10 Year Anniversary of Monster Ohio Valley Snowstorm

December 22 – 23, 2004 marks one of the largest snowstorms along the Ohio River since recording began. The heaviest snowfall fell along and north of the Ohio River, with amounts totaling close to 30 inches in areas. Damages from this storm were estimated at 900 million dollars.

Here is a look at the snowfall map from Indiana and southwestern Kentucky.

 

 

Here is the accumulated rainfall equivalent precipitation, just during the day of the 22nd.

 

The Paducah radar loop for the entire event shows the heaviest precipitation along and south of the river throughout the 2 day period.

 

South Central Kentucky only picked up a few inches from this system due to the slow southeastward movement of the rain snow line. This is often the case in the Ohio Valley and can lead to quite large snowfall gradients, as in this case.

 

Here are a few photos from the event: