Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Coming up on the anniversary of this storm. It mainly effected northern and central IL, northern and central IN, and southwest and central MI. It's notorious for producing TSSN in NE IL and NW IN. Snow totals exceeded 12" in places and had wind gusts of 50MPH+. Radar animations of the storm (times CST). 12AM to 6AM: http://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/current/mcview.phtml?prod=lotrad&java=script&mode=archive&frames=73&interval=5&year=1998&month=3&day=9&hour=0&minute=0 6AM to 12PM: http://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/current/mcview.phtml?prod=lotrad&java=script&mode=archive&frames=73&interval=5&year=1998&month=3&day=9&hour=6&minute=0 12PM to 6PM: http://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/current/mcview.phtml?prod=lotrad&java=script&mode=archive&frames=73&interval=5&year=1998&month=3&day=9&hour=12&minute=0 6PM to 9PM: http://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/current/mcview.phtml?prod=lotrad&java=script&mode=archive&frames=37&interval=5&year=1998&month=3&day=9&hour=18&minute=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Storm event write ups from NCDC. Northern IL A strong low pressure system brought a late winter storm to northeast Illinois the morning of March 9th. The low, which originated in the southwestern U.S., took an east-northeast track, reaching central Illinois by the evening of the 8th. Precipitation began in the form of rain out ahead of this system, and then changed over to heavy snow in the pre-dawn hours on the 9th. The heavy snow continued through the morning hours and had ended by noon. Six to 12 inches of heavy, wet snow fell across much of northeast Illinois. Strong winds combined with the heavy snow damaged power lines and tree limbs throughout northeast Illinois. More than 300,000 households had lost power, with some places without electricity for up to 4 days. Along Lake Michigan, high winds generated high waves, which flooded and closed sections of Lake Shore Drive and also caused beach erosion and lakefront park damage. Estimated damage to the lakefront parks alone totaled nearly half a million dollars. Heavier snowfall totals reported: Will County: Peotone-12 inches, Crete-11 inches, NWS office/ Romeoville-9 inches, Manhattan-8 inches, and in Plainfield-8 inches. Cook County: Midway Airport-11 inches, Park Forest-9 inches, and O'hare Airport-6 inches. DuPage County: Winfield-8 inches, Wheaton-7 inches, Downers Grove-6 inches, Geneva-6 inches and in Aurora-6 inches. Kankakee: Bourbannais-8 inches and Kankakee-8 inches. Central IL A storm over the Southern Plains moved northeast bringing rain to the area which switched over to snow in the evening on March 8th. The snowfall persisted overnight with a mixture of freezing rain and snow in our southeastern counties. By the time the snow tapered off, snowfall amounts ranged from 2 inches in Coles county to over 6 inches in Knox, Peoria, and Fulton counties. Numerous accidents were reported with dozens of minor injuries. Two men died in separate accidents in Peoria county as they lost control of their vehicles due to the trecherous road conditions. Even after the snowfall subsided, gusty winds to 50 mph created near white-out conditions in most locations, before subsiding during the evening hours on the 9th. Northern IN A strong low pressure system brought a late winter storm to northwest Indiana the morning of March 9th. The low, which originated in the southwestern U.S., took an east-northeast track, reaching central Illinois by the evening of the 8th. Precipitation in the form of rain began out ahead of this system, and changed over to a heavy, wet snow between 7am and 8am (est). The snow continued into the middle of the afternoon on the 9th, dropping around a foot of snow in some places. Lake induced snow showers followed this main storm event and causing additional snowfall accumulations of 2 to 6 inches. The combination of strong winds and heavy snowfall brought traffic to a standstill on stretches of I-65 and Interstate 80/94 in Indiana. Some drivers were stranded for as long as 18 hours. Many homes were without electricity, as numerous power lines were downed due to the weight of the heavy, wet snow. Also, tree limbs and branches were downed. Total snowfall storm totals reported: Lake County: Merriville-18 inches, and Crown Point-12 inches. Porter: Valparaiso-15 inches. LaPorte County: Rolling Prarie-18 inches, Stillwell-16 inches, LaPorte-between 13-16 inches, MIchigan City 13.5 inches, and Westville-13.5 inches. Elkhart County: Elkhart-10.5 inches, and Goshen-between 6-8 inches. St. Joseph County: South Bend-16.5 inches, Walkerton-14 inches, and in Mishawaka-12 inches Southwest MI A strengthening low pressure center tracked northeast across the Ohio Valley on Monday, March 9th, and brought heavy snow and blizzard conditions to west central, southwest, central, and most of south central Lower Michigan. Light rain on Sunday, March 8th, changed to a brief period of freezing rain and sleet during the predawn hours on Monday, March 9th in areas north and west of Grand Rapids. This icy mixture changed to snow by 7:00 am EST across most of Mason, Lake, Osceola, Mecosta, Newaygo, Oceana, Muskegon, and Ottawa Counties. Rain changed to freezing rain and sleet in the Grand Rapids metropolitan area, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Lansing, Jackson, and surrounding communities between 7:00 am and 9:00 am EST. This icy mix changed to snow during the mid to late morning hours from east to west. However, a prolonged period of sleet across Barry, Branch, Calhoun, Clinton, Eaton, Ingham, Jackson, Kalamazoo, and St. Joseph counties, cut down on snowfall totals in these areas. Snowfall was heavy and was reported at rates around and