Top 3 winter weather events

[Crockett]

I thought it would be interesting to start a variation of the thread on TalkWeather. What is the top 3 winter weather events (or your 3 favorite) that you have lived through here in Tennessee?

I'll start:

#1) February 3-4, 1998. Hands down. The ULL that caught the Cumberland Plateau by surprise and thrust the fun phenomenom of dynamic cooling into the meteorology spotlight. The forecast was for rain possibly mixing with snow. We wound up with over a foot of heavy, wet snow in Scott County. Literally every road in the county -- even the federal highways -- was closed by downed trees for at least a period of time, and 100% of the county was without electricity for at least a short time. Some roads remained closed for several days. We cut our way out from our rural home the morning of Feb. 4 to get out and help other people, then had to cut our way back in that afternoon, as trees were still falling. My grandparents live a quarter-mile off the main road, and we had to cut through almost a hundred trees to get to their house. The National Guard and the Marine Corps were mobilized in the county to assist. Entire pine forests were wiped out. It was amazing.

#2) January 1994. This one was a lot of fun, too. What was an ice storm for much of the Midsouth was a big snow storm for us. It was much-publicized in the days leading up to the storm. I remember going to bed the night before listening to the radio and hearing the announcer say the storm was being held up by the Cumberland Plateau. I thought, "Crap! We won't get anything." Wrong. It started out as freezing rain, quickly changed to snow, and snowed close to 18 inches total. Electricity was out for a number of days. What was so cool about that storm was the cold weather that followed . . . the biggest arctic blast I can ever remember. Subzero temps at night and a couple days where the high was only in the single digits. The snow stayed around for days and days. We had some big truck tire innertubes and a steep hill in the cow pasture next to the house and, man, did we have fun. I was a freshman in high school at the time. Mom griped at us for staying out too long because she was convinced we were going to get hypothermia. The moon was nearly full, though, and so we'd slip back out at night under the light of the moon and "hit the slope" again. That's when it was really fun . . . the sun would melt the top of the snow ever so slightly during the day, then it would freeze into a glaze of ice on top of the packed snow at night. It's a wonder we didn't break some bones. By the time the roads finally began to clear, I was listening to the radio and getting ticked off when they would announce schools were closed the next day. That was definitely a first.

#3) The Blizzard of '93, of course. There was so much hype leading up to the event that we were all convinced it wouldn't happen. It started snowing at around 1 p.m. on Friday afternoon and school was immediately dismissed. Of course since it had been so warm it snowed for a long time before it ever began to stick. It was after dark before the ground began to turn white. By that point I was sure the forecast was a bust. But I woke up the next morning to almost 2 feet of snow and drifts that were several feet high. The bummer was that it melted so quickly. That's the only time I've ever seen flash flooding result from snow melt.

Weird that with the winters we had in the '70s and the '80s, my top 3 are all in the '90s. I don't remember the '70s, of course. But even though we had a lot of snow and cold in the '80s, we had a lot of BIG events in the '90s. Besides those 3 events, I remember at least 2 more 10 inch snows.

I want to see weather like that return to East Tennessee.

What's your top 3 events?

[Chelsea in Tn]

#3) The Blizzard of '93, of course.
What's your top 3 events?

My husband and I went to PA that week. I was pregnant with our oldest.  Miserable trip - to top it off got stuck up there extra days in my inlaws house

I was miserable physically - stupid first time stuborn mom did not realize I was in preterm early labor. Just thought it was all normal "pregnant" stuff.  Finally got home 4 days late - ended up in the hosital for the remainder of my pregnancy a week later.

We did not move down here until early 1990 - from Ohio.... so my memories pretty much memick yours.

1996- Didn't we have an ice storm that winter? Must have - I remember not having power. Took the boys (a newborn and a 3 yr old at the time) and went to bed to keep warm. Learned the hard way that cordless phones do not work when there is not any power. My husband was at work and could not get a hold of me. He was so worried he called my friends husband to come over and check on us. I had no Idea Michael was trying to get a hold of us I fel tso bad that Chuck came out in that weather just to check and make sure we were okay.  That is a true friend.  We no make sure we have a 'traditional" phone in the house as well as a cell phone.  Nothing is fail proof but hopeful in a worse case scenerio one of those forms of communication will work.

