Wisconsin, 2023

Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, February 21 to 22, 2023

February 21 to 22, 2023 · NWS DLH · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

A band of snowfall set up across parts of the Northland during the overnight hours of the 21st into the morning of the 22nd. Dry air near the surface initially limited snowfall but snow became heavier later in the night and began accumulating.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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
3

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 DLH wrote it up.

A band of snowfall set up across parts of the Northland during the overnight hours of the 21st into the morning of the 22nd. Dry air near the surface initially limited snowfall but snow became heavier later in the night and began accumulating. Lake-enhancement was also seen with the highest totals occurring along along the South Shore of Lake Superior. Snowfall in this area was in the 5 to 8 inch range with higher amounts to 10 inches along the terrain ridge in Douglas County.

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 Duluth, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 21, 5:44 PM CST, 5 hours 16 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 21, 5:44 PM CST, 5 hours 16 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

3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Douglas

When
February 21, 11:00 PM CST to February 22, 8:00 PM CST
Where
Douglas forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
46.464, -91.899 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snowfall totals of 6 to 10 inches were reported across Douglas County with 10 inches being reported in the Oliver and Hawthorne areas.

Heavy Snow, Ashland

When
February 22, 2:00 AM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where
Ashland forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
46.510, -90.720 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snowfall totals of 5 to 8 inches were recorded across Ashland County with a brief break during the evening of the 22nd into the early morning hours of the 23rd before a stronger snow storm started to move into the area.

Heavy Snow, Bayfield

When
February 22, 3:00 AM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where
Bayfield forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
46.635, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snowfall totals of 5 to 8 inches were recorded across Bayfield County with a brief break during the evening of the 22nd into the early morning hours of the 23rd before a stronger snow storm started to move into the area.

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 Wisconsin in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, February 2023

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: 1083755, 1083757, 1083756.