slightly over 1 inch per hour. Northerly winds increased to sustained speeds of 25 to 35 mph during the morning hours and wind gusts of 45-60 mph were reported along the counties along Lake Michigan shores. One report of a 60-mph wind gust occurred in Ludington around Noon. Widespread blizzard conditions were reported across Mason, Lake, Oceana, and Muskegon Counties. Occasional white-outs were also reported elsewhere across western and central Lower Michigan. Snowfall totals averaged 6 to 12 inches for areas north and west of a line from Cassopolis to Kalamazoo to Lansing. The highest storm total reported was 18 inches in Howard City, in Montcalm County. Snowfall totals of 2 to 5 inches were reported in Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, Calhoun, Branch, Eaton, Ingham, and Jackson counties. Several area cities and counties declared local snow emergencies. Numerous weather-related traffic accidents were reported, one of which resulted in 2 fatalities in Kent County when a snowmobile collided with a Kent County Road Commission snow plow truck. Downed trees and power lines cut power to some residents, most of which occurred in the counties bordering Lake Michigan. Power outages were reported in Mason (600), Lake, Clare, Oceana, Muskegon (1,900), Montcalm (1,630), Allegan (7,000), and Berrien (12,000) counties. Schools and businesses were closed by this winter storm, the most intense of the 1997-98 winter season. Saturated ground in Jackson from heavy rainfall Sunday night and early Monday morning weakened an old oak tree, which was blown over by winds gusting to 30 mph just before daybreak. This tree crashed through a home in the city of Jackson and caused an estimated $100,000 in damage. No injuries were reported from residents inside the home. Beach erosion and coastal flooding affected the Lake Michigan shoreline in Van Buren and Berrien Counties. One home along the lake shore in New Buffalo was undermined and destroyed as high waves on Lake Michigan washed away the dunes. Several other homes were flooded in New Buffalo because of the partial collapse of a sea wall. Storm surge in the St. Joseph River flooded several roads in Benton Harbor. Winds gusted to 50 knots along the lake shore and wave heights reached 10-15 feet at the height of the storm. Numerous power lines were downed near the lake shore in Berrien County. Several shelters were opened Monday night in Berrien County for residents without power and those affected by storm surge flooding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Some observations from MDW Thundersnow METAR KMDW 091053Z 01017G33KT 1/2SM TSSN FG OVC008 01/00 A2941 RMK AO2 PK WND 02036/1011 TSB48 SLP969 R04R/3500V5000FT OCNL LTGIC OHD TS OHD SNINCR 1/1 P0003 T00060000 $ SPECI KMDW 091125Z 36019G31KT 1/2SM TSSN FG BKN004 OVC008 01/00 A2942 RMK AO2 PK WND 01031/1102 TSE16B25 R04R/2200V3000FT OCNL LTGIC OHD TS OHD P0001 $ 3" in one hour METAR KMDW 091553Z 35019G28KT 1/4SM +SN FZFG VV002 M02/M02 A2956 RMK AO2 PK WND 01030/1455 PRESRR SLP021 SNINCR 3/7 R31C/2400FT P0000 T10221022 $ 48PMH gust before the rain switched over to snow around 3AM METAR KMDW 090853Z 02031G42KT 4SM RAPE BR OVC014 01/00 A2941 RMK AO2 PK WND 02042/0849 PEB51 SLP966 P0009 60024 T00110000 56012 $ Heavy snow, 2"/hour, and winds gusting to 44MPH METAR KMDW 091353Z COR 01023G38KT M1/4SM +SN FZFG VV001 M01/M01 A2948 RMK AO2 PK WND 01038/1349 SLP992 SNINCR 2/4 R31C/1200FT P0001 T10061006 $ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Sounds like quite the monster. Surprised we don't hear more of it when throwing around analogs and such. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Links to observations from that storm. ORD http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KORD/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA MDW http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KMDW/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA SBN http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KSBN/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA LAF http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KLAF/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html BEH http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KBEH/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA GRR http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KGRR/1998/3/9/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Sounds like quite the monster. Surprised we don't hear more of it when throwing around analogs and such. It's kind of a forgotten storm, but one of my personal favorites. I know Hoosier brings it up from time to time. Almost a year later to the date, another sizable winter storm hit the Midwest, in a lot of the same places. Though that storm was more widespread with its snow field/associated effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 It's kind of a forgotten storm, but one of my personal favorites. I know Hoosier brings it up from time to time. Almost a year later to the date, another sizable winter storm hit the Midwest, in a lot of the same places. Though that storm was more widespread with its snow field/associated effects. March 5-6, 1999 I remember. That was about 6" here. The early March 1998 storm was on the other hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 March 5-6, 1999 I remember. That was about 6" here. The early March 1998 storm was here. Hmm must have been a different system for you. I was talking about March 8, 1999. And yeah, the March 1998 event had a sharp cutoff to the east, as places like BTL got screwed by mix while DTW saw mainly rain with some light snow at the tail end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowstormcanuck Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Hmm must have been a different system for you. I was talking