Heavy Snow — Wasatch Mountains South of I-80, Utah

2024-05-04 to 2024-05-08 · Wasatch Mountains South of I-80, Utah

Event narrative

Several SNOTEL stations including Mill-D North, Snowbird, and Atwater recorded 2.1 to 3.8 inches of snow water equivalent, resulting in approximately 23 to 40 inches of snow. An additional report of 24.8 inches of snowfall was received from a snow safety official at Alta.

Wider weather episode

A cold season type of trough and associated surface features moved through Utah in early May. Ahead of the system, strong synoptic wind gusts occurred throughout portions of the state. While wind gusts decreased following a cold frontal passage, precipitation increased. Periods of post-frontal precipitation then continued in the unsettled northwesterly flow as the trough shifted through the region. Given anomalously cold air associated with the trough, some area mountains received Winter Storm levels of snow, and sub-warning snow amounts were even observed in some lower elevation valley locations. Following the systems departure, a fatal avalanche occurred involving multiple backcountry skiers.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1166954. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.