Heavy Snow — Letcher, Kentucky

2025-01-19 to 2025-01-20 · Letcher, Kentucky

Event narrative

Variable amounts of snow fell across Letcher County on January 19th and into the morning of the 20th. On the 19th, reports included a measured 2.0 inches from the CO-OP observer at Skyline at 1110EST, and a measured 4.0 inches from the Emergency Manager in Colly by 1607EST. Another measured 2.5 inches was reported by the public near Carcassonne that evening. The highest reported amount for the event was an estimated 5.0 inches, reported by an Emergency Manager near Day at 700EST on the 20th. Other final totals on the morning of the 20th included measured reports of 3.0 inches from the CO-OP observers at both Whitesburg and Skyline.

Wider weather episode

A storm system moving up the coast on January 19th, 2025 transitioned rain to a widespread snow. A period of steady snow in the morning transitioned into more intense, scattered snow bands and squalls during the afternoon and evening before tapering off overnight. The storm produced a distinct northwest-to-southeast snowfall gradient, with accumulations ranging from 1 to 3 inches in the northwest to over 4 to 7 inches in the far southeastern counties, where persistent banding was enhanced by the terrain.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1283253. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.