An extreme winter storm affected all of southeast Idaho the first 4 days of the month. Extreme amounts of Pacific moisture combined with several short waves and a cold frontal passage brought widespread snow amounts over a foot.
Every event with a place to put it; 13 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 PIH wrote it up.
An extreme winter storm affected all of southeast Idaho the first 4 days of the month. Extreme amounts of Pacific moisture combined with several short waves and a cold frontal passage brought widespread snow amounts over a foot. With temperatures near freezing, widespread damage occurred due to the heavy wet nature of the snow especially in the Snake River Plain. Although there was a break in the snow late on the 2nd, it returned on the 3rd and continued into the 4th. Strong winds were also a common feature with the multi day storm with widespread gusts over 40 mph causing blowing and drifting snow and low visibility by the 3rd and 4th when colder temperatures arrived. Road closures were widespread. Thunderstorms occurred with the cold frontal passage early on the 2nd. School closures also occurred on the 4th as well.
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 Pocatello, ID wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 29, 1:25 PM MST, 10 hours 35 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Pocatello ID 125 PM MST Thu Feb 29 2024 .SHORT TERM...Tonight through Saturday. We continue to watch precipitation falling across portions of the central mountains especially the closer to the Wood River Valley and Sawtooths you are located. Elsewhere, spotty light showers have been around the bilk of the day. All of this is slowly spreading east. Winds have picked up across the board, strongest where we have gap/downslope winds near terrain and across the ridgetops. For this evening and overnight, rain and snow will continue to creep south and east. Out ahead of the front, some sporadic showers and even isolated evening storms across the central and into the Arco Desert. A more widespread band of precipitation is forecast tonight, while this remain showery ahead and behind that front. This band will cause some headaches out there. More on that in a few sentences. Winds will be ramping up overnight, peaking and dropping over the central mountains...while still peaking across the rest of eastern Idaho. Gusts across the central mountains will be 35-55mph with some gusts exceeding 60mph across higher elevations, and down low with the front. Farther south and east, gusts 30-50mph are forecast with higher gusts due to gap/downslope and across the highest ridges and peaks. Now getting to Friday and that front. Winds will continue to creep downward, peaking through mid morning. We will still see a solid band of rain and snow across portions of eastern Idaho, with showers ahead and behind it...with the exception of the Sawtooths/surrounding ranges. There we will already see another solid stream of moisture hitting the mountains ahead the 2nd surge coming tomorrow night and Saturday. Getting back to that front and where it stalls out...there is still a stark difference in some of the models where this ends up happening. Where it does happen, it will be boom or bust for snowfall. There will be fairly narrow distance going from rain/strong downslope winds on the warm side of the boundary, and dumping a decent amount of wet snow and bigger impacts right under it or to the north. We painted a bit wider berth so to speak in the forecast, as the models park it anywhere from across the Bear Lake and into Wyoming/Utah to around Driggs to Burley. Snow levels peak this evening at 5500-7000ft ahead of the front, dropping to 5000-6500 along and ahead of it tonight and Friday. It remains possible that a thunderstorm or two might develop overnight, along heavier snow and burst of higher wind occurs across the Snake Plain and eastern highlands. Now, for tomorrow night and Saturday. We will see the stalled boundary lifting north for several hours, before it comes crashing back to the southeast as the last surge of colder air rams through eastern Idaho. This could be anywhere from a Driggs-INL-Shoshone line to Palisades-Blackfoot-Minidoka line. The same applies, there will be a decent gradient to warmer and showery conditions to a band of heavier wet snow along it. We currently have snow levels at 4500-6000ft in those areas. By late morning/early afternoon, the 2nd cold front races across eastern Idaho. Expect wherever it is raining or a mix to rapidly change to snow, as well the potential for thunderstorms and snow squall conditions. Winds remain breezy, so more blowing and drifting is likely. Snow amounts still remain at 1-3ft above that 6000-7000ft range for the entire storm, while they will greatly vary below that. For Island Park and the Teton Valley, lower elevation snow totals will range from 6-16". For portions of the Stanley Basin and Wood River Foothills (Hailey and Bellevue) from 6-12" with locally higher amounts between Galena Summit and Stanley. For the lower valleys south of the Snake Plain and along