2001 - The snow that was not expected - at least until later. Droped the oldest boy at Willow Hall School and took the younger one who had an ear infection to the Dr. Never made it to the Dr. By the time we got to the interstate the school was calling saying they were closing school.  the roads were all ready getting bad. I went home and my husband went out to the school to get the oldest. It took them over 4 hours to get home.

Spring 2005 or 2006. Tornado outbreak.  Looked like it had snowed in Springhill - there was so much hail. EVERYONE got a new roof. I have pictures that show the small tornado that touched down near Rippavilla that day.  I did not know what I was taking a picture of until later.

So there you have it 3 winter and one spring summer event

[Thundersnow]

Good topic.

It's hard to choose, but here's a stab at my 3:

1)  January 7, 1988 - mentioned on another thread.  Maybe I was just the right age to enjoy this big snowstorm.  I was 12 years old, and I remember the build-up and anticipation about the impending snowstorm.  8 inches was forecast... and, that's exactly what we got... 8 inches.  It was one of the rare times that a predicted snowstorm verified in Tennessee.  But, I recall it being cold for days before the storm... which made the ground good and cold/frozen.  In fact, I remember my older brother coming back from fishing on the day before the storm, and he had ice on his fishing pole (just one of those random things you remember).  So, it was a deep freeze already (a few days of not even reaching the freezing mark).  The odd thing I remember was that snow was expected to move in during the night, but it was clear at sunset.  In fact, I remember seeing stars out in the early evening as we waited for the anticipated snow.  Late that night, I remember it finally starting to snow.  When I went to bed, it was a dusting.  But, when I woke up, we probably already had six inches of snow.  School was obviously closed.  It continued snowing through the day.  I remember it being a dry, powdery snow.  But, this storm buried a massive area (massive by southern standards) of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, and adjacent areas of other states with anywhere from 8 to as much as 15 inches in some places.

2)  March 20, 1996... A surprise late winter/early spring snowstorm hit parts of Middle TN.  The forecast called for thunderstorms, followed by wraparound snow the next day with accumulations of 1-2 inches.  But, during the night, the ULL (I'm guessing that's what this was) rapidly and unexpectedly intensified, no doubt creating a major dynamic cooling event.  Thundersnow occurred that night.  I remember seeing lightning flashing and hearing thunder in the early pre-dawn hours of the morning and noticing that the trees looked very strange outside the window when they were illuminated by the lightning.  That's when I noticed that the trees were caked with heavy wet snow.  Our power went out as the result of damage to powerlines.  Nashville officially recorded 9 inches from that event.

3)  January 16, 2003:  Many will remember the surprise 7-9 inch snowfall that hit the Nashville area that day.  So, no need in recalling the details of that.  

[snowdog]

2)  March 20, 1996... A surprise late winter/early spring snowstorm hit parts of Middle TN.

Man I dont remember Nashville getting 9 inches out of that.  Is that the one were the National Guard had to be called in to East TN because they got around 18"?  I was a Senior in High School then about to graduate...you think I would remember that big of a snow but I just cant. 

[Thundersnow]

Man I dont remember Nashville getting 9 inches out of that.  Is that the one were the National Guard had to be called in to East TN because they got around 18"?  I was a Senior in High School then about to graduate...you think I would remember that big of a snow but I just cant. 

I googled information about it, and this was the only thing I could find:

http://www.wsmv.com/weather/15524235/detail.html

Nashville has measured some heavy snowfalls in the month of March. On March 19 and 20 in 1996, Nashville measured 9.3 inches of snow, which still ranks as the third largest snowfall in the last 60 years.

Were you living in the Nashville city limits during that time?  There may have been diverse snow amounts across the area.  I think I remember measuring 8 inches in Pegram.  But, it was very wet and slushy.  I think areas just north of Nashville (like Robertson County) got even greater amounts.  In fact, I remember a reporter on TV that morning being somewhere where it was up to his waist.    Granted... I think it was a place where the snow had blown in and drifted.

