Virginia, 2014

Heavy Snow in Virginia, February 12 to 13, 2014

February 12 to 13, 2014 · NWS MRX · 21 events in 5 counties and zones

Heavy snow blanketed the area as strong upper level disturbance combined with deep moisture pulled from the Carolina coast for a 2-day period. 0 inches over southwest Virginia.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 21 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
21

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS MRX wrote it up.

Heavy snow blanketed the area as strong upper level disturbance combined with deep moisture pulled from the Carolina coast for a 2-day period. The largest snowfall totals reached 11.0 inches over southwest Virginia.

What forecasters said that day

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 Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 12, 9:20 PM EST, 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 12, 9:20 PM EST, 35 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
920 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

.DISCUSSION...
CURRENT SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS AN AREA OF LOW PRESSURE CENTERED OVER
THE FL PANHANDLE...WITH AN INVERTED SURFACE TROUGH EXTENDING NORTH
OF IT ACROSS THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS. AREA RADARS REVEAL THAT SNOW
HAS INCREASED IN INTENSITY AND AREAL COVERAGE OVER THE FORECAST AREA
THIS EVENING...AS DIVERGENCE ALOFT INCREASES WITH A DEFORMATION ZONE
OVER THE FORECAST AREA. IN ADDITION...SNOW HAS INCREASED FURTHER
UPSTREAM OVER MIDDLE TN AND NORTHERN AL...WHERE SATELLITE IMAGERY
REVEALS COLDER CLOUD TOPS IN THE BASE OF THE UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH OVER
THE TN RIVER VALLEY. THIS UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH WILL CONTINUE TO SLOWLY
DRIFT EASTWARD OVER THE FORECAST AREA TONIGHT...WITH MODERATE TO
HEAVY SNOW CONTINUING FOR SEVERAL MORE HOURS OVERNIGHT.

AS A RESULT...WILL KEEP THE SNOWFALL FORECAST UNCHANGED THIS
EVENING...AND WILL CONTINUE THE WINTER STORM WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
WITHOUT ANY CHANGES. HOWEVER...WILL PLAN TO UPDATE THE ZONE
FORECASTS THIS EVENING TO LOWER TEMPS A LITTLE...ESPECIALLY OVER THE
NORTHERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA WHERE DRIER AIR HAS CREATED MORE
EVAPORATIVE COOLING THIS EVENING.
&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
CHATTANOOGA AIRPORT, TN   30  41  28  45  26 / 100  20  10  60  40
KNOXVILLE AIRPORT, TN     27  39  27  42  24 / 100  50  10  60  60
OAK RIDGE, TN             26  39  26  43  24 / 100  50  10  70  60
TRI CITIES AIRPORT, TN    23  36  24  41  23 / 100  80  10  70  70
&&

.MRX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NC...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 1 PM EST THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
     ZONES: CHEROKEE...CLAY.

TN...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 4 PM EST THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
     ZONES: BLOUNT SMOKY MOUNTAINS...COCKE SMOKY MOUNTAINS...
     HANCOCK...HAWKINS...JOHNSON...NORTHWEST CARTER...NORTHWEST
     GREENE...SEVIER SMOKY MOUNTAINS...SOUTHEAST CARTER...
     SOUTHEAST GREENE...SULLIVAN...UNICOI...WASHINGTON TN.

     WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 7 AM EST /6 AM CST/ THURSDAY FOR THE
     FOLLOWING ZONES: ANDERSON...BLEDSOE...BRADLEY...CLAIBORNE...
     GRAINGER...HAMBLEN...HAMILTON...JEFFERSON...KNOX...LOUDON...
     MARION...MCMINN...MEIGS...NW BLOUNT...NORTH SEVIER...
     NORTHWEST COCKE...NORTHWEST MONROE...RHEA...ROANE...
     SEQUATCHIE...UNION...WEST POLK.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 7 AM EST THURSDAY FOR THE
     FOLLOWING ZONES: CAMPBELL...MORGAN...SCOTT TN.

     WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 1 PM EST THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
     ZONES: EAST POLK...SOUTHEAST MONROE.