the Utah border, we lowered snow totals due to the expectation they will remain warmer at times vs previous forecasts...at 1-4". If the cold front surges farther south or colder air arrives quicker Saturday, those could easily double. For the Arco Desert, there will be a huge range...around 12" at Craters to 2-3" around Mud Lake. For the Snake Plain and Magic Valley, similar to our southern valleys...we ended up with lower snow totals down to 1-4" due to downslope/warmer air. As mentioned a bit ago...these could easily add another 1-3" if colder air ends up settling in those areas. Headline-wise, even with some of these changes we'll keep all of our headlines as they are this afternoon. Keyes .LONG TERM...Saturday night through Thursday. Models and ensembles continue to depict longwave trough over Western US throughout the extended. Series of shortwave features shift through the flow, with some differences in model solutions regarding depth and timing. Overall, Saturday night into Sunday will be dealing with remnants of the current deep dynamic low and atmospheric river along with breezy conditions. Additional weak systems bring light snows to the mountains each day for the remainder of the week. Temperatures throughout the week remain colder than normal, and could be cold enough to support snow to valley floors. DMH && .AVIATION...Complex scenario developing today through tonight, impacting East Idaho terminals. A lot of uncertainty continues with regards to timing of the front and how fast snow levels can fall to valley floors. Strong south winds develop at the surface, with extremely strong winds aloft, so all terminals expected to have wind shear concerns until frontal passage can turn surface winds more SW/SSW and speeds become more aligned. Should see showers developing ahead of the front this afternoon and evening, likely -RA or -RASN. Have played the middle route with mix continuing with passage of the front, believing -SN becomes more likely a few hours after frontal passage. Surface front still looks to stall out right around KPIH, so character of precipitation most uncertain for this location and this issuance. Winds do remain quite breezy overnight, even after frontal passage. Topping out today sustained around 20kts dropping to sustained about 15kts after frontal wind shift. KSUN winds are a big question mark. Introduced a diurnal shift to the SE for this afternoon, but pre-frontal environment SHOULD turn them W especially as stronger winds develop aloft. DMH && .PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... Winter Weather Advisory from 11 PM this evening to 5 PM MST Saturday for IDZ051>055. Winter Storm Warning from 11 PM this evening to 11 PM MST Saturday for IDZ056>063. Winter Storm Warning until 11 PM MST Saturday for IDZ064>067. Winter Storm Warning until 5 PM MST Saturday for IDZ068-069- 071>075. Winter Weather Advisory until 5 PM MST Saturday for IDZ070. &&
Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
1132 PM MST Thu Feb 29 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1123 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 15 N Parker 44.17N 111.78W
02/29/2024 M71 MPH Fremont ID Mesonet
Mesonet station GASI1 Gas Caves.
&&Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
1133 PM MST Thu Feb 29 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1006 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 1 S Michaud 42.92N 112.57W
02/29/2024 M59 MPH Power ID ASOS
ASOS station KPIH Pocatello Regional
Airport.
&&Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
1157 PM MST Thu Feb 29 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0850 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 14 WSW Mackay 43.81N 113.85W
02/29/2024 M56 MPH Custer ID Mesonet
Mesonet station CBFI1 Copper Basin.
0700 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 2 SW Ketchum 43.66N 114.40W
02/29/2024 M54 MPH Blaine ID Mesonet
Mesonet station SVB1H 2.4 SW Ketchum
(SNOWNET).
1117 AM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 17 WSW Marion 42.17N 114.20W
02/29/2024 M50 MPH Cassia ID Mesonet
Mesonet station CRII1 Cotton Ridge.
1115 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 1 WNW Camas 44.01N 112.24W
02/29/2024 M50 MPH Jefferson ID Mesonet
Mesonet station HAM 1 WNW Camas.
1120 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 5 SSW Clementsville 43.81N 111.42W
02/29/2024 M50 MPH Madison ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PC141 Canyon Creek.
0905 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 18 NNE Berenice 44.07N 112.84W
02/29/2024 M49 MPH Clark ID Mesonet
Mesonet station BLU Blue Dome.
1030 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 12 E Howe 43.78N 112.76W
02/29/2024 M49 MPH Butte ID Mesonet
Mesonet station SAN Sand Dunes.
0845 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 2 NW Idahome 42.44N 113.41W
02/29/2024 M48 MPH Cassia ID Mesonet
Mesonet station MALI 2 NW Idahome.
0735 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 1 NE Aberdeen 42.95N 112.82W
02/29/2024 M47 MPH Bingham ID Mesonet
Mesonet station ABE 1 NE Aberdeen.