Here is information about that storm's effects in the Louisville NWS area:  http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lmk/soo/sclimo/evt_mar201996.php

It gives specific information about the setup of that system (including maps), from the meteorological standpoint.

1996 was a great winter.  Nashville measured 23.7 inches of snow that winter.  It stands out as almost a fluke in our 20-year snow drought.

[JayCee]

Weird that with the winters we had in the '70s and the '80s, my top 3 are all in the '90s. I don't remember the '70s, of course. But even though we had a lot of snow and cold in the '80s, we had a lot of BIG events in the '90s. Besides those 3 events, I remember at least 2 more 10 inch snows.

I want to see weather like that return to East Tennessee.

It seems that since the first event you mentioned in 1998 we haven't had much around here.  Certianly since 2000, I can only remember 1 major snow around 5 inches in east Tennessee, and that fell on one day, and melted the next. (l've lived here since 2003)  Even in southeast Kentucky there has been few big events since '98.  I agree, though, I would love to see some real winter (in the form of snow NOT ice) return to our area.

[Coach B]

I was alive, but to little to remember the glory years of the late 70s.  I was a senior in college during 96, so for some reason I wasn't paying as much attention to the weather that year. 

1. Jan 19 - Feb 8, 1985  I've said it before, but this is the stretch all winter periods are measured against for me.  Extended and extreme cold, -20+ for most of middle TN at one point.  Back to back to back quality snowstorms in one 13 day stretch, all three had 4" or more for most and two of them had 6" or more.   That's right for all you snow haters out there, we had THREE storms in a row that dumped more than 4" and two of the three were well over 6" in less than TWO weeks.  Give me a three week period in January or February every other year or so like that and the rest of the year could torch and I'd be happy.  Is that so much to ask.

2. Jan 6-7, 1988  Eight inches of fluffy powder that didn't melt for a while.  Was unusual for our area because there was no melting at all during the storm, no ice or water under all the snow.  I believe I remember hearing that BNA reported moderate or heavier snow for 18 consecutive hours on the hourly reports.

3. Ice Storm 94  Lived on the 8th floor of the High Rise dorm at Lipscomb.  We could look out our window and see the transformers popping.  Campus lost power and we were told that it was the first time since the winter of 1951 that the campus was completely shut down. 

[Clarence]

I could really only come up with one as it is so far greater than any other...

I am not sure how many of you are aware, but I am not from Nashville.  This is my 13th year in town.  I grew up in a tiny little mountain town; Rupert, West Virginia sitting at an elevation of right at 2500 feet.  So, I have seen my fair share of snowstorms over the years.  It was not unusual to see 3 or 4 storms each winter dump over a foot of snow in my area.

This leads us to the Superstorm of 1993.  I was a senior in college and home for break that Friday.  Forecasting was a bit different back then, but everyone knew the magnitude of what was to come.  I woke up on Saturday morning and about daybreak the snow had begun to fall.  By 10am we had around 6 inches of snow.  For the next 36 hours or so, it never let up one bit and was the type of snow that accumulates in bunches.  Typically, in those parts the good snows are more fine in composition as opposed to big huge flakes and this storm was no different.

When it was all said and done we had 37" in our front yard (not drifted).  A state of emergency was declared and all highways were closed to only emergency vehicles.  Well, my father and I disobeyed and went out in his four wheel drive.  It was the most amazing thing I had ever seen.  Once the snow plows got out (killer snow plows I might add), the snow was piled up on the sides of the roads 10 to 15 feet high.

Somewhere, I have pictures and an old video.  If I can ever find the stuff, I will share with you all.  It was amazing.  I think this will explain to some of you why I don't get up in arms over snow around these parts when it is forecasted.   

[Thundersnow]

Oh, you're one of them northern snow elitists... I see. 

Well, if you grew up around here, there's a different psychology about it.  I guess it's hard to explain.  You would probably have had to grow up around here to really understand it.  Major snow events are rare enough to put the native population here into awe when they happen.  And, it doesn't happen so often that we take it for granted.  For kids, who rarely get the chance to have enough snow for sledding, etc., it's the kind of thing memories are made on.  It's sort of special.

Some of us have managed to carry those memories and feelings associated with it into adulthood.

That's probably why we react to it as we do.

