Virginia, 2022

Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Virginia, January 16 to 17, 2022

January 16 to 17, 2022 · NWS RLX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A complex winter storm brought a mixture of rain, sleet and freezing rain to most of the region, with snow in the mountains, on Sunday January 16th. The mixed precipitation changed to snow from west to east during the late afternoon into the evening and the snow fell heavily at times overnight and early Monday morning.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 RLX wrote it up.

A complex winter storm brought a mixture of rain, sleet and freezing rain to most of the region, with snow in the mountains, on Sunday January 16th. The mixed precipitation changed to snow from west to east during the late afternoon into the evening and the snow fell heavily at times overnight and early Monday morning. As the parent storm system moved to our northeast, the snow became more showery in nature into Monday afternoon, with snow showers lingering in the mountains through Tuesday morning.

In southwest Virginia, the majority of the precipitation fell as sleet and freezing rain, which lowered snowfall accumulations compared to the Ohio River Valley. Generally, 2 to 5 inches fell within Dickenson and Buchanan Counties, resulting in power outages across the region.

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 Charleston, WV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 15, 2:00 PM EST, 17 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 15, 2:00 PM EST, 17 hours before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 15, 1:55 PM EST, 17 hours 5 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

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

Winter Weather, Buchanan

When
January 16, 7:00 AM EST to January 17, 9:58 AM EST
Where
Buchanan forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
37.267, -82.036 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Dickenson

When
January 16, 7:00 AM EST to January 17, 9:58 AM EST
Where
Dickenson forecast zone
Reported by
COOP Observer
Coordinates
37.126, -82.350 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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 Virginia in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Virginia, January 2022

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: 996563, 996566.