Winter Storm — Caribou Highlands, Idaho

2017-01-22 to 2017-01-24 · Caribou Highlands, Idaho

Event narrative

Extremely heavy snowfall caused hazardous travel and school shutdowns in the Caribou Highlands. Snowfall reports from COOP observers were: 6.5 inches in Bone, 19 inches in Downey, 8.5 inches in Swan Valley, and 11 inches in McCammon. Interstate 15 was closed on the evening of the 23rd for a short time near Downey due to a traffic accident. SNOTEL amounts were 25 inches at Sedgwick Peak, 10 inches at Sheep Mountain, 16 inches at Somsen Ranch, and 19 inches at Wildhorse Divide. Marsh Valley School District 21 and North Gem School District 149 were closed on the 23rd and 24th. All Caribou County Schools were closed on the 23rd and 24th as well.

Wider weather episode

The latest in a long line of winter storms again brought very heavy snowfall as well as winds to southeast Idaho. The heaviest snow mainly affected the Eastern Magic Valley, Snake River Plain and all of the southern mountains. Many areas received over a foot of snowfall and again many roads experienced closures across southeast Idaho.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 677846. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.