 

[Clarence]

Oh, you're one of them northern snow elitists... I see. 

Well, if you grew up around here, there's a different psychology about it.  I guess it's hard to explain.  You would probably have had to grow up around here to really understand it.  Major snow events are rare enough to put the native population here into awe when they happen.  And, it doesn't happen so often that we take it for granted.  For kids, who rarely get the chance to have enough snow for sledding, etc., it's the kind of thing memories are made on.  It's sort of special.

Some of us have managed to carry those memories and feelings associated with it into adulthood.

That's probably why we react to it as we do.

 

   I know it is different for the natives.  I will really try to be less harsh and pessimistic in the future.  One of these days, all the wishcasting is going to work out for everyone.

[JayCee]

1. Jan 19 - Feb 8, 1985  I've said it before, but this is the stretch all winter periods are measured against for me.  Extended and extreme cold, -20+ for most of middle TN at one point.  Back to back to back quality snowstorms in one 13 day stretch, all three had 4" or more for most and two of them had 6" or more.   That's right for all you snow haters out there, we had THREE storms in a row that dumped more than 4" and two of the three were well over 6" in less than TWO weeks.  Give me a three week period in January or February every other year or so like that and the rest of the year could torch and I'd be happy.  Is that so much to ask.

I agree.  I lived in Kentucky at the time, and was in the 8th grade.  I went to school 1 day during the above mentioned time frame.  It was WONDERFUL!  We had snow on the ground for at least 4 weeks.  As soon as one snow began to melt, the next one hit.  The grand finale was a huge snow storm around the Feb 8th-9th with near 14 inches.  Afterwards, winter came to an abrupt end, but oh what a ride we had during that winter! 

[snowdog]

I'd have to rank mine as being...

--1988...already been mentioned but still my favorite.

--Jan 2003, what a great event...Snow and heavy snow from beginning to end...I got to watch most of it stranded on the interstate trying to get home.  

--Ice Storm of 93...I'll never forget the sounds of the trees buckling under the weight of the ice and when the branches would hit the ground it sounded like shattered glass.  The grass was crunchy to walk on as well.  

[Crockett]

1. Jan 19 - Feb 8, 1985  I've said it before, but this is the stretch all winter periods are measured against for me.  Extended and extreme cold, -20+ for most of middle TN at one point.  Back to back to back quality snowstorms in one 13 day stretch, all three had 4" or more for most and two of them had 6" or more.   That's right for all you snow haters out there, we had THREE storms in a row that dumped more than 4" and two of the three were well over 6" in less than TWO weeks.  Give me a three week period in January or February every other year or so like that and the rest of the year could torch and I'd be happy.  Is that so much to ask.

I was in kindergarten that winter. I don't really remember much about the specifics, other than there was snow on the ground for a good while. I do remember not going to school for weeks. Then we wound up going on Saturdays and into the summer. That was before we had the 10 snow days built into the school calendar.

[Coach B]

I do remember not going to school for weeks. Then we wound up going on Saturdays and into the summer. That was before we had the 10 snow days built into the school calendar.

I was in the 5th grade in Metro Nashville and even there we missed the better part of three straight weeks.  Every time we would try to go back to school it would crank up again.  We finally missed so much school and it had gone on for so long that I remember us starting back to school with many roads still just rutted out with snow and ice on them.  I guess they figured that after three weeks of it most people had learned how to get around and nobody wanted to go to school all summer to make it up.

On a side note I still hear some of the old-timer teachers talk about the winter of either 77 or 78 when they missed virtually all of the month of January.  I think the bad memories of going to school on Saturdays and into the summer from back then is the reason we still build in so many snow days even down here off the Plateau. 

[Chelsea in Tn]

--Ice Storm of 93...I'll never forget the sounds of the trees buckling under the weight of the ice and when the branches would hit the ground it sounded like shattered glass.  The grass was crunchy to walk on as well.  

I was thinking this was in 96 - I thought I had 2 kids by the time this one came through - now that I think of it the storm I remember must be 1993 - and just one baby.... My brain is getting old...

my mom keeps predicting another ice storm like this for this year ..... but she says that EVERY year One of these days her predictions will be right