1020 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 2 E Fort Hall 43.02N 112.41W
02/29/2024 M47 MPH Bannock ID Mesonet
Mesonet station FOR 2 E Fort Hall.
1030 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 9 NW Small 44.31N 112.52W
02/29/2024 M47 MPH Clark ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PC371 Medicine Lodge.
1110 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 13 WNW Monteview 44.03N 112.75W
02/29/2024 M47 MPH Clark ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PC374 Reno Gulch.
0815 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 3 SSW Ashton 44.02N 111.47W
02/29/2024 M46 MPH Fremont ID Mesonet
Mesonet station AHTI 3 SSW Ashton.
0946 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 3 NE Chesterfield 42.90N 111.83W
02/29/2024 M46 MPH Caribou ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PCNI1 Pole Canyon.
1055 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 6 N Monteview 44.02N 112.54W
02/29/2024 M46 MPH Jefferson ID Mesonet
Mesonet station MON 6 N Monteview.
0919 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 6 SW Victor 43.54N 111.20W
02/29/2024 M45 MPH Bonneville ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PCRI1 Pine Creek RAWS.
1030 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 10 NNW Berenice 43.97N 113.05W
02/29/2024 M45 MPH Butte ID Mesonet
Mesonet station PC400 North Creek Road.
1035 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 1 ENE Howe 43.78N 112.98W
02/29/2024 M45 MPH Butte ID Mesonet
Mesonet station HOW 1 ENE Howe.
&&Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
1159 PM MST Thu Feb 29 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0815 PM Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 1 NE Clementsville 43.88N 111.36W
02/29/2024 M55 MPH Teton ID Dept of Highways
RWIS ITD56 Botts ID-33.
&&
CMPreliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
1200 AM MST Fri Mar 1 2024
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1115 PM Tstm Wnd Gst 1 NW Camas 44.01N 112.23W
02/29/2024 M46 MPH Jefferson ID Dept of Highways
RWIS ITDD2 Camas I-15.
&&
CMThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
11 winter storm, 2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Fourteen inches of snow measured at Galena Lodge and 13 inches at Sun Valley by the morning of the 1st.
A strong Pacific system brought heavy snow and strong winds brought road closures at times for several days. Snow amounts were 17 inches at the Island Park COOP site, 12 inches at Harriman State Park and 11 inches at Warm River. Idaho Highway 27 closed on the 2nd from the US Highway 20 junction to the Montana border. Idaho Highway 47 closed on the 4th from Ashton to Bear Gulch. US Highway 20 closed from Ashton to the Montana border on the 2nd.
Areas of heavy snow fell with 14 inches reported 6 miles south of Mink Creek. Lighter snow fell at lower elevations with 4 inches at Preston and Malad City.
Heavy and wet snow fell in the Eastern Magic Valley and combined with strong winds to cause travel issues. Idaho Highway 81 was closed from Malta to Declo on the 2nd and Interstate 84 was closed from Interstate 86 to the Utah border as well. 5 miles east of Acequia recorded 8.5 inches of snow and Minidoka Dam recorded 12 inches of snow with the storm.
A strong Pacific system brought in extreme moisture with very heavy snow in the Blackfoot Mountains. The Bone COOP observer recorded 42 inches of snow the first 4 days of the month. 2 to 4 feet were common. The North Gem School District 149 was closed on the 4th due to the snow and wind conditions and dangerous travel.
Heavy and wet snow combined with strong winds to create travel issues on the 1st and 2nd. Holbrook recorded 6 inches of snow. 10 miles southeast of Rockland measured 7 inches of snow. Interstate 84 closed from Interstate 86 to the Utah border due to the conditions and also Idaho Highway 81 from Malta to Declo. Power outages were reported from Rockland through Holbrook as well due to the heavy and wet snowfall and winds.
Extremely heavy and wet snow fell. 8 inches fell in Lava Hot Springs, 9 inches fell in McCammon and the Inkom area reported between 12 and 22 inches of snow. Their was a transformer explosion in Inkom overnight on the 1st into the morning of the 2nd with extensive power outages.
A strong Pacific storm brought heavy snow to the Sawtooths and Stanley basin with the Stanley COOP observer recording 15.7 inches of snow.
