Winter Storm — Summit, Ohio

2008-03-07 to 2008-03-08 · Summit, Ohio

Event narrative

Snow began during the morning hours of the 7th and continued for the better part of the next day and a half before ending during the evening hours of the 8th. During the daytime hours of the 7th, snow was light to moderate with visibilities dropping to a mile or less through midday, and then frequently around a half mile during the afternoon. During the evening hours snow tapered to flurries. The snow even mixed with sleet and freezing rain mainly across the southern half of the county. During the overnight hours into the 8th, the snow intensified again, and even thunder was observed during the early morning hours. Moderate to heavy snow continued through the daytime hours of the 8th, then quickly tapered to flurries during the late evening hours. Gusty winds as high as 35 mph across the area caused considerable blowing and drifting of snow. Numerous accidents and stranded vehicles were reported. Snowfall totals across the area include 24.2 inches in Richfield, 17.1 officially at the Akron-Canton Airport, 19.0 inches in Twinsburg, and 12.5 inches in Green.

Wider weather episode

On the morning of March 7th, low pressure was located along the Gulf Coast States. Snow spread into the region during the morning and afternoon hours, then tapered off a bit during the evening and overnight into the 8th. Snow intensified across the area as low pressure moved north into the Carolinas by the morning of the 8th. Snow persisted across much of the area, but did mix with sleet and freezing rain at times across far eastern Ohio. By the evening hours of the 8th, snow began tapering off from west to east. Any areas of mixed precipitation across far eastern Ohio changed back to snow before ending. The low pressure continued intensifying as it moved into New England by the morning hours of the 9th. Some light snow and flurries persisted overnight, mainly from around Cleveland and points east, but by midday on the 9th the snow tapered off across the entire area. Throughout this event, locations across northwest Ohio picked up between 5.0 and 10.0 inches. Those locations experienced a rather steep gradient for snowfall totals. In eastern Ohio, snowfall amounts were slightly lower as sleet and freezing rain mixed in at times causing reduced snowfall amounts. Locations across northeast and north-central Ohio saw the greatest snowfall amounts with 21.5 inches in Broadview Heights in Cuyahoga County, and 21.0 inches in Galion located in Crawford County.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 89563. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.