about March 8, 1999. And yeah, the March 1998 event had a sharp cutoff to the east, as places like BTL got screwed by mix while DTW saw mainly rain with some light snow at the tail end. Just took a look at the NARR page. Yeah, different system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 It's kind of a forgotten storm, but one of my personal favorites. I know Hoosier brings it up from time to time. Almost a year later to the date, another sizable winter storm hit the Midwest, in a lot of the same places. Though that storm was more widespread with its snow field/associated effects. It was one of the most intense events I've been in. IIRC, Keenerwx witnessed a CG bolt hit a tree like right in front of him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 It was one of the most intense events I've been in. IIRC, Keenerwx witnessed a CG bolt hit a tree like right in front of him. Yep, an awesome storm. And, it wasn't forecasted all that well from what I recall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Yep, an awesome storm. And, it wasn't forecasted all that well from what I recall. No it was not. My forecast the night before was only calling for an inch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 No it was not. My forecast the night before was only calling for an inch. I can't recall the exact for forecast for IKK, but I know it wasn't for much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 We must have got screwed here. I have no memory of this storm at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoosier Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 We must have got screwed here. I have no memory of this storm at all. Yeah I think the brunt of it went to your east. There was a pretty big gradient between Chicago and Rockford. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Yeah I think the brunt of it went to your east. There was a pretty big gradient between Chicago and Rockford. Yep. Found this on DVN. Looks like another heavier band fell to our west. I don't remember this, but I bet I was pissed lol. http://www.crh.noaa.gov/dvn/?n=ev19980308snow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 We must have got screwed here. I have no memory of this storm at all. Yes you did. There was an all rain event on the 8th that probably hit your area Scratch that. Shows how little I looked into the day before. Really I can't believe how close MKE and southern WI were to the snow action on the 9th, but got little. BowMe was probably not happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Yes you did. There was an all rain event on the 8th that probably hit your area, but the snow portion the next day was well east of you. Really I can't believe how close MKE and southern WI were to the snow action on the 9th, but got little. BowMe was probably not happy. Just watched those radar loops you posted. Looks like pure weather porn for northeast Illinois and areas close by. Very impressive indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 8, 2011 Author Share Posted March 8, 2011 Just watched those radar loops you posted. Looks like pure weather porn for northeast Illinois and areas close by. Very impressive indeed. Weather porn indeed. A nice March prize in an otherwise super warm winter that season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 8, 2011 Share Posted March 8, 2011 Weather porn indeed. A nice March prize in an otherwise super warm winter that season. It's funny to think that in just under 10 months from this event was the epic '99 blizzard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago WX Posted March 9, 2011 Author Share Posted March 9, 2011 It's funny to think that in just under 10 months from this event was the epic '99 blizzard. Yeah you're right...didn't realize that. When I think about it now, I experienced three really good snowstorms in a one year period (Mar '98, Jan '99, and Mar '99). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundersnow12 Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 I was only 7 years old so I don't remember this one lol what an amazing radar loop though, northeast IL was getting pounded early that morning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tornadotony Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 Had a funeral that day in the East Side neighborhood of Chicago. My great-grandma. Most of us got stuck on 111th St. outside Our Lady of the Annunciata church. I think we spent almost an hour (it seemed like it) trying to dig all of our cars out. We still made it through the whole funeral. We were the only one of the scheduled 5 funerals out of the funeral home to go off that day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michsnowfreak Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 March 9, 1998 was just a forgettable heavy rainstorm here, with a half inch of snow on the backside, along with a sharp temp drop. Had to actually look up the stats to see what happened. Jan 2/3, 1999 (12") and Mar 5/6, 1999 (8.3") on the other hand were awesome. And amazingly Jan 2/3, 1999 was my first 6"+ snowstorm since 7" fell March 19/20, 1996, or nearly 3 years. Since DTW only got 5.8" in the 1996 storm, DTW went from Dec 8, 1994 to Jan 1, 1999 without a 6"+ storm, or over 4 years. For comparison sake, theve had 11 storms drop 6"+ in the last 4 winters!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyclone77 Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 I was only 7 years old so I don't remember this one lol what an amazing radar loop though, northeast IL was getting pounded early that morning. Jesus, that makes me feel old lol. I was 21 and in college. That's probably why I don't remember it lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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