50 of precipitation to central Idaho. Arctic air was entrenched in the region which allowed for difficult road mitigation due to very cold temperatures and allowed for snow to liquid ratios to be near 20 to 1.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 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 MSO wrote it up.
A warm front generally brought anywhere from 0.25 to 0.50 of precipitation to central Idaho. Arctic air was entrenched in the region which allowed for difficult road mitigation due to very cold temperatures and allowed for snow to liquid ratios to be near 20 to 1.
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 Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 7, 2:15 PM MST, 8 hours 45 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Missoula MT
215 PM MST Fri Feb 7 2014
...PROLONGED SNOWFALL TO BEGIN TONIGHT FOR CENTRAL IDAHO AND
SPREAD INTO THE MISSOULA/BITTERROOT VALLEYS THROUGH SATURDAY...
.DISCUSSION...More snowfall is on the way for central Idaho and
valleys of west central Montana, specifically the Missoula and
Bitterroot valleys. Light snow showers will be intermittent
through this evening, but will intensify greatly overnight.
Idaho county and eastern Lemhi county in Idaho will receive
the most snowfall, beginning tonight and lasting through Saturday
night. During this time, a prolonged period of moderate snowfall
will cause visibilities to remain low, making for dangerous
driving conditions. Snow packed roadways, including mountain
passes and area grades, will also create dangerous travel. The key
here is that this will be a prolonged, steady period of inclement
conditions. Thus, a winter storm warning has been issued for these
areas.
Winter weather advisories have also been issued for Clearwater
county, as well as for the Missoula and Bitterroot valleys in west
central Montana. The reason for this is: the heaviest snowfall
will fall across a narrow area. Should this band shift north even
a little, a Winter Storm Warning may need to be issued. Until
then, advisories have been issued to address potentially hazardous
travel from snow covered roads and intermittent periods of poor
visibility while traveling. Again, should conditions intensify
through the night or Saturday morning, these could very well be
upgraded to warnings.
Northwest Montana will remain mostly out of the brunt of this
round of snowfall...however, you will feel a push of cold air spill
over the Divide again. This will drop temperatures once more, with
the potential for brisk wind chills through Sunday.
Monday through Friday...
The good news is that temperatures will continue to moderate this
weekend and move towards normal values after a prolonged cold
snap. The projected weather pattern for next week shows a westerly
flow aloft which would provide a series of disturbances to move
through the Northern Rockies region. This pattern is favorable for
significant snowfall in the mountains. Now for the potentially bad
news, cold air trapped in the valleys across the region will take
some time to erode and mix out. Therefore, valley locations could
very well see snow, areas of freezing rain, or both Tuesday and
Wednesday. Even if temperatures warm into the mid to upper 30s
during the afternoon hours, the sub-freezing ground temperatures
will still freeze any liquid precipitation that may fall, creating
very difficult driving conditions.
&&
.AVIATION...
Periods of snow will exist across the Northern Rockies during the
next 24 hours, impacting area air terminals. The most significant
impact to visibility and ceiling will be found at KMSO and KSMN,
however visibility and ceiling issues will also exist at times for
KBTM and KGPI. Terrain obscurations will continue tonight and
Saturday.
&&
.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY from 5 AM to 11 PM MST Saturday
Bitterroot/Sapphire Mountains...Missoula/Bitterroot Valleys.
ID...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY from 2 AM to 10 PM PST Saturday Northern
Clearwater Mountains.
WINTER STORM WARNING from 3 AM MST /2 AM PST/ to 11 PM MST /10
PM PST/ Saturday Eastern Lemhi County...Lower Hells
Canyon/Salmon River Region...Orofino/Grangeville Region...
Southern Clearwater Mountains.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY from 3 AM to 11 PM MST Saturday Western
Lemhi County.
&&
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https://www.facebook.com/US.NationalWeatherService.Missoula.gov
https://www.twitter.com/NWSMissoulaThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
5 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
A weather spotter reported 4.5 of snow fell 7 miles south of Williams Lake.
A person from the public located one mile north of Dixie estimated a storm total snowfall of 8.
Snowfall amounts in the Grangeville area ranged from 4 to 6 inches.
Snowfall amounts in the Grangeville area ranged from 4 to 6 inches while Pollock at 2,500 ft. MSL received 2.5 inches which is relatively rare for them to receive snow.
Total snowfall reported by the Pierce COOP came in at 6.7 with 0.32 of precipitation.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, February 2014
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: 503452, 503449, 503450, 503451, 503453.