Winter Weather — Roane, West Virginia

2026-01-11 · Roane, West Virginia

Event narrative

A vehicle crash occurred at the intersection of Reedyville Road and Ripley Road in Spencer during the time that surface visibility was obstructed by passing squalls.

Wider weather episode

Snow squalls moving through West Virginia on the morning of January 11th took place in the wake of a cold front that moved through earlier that day. These heavy bands of snow first began to impact portions of I-77 in Jackson and Roane Counties shortly after 8 o'clock in the morning, and continued to sweep through the state towards I-79 that morning. Obstructed surface visibilities were noted by traffic cameras and ASOS stations as squalls pressed through and were likely the cause of multiple traffic accidents that were reported that morning. Squalls quickly moved out of the forecast area before noon on the 11th.

In addition to the snow squalls tracking through the heart of the state, additional snow showers progressing into the West Virginia mountains prompted several inches in accumulations to fall on the 11th. Local Department of Highways measured between 2 to 5 inches of snow had fallen from southeast Randolph down into southeast Webster Counties. Strong winds accompanying these showers also resulted in a 47 mile per hour gust to be measured by a Mesonet station at Snowshoe on the afternoon of January 11th. Once this system departed, winds near the surface subsided.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1309250. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.