VA...WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 4 PM EST THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
     ZONES: LEE...RUSSELL...SCOTT...WASHINGTON...WISE.
&&

DMG
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 12, 2:58 PM EST, 6 hours 57 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
258 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

NCZ060-061-TNZ012>018-035>047-067>074-081>087-098>102-VAZ001-002-
005-006-008-132000-
CHEROKEE-CLAY-SCOTT TN-CAMPBELL-CLAIBORNE-HANCOCK-HAWKINS-
SULLIVAN-JOHNSON-MORGAN-ANDERSON-UNION-GRAINGER-HAMBLEN-
NORTHWEST COCKE-COCKE SMOKY MOUNTAINS-NORTHWEST GREENE-
SOUTHEAST GREENE-WASHINGTON TN-UNICOI-NORTHWEST CARTER-
SOUTHEAST CARTER-ROANE-LOUDON-KNOX-JEFFERSON-NW BLOUNT-
BLOUNT SMOKY MOUNTAINS-NORTH SEVIER-SEVIER SMOKY MOUNTAINS-
SEQUATCHIE-BLEDSOE-RHEA-MEIGS-MCMINN-NORTHWEST MONROE-
SOUTHEAST MONROE-MARION-HAMILTON-BRADLEY-WEST POLK-EAST POLK-LEE-
WISE-SCOTT-RUSSELL-WASHINGTON-
258 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014 /158 PM CST WED FEB 12 2014/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST NORTH
CAROLINA...EAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT...

...DANGEROUS WINTER STORM IMPACTING EAST TENNESSEE...SOUTHWEST
VIRGINIA...AND EXTREME SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA TONIGHT THROUGH
THURSDAY MORNING...

A SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM WILL MOVE ACROSS THE TENNESSEE RIVER
VALLEY AND SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION. BANDS OF MODERATE TO
LOCALLY HEAVY SNOW WILL CONTINUE TO OVERSPREAD THE REGION THIS
EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS ARE
EXPECTED WITH 4 TO 6 INCHES POSSIBLE OVER THE SOUTHEAST
TENNESSEE...5 TO 8 INCHES IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY...6 TO 10 INCHES
OVER THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS...NORTHERN VALLEY AND SOUTHWEST
VIRGINA...2 TO 4 INCHES OVER THE NORTHERN CUMBERLAND PLATEAU AND 10TO
12 INCHES OVER THE EAST TENNESSEE MOUNTAINS. LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS ARE
POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY AT THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS.

TRAVEL CONDITIONS WILL QUICKLY BECOME TREACHEROUS THIS EVENING AND
ESPECIALLY OVERNIGHT! PLEASE DO NOT TRAVEL UNLESS IT IS ABSOLUTELY
NECESSARY!!!

PLEASE SEE THE LATEST WINTER STORM WARNING FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...

SOME LIGHT ACCUMULATING SNOWFALL OF 1 TO 2 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE
OVER NORTHEAST TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA AS THE WINTER STORM
DEPARTS THE REGION ON THURSDAY. VERY HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS
WILL EXIST THROUGH THE MORNING AND POTENTIALLY MOST OF THE
AFTERNOON ACROSS THE ENTIRE REGION. REFREEZING WILL OCCUR THURSDAY
NIGHT AS WELL FROM THE LINGERING SNOW PACK ON THE ROADWAYS.

AN UPPER AIR DISTURBANCE WILL SWING ACROSS THE AREA FRIDAY AND
FRIDAY NIGHT...BRINGING SOME RAIN AND SNOW. LIGHT SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE POSSIBLE FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT OVER THE
HIGHER ELEVATIONS...AND IN SOME VALLEY LOCATIONS FRIDAY NIGHT.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE NEEDED WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY
MORNING FOR SNOWFALL REPORTS.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:35 PM EST, 20 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
935 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0915 PM     SNOW             JEFFERSON CITY          36.12N 83.49W
02/12/2014  E3.0 INCH        JEFFERSON          TN   EMERGENCY MNGR

&&
Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:38 PM EST, 17 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
938 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0926 PM     SNOW             4 WSW OAK RIDGE         35.94N 84.36W
02/12/2014  E4.0 INCH        ROANE              TN   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&
Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:51 PM EST, 4 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
951 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0930 PM     SNOW             2 SSW JONESBOROUGH      36.27N 82.49W
02/12/2014  M5.5 INCH        WASHINGTON         TN   COCORAHS

