Louisiana, 2015

Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Louisiana, February 23 to 25, 2015

February 23 to 25, 2015 · NWS JAN · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Multiple rounds of wintry weather had occurred prior to this snowfall event. A cold front had moved through the region four days earlier on February 21st with a cold airmass in its wake.

Where it happened

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.

  • 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
$6,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 JAN wrote it up.

Multiple rounds of wintry weather had occurred prior to this snowfall event. A cold front had moved through the region four days earlier on February 21st with a cold airmass in its wake. Several waves of upper level disturbances moved through Mid-South, over the course of the next three days. The first, on the night of the 22nd, brought mostly rain to the region but some light icing occurred in the far northern Delta early on the 23rd. A second, more potent disturbance, moved through Central Mississippi during the afternoon and evening hours on the 23rd. This brought a more significant icing event to locations generally along and north of I-20, causing some power outages and accidents.

With the cold remaining in place, the final round of wintry weather moved in on the morning of the 25th. A strong upper level disturbance moved across the region, which induced a low pressure system to move east across the northern Gulf of Mexico. With the cold air already entrenched over the region, this brought the needed moisture and atmospheric lift needed to generate precipitation. At first, the precipitation started as rain and freezing rain, with some light icing reported across the ArkLaMiss. As the atmosphere cooled through the late morning, the rain began to change to snow in the early afternoon across southeast Arkansas, northeast Louisiana and the Mississippi Delta. The changeover line from rain to snow slowly progressed from northwest to southeast across northern portions of the ArkLaMiss region. By the time the changeover occurred near the I-20 corridor, the precipitation was moving off to the east into Alabama.

Those who got snow north of I-20 saw several heavier bursts, which led to some high snowfall totals. The highest totals were generally along and north of the Highway 82 corridor. Locations from Grenada to northern Lowndes County saw the highest amounts in our county warning area, with totals ranging from six to eight inches. Those who saw the higher totals also dealt with trees being weighed down by the heavy snow. This led to snapping trees and numerous power outages.

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 Jackson, MS wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 23, 4:00 PM CST, 0 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 23, 4:00 PM CST, 0 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 23, 2:17 PM CST, 1 hour 43 minutes before
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In the hours before

Local storm report, Feb 23, 1:46 PM CST, 2 hours 14 minutes before
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Local storm report, Feb 23, 2:12 PM CST, 1 hour 48 minutes before
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Local storm report, Feb 23, 2:15 PM CST, 1 hour 45 minutes before
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Local storm report, Feb 23, 2:43 PM CST, 1 hour 17 minutes before
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Local storm report, Feb 23, 3:49 PM CST, 11 minutes before
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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 heavy snow, 1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Franklin

When
February 23, 4:00 PM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where
Franklin forecast zone
Property damage
$6,000
Reported by
Law Enforcement
Coordinates
32.133, -91.674 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Sleet with some snow caused icy roads. Multiple accidents occurred in these travel conditions.

Heavy Snow, Morehouse

When
February 25, 12:00 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where
Morehouse forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
32.820, -91.802 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Up to three and a half inches of snow fell in the parish.

Heavy Snow, West Carroll

When
February 25, 12:00 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where
West Carroll forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
32.789, -91.457 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Up to five inches of snow fell in the parish.

Heavy Snow, East Carroll

When
February 25, 12:00 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where
East Carroll forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
32.733, -91.235 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Up to three inches fell in the parish.

Heavy Snow, Richland

When
February 25, 12:30 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where
Richland forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
32.418, -91.763 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The highest amount of snow that fell in the parish was in Delhi with three inches. Locations south of Interstate Twenty saw less than two inches of snow.

What these are

Winter Weather
Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.
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 Louisiana in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Louisiana, February 2015

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 561196, 561000, 561001, 561002, 561003.