Extremely heavy snow fell in the Caribou Range and combined with strong winds to cause power outages and road closures on the 2nd with very wet snow. Road closures also occurred on the 4th with strong winds and blowing and drifting snow. The Swan Valley COOP observer recorded 27 inches of snow. US Highway 26 closed from Ririe to Swan Valley on the 2nd and also on the 4th. Lower Valley Energy reported power outages from Palisades Reservoir to Swan Valley during the morning of the 2nd. Idaho Highway 31 closed on the 4th from Swan Valley to Victor.
Heavy snow fell and combined with strong winds to bring extensive travel problems with periods of road closures for 4 days. 15 inches of snow was measured in Driggs. Idaho Highway 32 was closed from Ashton to Tetonia on the 1st and 2nd. Idaho Highway 33 was closed on the 2nd from Newdale to Tetonia. Driggs and the Teton Valley had extensive power outages on the 2nd. US Highway 20 was closed from Ashton to the Montana border on the 2nd. Idaho Highway 32 closed from Ashton to Tetonia was closed on the 4th. Idaho Highway 47 was closed from Ashton to Bear Gulch on the 4th. Idaho Highway 33 was closed from Newdale to Tetonia on the 4th. The closure caused by a 15 vehicle pileup in the river Rim area at around 2 PM on the 4th with extensive blowing and drifring snow and low visibility.
Extremely heavy and wet snow fell on the 1st and 2nd and a trained spotter recorded 31.8 inches of snow on 230 PM MST on the 2nd. Idaho Highway 31 was closed from Swan Valley to Victor on the 4th due to blowing and drifting snow.
A very powerful storm brought a combination of heavy wet snow and strong winds to cause extensive damage the first 4 days of March. Snow amounts ranged from 10 to 18 inches with the majority falling on the 1st and 2nd. A cold front early on the 2nd brought 40 to 60 mph wind gusts and combined with the heavy snow to cause extensive tree damage with many trees downed. Power outages reported by Idaho Power and Rocky Mountain Power numbered over 50 thousand customers from Firth to Blackfoot to American Falls to Pocatello. Several reports of downed power lines in Blackfoot, and Pocatello. Fifteen power poles snapped off along US Highway 91 between Blackfoot and Fort Hall. Several accidents on interstate 15 on the 2nd and interstate 86 as well along the interstate 15 south bound ramp with several vehicles damaged. Snow and wind continued on the 3rd and 4th as temperatures were much colder and blowing and drifting snow across roadways were a bigger problem. Due to snow and wind the following schools closed on the 4th: Snake River District 52, Blackfoot District 55, Firth District 59, Aberdeen District 58, Pocatello/Chubbuck District 25, American Falls District 381, and Idaho State University. The two day precipitation total of 2.01 inches on the 1st and 2nd at the Pocatello Airport was a two day record for the city. 11.6 inches of snow was measured as well the 1st through the 3rd. 11 inches fell in downtown Pocatello with up to 14 to 16 inches on the benches. American Falls COOP reported 11.8 inches and Blackfoot reported 10 inches.
A strong Pacific storm system brought heavy snow, strong winds which caused excessive damage due to the heavy and wet nature of the snow. Several trees were downed with extensive power outages. Windy conditions and colder temperatures caused some road closures on the 4th. 15 thousand customers from Rigby to Rexburg to Idaho Falls to Lewisville were without power on the 2nd. 10 to 16 inches of snow fell with 12 inches in Idaho Falls with 15 inches near the Idaho Falls Airport and 10 inches in Rexburg. The Rigby COOP reported 9 inches. Extensive reports of downed power lines. A power pole snapped in Idaho Falls. Dozens of trees downed in Idaho Falls. A large carport collapsed on top of 14 vehicles at Westwood Park Village on Vega St in Idaho Falls. A storage building collapsed as well at S yellowstone Highway and W 65th S south of Idaho Falls. Power lines down throughout Lewisville as well. A vehicle rollover along US Highway 20 on the morning of the 2nd between Idaho Falls and Sugar City. Most of the property damage occurred due to the heavy snow on the 1st and 2nd. By the 4th wind and blowing snow closes E Sunnyside Road in Hawks landing area and east in Idaho Falls. US Highway 26 closed as well on the 4th from Ririe to Swan Valley due to blowing and drifting snow . Bone road closed in Iona. Idaho Highway 33 closed from Newdale to Tetonia.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Idaho in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, March 2024
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: 1169938, 1169939, 1169940, 1169899, 1169904, 1169915, 1169918, 1169927, 1169935, 1169936, 1169937, 1169885, 1169896.