&&
Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:52 PM EST, 3 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
952 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0930 PM     SNOW             CLEVELAND               35.18N 84.87W
02/12/2014  E4.0 INCH        BRADLEY            TN   PUBLIC

&&
Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:54 PM EST, 1 minute before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
954 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0945 PM     SNOW             GREENEVILLE             36.17N 82.82W
02/12/2014  M5.0 INCH        GREENE             TN   PUBLIC

&&
Local storm report, Feb 12, 9:55 PM EST, 0 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
955 PM EST WED FEB 12 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0955 PM     SNOW             LEBANON                 36.90N 82.08W
02/12/2014  E5.0 INCH        RUSSELL            VA   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

21 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Russell

When
February 12, 9:55 PM EST to February 13, 8:00 AM EST
Where
Russell forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.934, -82.096 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 5 inches of snow fell in Lebanon.

Heavy Snow, Lee

When
February 12, 10:30 PM EST to February 13, 9:00 AM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
Amateur Radio
Coordinates
36.705, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Amateur radio personnel reported 9 inches of snow fell 2 miles southwest of Pennington Gap.

Heavy Snow, Lee

When
February 12, 11:25 PM EST to February 13, 9:00 AM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.705, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 7 inches of snow fell 2 miles north of Jonesville.

Heavy Snow, Lee

When
February 13, 1:15 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.705, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 8 inches of snow fell in Jonesville.

Heavy Snow, Washington

When
February 13, 1:30 AM EST to 11:00 AM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.661, -82.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 7 inches of snow fell in the city of Bristol.

Heavy Snow, Scott

When
February 13, 1:40 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
Where
Scott forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.714, -82.603 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 7 inches of snow fell 3 miles west of Gate City.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 7:31 AM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A Co-Op observer reported 8 inches of snow fell in Pound.

Heavy Snow, Washington

When
February 13, 8:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.661, -82.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 9 inches of snow fell 6 miles south of Abingdon.

Heavy Snow, Lee

When
February 13, 8:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
CoCoRaHS
Coordinates
36.705, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

CoCoRaHS observation reported 10 inches of snow fell in Jonesville.

Heavy Snow, Washington

When
February 13, 8:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Reported by
Amateur Radio
Coordinates
36.661, -82.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Amateur Radio personnel 6 inches of snow fell 4 miles north-northwest of Bristol.

Heavy Snow, Washington

When
February 13, 8:30 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.661, -82.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 10 inches of snow fell 5 miles west of Saltville.

Heavy Snow, Lee

When
February 13, 10:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Lee forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.705, -83.128 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 8 inches of snow fell in Jonesville.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 10:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 9 inches of snow fell in Pound.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 11:30 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 10 inches of snow fell 3 miles south-southwest of Coeburn.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 11:45 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Emergency management personnel reported 10 inches of snow fell in Pound.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 11:45 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Emergency management personnel reported 8 inches of snow fell in Big Stone Gap.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 11:45 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Emergency management personnel reported 9 inches of snow fell in the City of Norton.

Heavy Snow, Wise

When
February 13, 11:45 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where
Wise forecast zone
Reported by
Emergency Manager
Coordinates
36.954, -82.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Emergency management personnel reported 11 inches of snow fell 2 miles south of Norton.

Heavy Snow, Russell

When
February 13, 12:00 PM EST to 8:00 PM EST
Where
Russell forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.934, -82.096 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 9 inches of snow fell in Honaker.

Heavy Snow, Russell

When
February 13, 12:00 PM EST to 8:00 PM EST
Where
Russell forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
36.934, -82.096 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A trained spotter reported 8 inches of snow fell in Lebanon.

Heavy Snow, Washington

When
February 13, 12:45 PM EST to 8:00 PM EST
Where
Washington forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
36.661, -82.074 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The public reported 10 inches of snow fell in Abingdon.

What these are

Heavy Snow
Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Virginia in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, February 2014

Sources

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: 497466, 497477, 497478, 497479, 497487, 497488, 496536, 496537, 496538, 496539, 496540, 496545, 496547, 496554, 496558, 496562, 496566, 496569, 496572, 496577, 496584.