Blizzard of 1993 - 15th Anniversary
Today is the 15th anniversary of the Blizzard of ‘93 - many call it the “Storm of the Century”.
The snow totals weren’t impressive in Nashville, but historic across much of the nation, including areas south of Music City.
Nashville 2.8″
Columbia 2.0″
Pulaski 4.1″
McMinnville 9.0″
Shelbyville 7.0″
Crossville 20.5″
Winchester 12.5″
Mt. Leconte 60″
Chattanooga 20″
Birmingham, AL 17″
When it wrapped up, the storm was responsible for 270 deaths and $3 to $6 billion in damages.
Old storm coverage from Birmingham is on YouTube - very enjoyable for us snow lovers!
Viewer Snow Reports
Here are a few maps that I cobbled together from the viewer reports I received this morning.
I wouldn’t swear to every number posted…but most of them look pretty legitimate. I tried to include all of the numbers sent in by viewers (I didn’t get too many snow totals from the southeast corner of the viewing area).
Enjoy!
NWS Snow Totals
A county roundup of snow totals from the National Weather Service. The list is valid through 6:00 AM.
I will post a few maps containing a comprehensive list from our viewers in a bit.
STEWART 4
HOUSTON 12
BENTON 4
MONTGOMERY 5
HUMPHREYS 9
PERRY 8
WAYNE 4
LAWRENCE 3
LEWIS 3
DICKSON 4
CHEATHAM 3
ROBERTSON 3
SUMNER 4
DAVIDSON 2
WILLIAMSON 2
MAURY 2
GILES 1
MARSHALL 2
RUTHERFORD 2
MACON 3
SMITH 2
DEKALB 1
CANNON 2
COFFEE <1
GRUNDY 1
VAN BUREN 1
CUMBERLAND 2
FENTRESS 2
CLAY 4
Snow Pictures!
Our e-mail inbox is jammed with pictures this morning. Many thanks to all who took the time to share photos. Sorry I can’t post them all! Here’s a sample.
7″ from the Wickliff’s in Clarksvillle
6.5″ from Ryan Edwards in Hickman County
From Will in Cross Plains (Robertson Co.)
Mark and Beck Erickson have lots of snow in Erin (Houston Co.)
10″ from Amber Gardell in Hurricane Mills (Humphreys Co.)
5″ in Madison (Davidson Co.)
Dianne Howard has plenty in McEwen (Humphreys Co.)
Linda Greer in New Johnsonville (Humphreys Co.)
From Petersburg (between Lewisburg and Fayetteville)
Dick Levesque has 5.5″ in Puryear (Henry Co.)
Larry Stewart has 10″ in Waverly (Humphreys Co.)
Mike and Cindy Philipi had plenty in Waverly
Heaviest Snow 3:00 AM to 6:00 AM
The heaviest snow of the night is pulling into Nashville at 3:00 AM and should stick around through 6:00 AM. The intensity will let up a bit after that, but we should continue to see snow through the morning hours. Enjoy it!
Simply put, the roads around Nashville are awful. I would imagine they’re even worse in other areas. Avoid driving this morning if you can.
How to Measure Snow
From the National Weather Service:
It is essential to measure snowfall (and snow depth) in locations where the effects of blowing and drifting are minimized. Finding a good location where snow accumulates uniformly simplifies all other aspects of the observation and reduces the numerous opportunities for error. In open areas where windblown snow cannot be avoided, several measurements may often be necessary to obtain an average depth and they should not include the largest drifts. In heavily forested locations, try and find an exposed clearing in the trees. Measurements beneath trees are inaccurate since large amounts of snow can accumulate on trees and never reach the ground.
If your daily schedule permits, you may wish to make a snowfall observation every 6-hours, beginning with your regularly scheduled time of observation. This is the procedure followed by National Weather Service Forecast Offices. Follow the same rules for a once-a-day observation, but the snow accumulation reported will be the greatest for the previous six hours instead of 24 hours. If you take your observations at this frequency, make sure that you clear your snowboard (or other measuring surface) no more than once every 6 hours. Record the frequency of observations during the day in the comments section of your report. Never sum more than four, six-hourly observations to determine your 24-hour snowfall total. If you use more than four observations, it would falsely increase snowfall totals.
Thundersnow!
We’ve had a few e-mails reporting thundersnow. You’re not hearing things - thundersnow can and does happen!
From Wikipedia:
Thundersnow…is a particularly rare meteorological phenomenon that includes the typical behavior of a thunderstorm, but with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain. It commonly falls in regions of strong upward motion within the cold sector of extratropical cyclones between autumn and spring when surface temperatures are most likely to be near or below freezing. Variations exist, such as thundersleet, where the precipitation consists of sleet rather than snow.
One unique aspect of thundersnow is that the snowfall acts as an acoustic suppressor of the thunder. The thunder from a typical thunderstorm can be heard many kilometers away, while the thunder from thundersnow can usually only be heard within a two to three kilometer radius from the lightning. In the United States, March is their peak month of formation, and on average, only three events are reported per year.
More from theweatherprediction.com.
Let’s Talk Snow Totals
There’s plenty of snow to our west, and I believe that it has to cross Middle Tennessee between this evening and tomorrow morning.
I know there are some nay-sayers at our chance of an accumulating snow, but that’s understandable given the meager winters of the last few years. However, it’s very hard to argue with what’s on the radar right now. Furthermore, the models have a solid handle on the current situation and this system in general.
Let’s get down to business: snow totals. The heaviest snow should occur northwest of Nashville up into Kentucky. The lighter snow totals should occur toward Alabama and Chattanooga.
Midday Update!
Several schools have closed early, on account of a snow/sleet/rain band that stretched from Nashville to the north and west. That band is lifting away from Nashville and fizzling, although it has put some snow on the ground near Clarksville and in southern Kentucky.
The roads will be damp and temperatures will be in the middle 30s…but I do not anticipate major problems in Nashville for the Friday afternoon commute. Temperatures are below freezing in Clarksville and Dickson and Paris, so watch out for slick spots this afternoon in areas north and west of Nashville.
We are still predicting a good now for Middle Tennessee late this evening through Saturday morning!
At midday, the radar showed a heavy band of snow from Arkansas down to Louisiana. That batch is associated with the upper level low, which will cross Tennessee late this evening through Saturday morning and bring the snow with it.
Midday radar snapshot shows good snow in Arkansas and northern Louisiana.
I expect a lull in the action from midday through Friday afternoon for most of Middle Tennessee.
News 2’s Predictor shows the main band of snow reaching I-65 by 9:00 PM.
The snow should be heaviest between midnight and 6:00 AM. The snow should finish up by late morning in Nashville.
The big question: how much?
The easy answer: more than we’ve seen in the last few years!
More posted (including my take on accumulations) before 3:00 PM.
Few Flurries Flying
I woke up to a dusting of snow on my deck this morning. A few additional flurries are flying this morning. Not enough to stick on the roads, but no complaints from this snow lover.
Ryan in Hickman County sent in these shots after midnight:
