Winter Storm in Southeast Nicholas, West Virginia

A significant winter storm brought a mix of wintry precipitation to the area from the afternoon of January 24th into the 26th. Precipitation initially overspread the area as snow the evening of the 24th, then transitioned to a mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain overnight into the morning of the 25th. Portions of northeast KY, southwest VA, and central and southern WV also experienced a period of rain as temperatures warmed slightly during the day. Temperatures plunged back below freezing in the wake of a cold front, with precipitation turning back to snow throughout the area that evening. Precipitation lingered overnight then tapered off the morning of the 26th.

Four to seven inches of snow accumulated across northern West Virginia and parts of the northeast mountains. Meanwhile, lesser amounts were observed across central and southern portions of the state where sleet, freezing rain, and even rain were more prevalent. Most counties reported at least a tenth or two of ice accumulation, though amounts ranged from a light glaze to over an inch across the area. The highest ice amounts that were reported were an inch and a quarter in Nicholas County, just under an inch in Kanawha County, and just over three-quarters of an inch in Wayne County. In the mountains, significant sleet accumulations poured down the hillsides and created large piles that made several roadways impassable, primarily in Pocahontas County. Around an inch of sleet was also observed in parts of southeast West Virginia. With already saturated soils from earlier precipitation, and drains blocked by snow and ice, rain that fell across parts of southern West Virginia on the 25th led to isolated instances of flooding in Lincoln, Logan, and Cabell Counties.