, 488681, 488682, 488683, 488684, 488685, 488686, 488687, 488688, 488689, 488690, 488691, 488692, 488693, 488694, 488695, 488696, 488697, 488698, 488699, 488700, 488701, 488702, 488703, 488704.