Winter Storm in Washington, Kentucky

Heavy snow accumulation of 5 inches across Washington County KY reported by county dispatch.

An upper level trough axis and surface cold front moved from the Plains through the Ohio Valley on March 11-12, 2022. A coupled upper level jet structure resulted in strong divergence in the upper levels of the atmosphere, which induced strong ascent in the low to mid levels as well. Plunging temperatures into the 20s Friday evening into early Saturday morning behind the cold front resulted in impactful snow accumulations. The presence of weak conditional symmetric instability allowed heavy banded snow to develop over portions of central and eastern Kentucky. Heavy snowfall rates accumulated on roadways and interstates, snarling traffic and resulting in significant societal impact. Up to half a foot of snow fell over portions of Kentucky east of Interstate 65.