Winter Weather in Tavaputs Plateau, Utah

An estimated 12 inches of snow fell at the East Willow Creek SNOTEL site. Winds gusted up to 55 mph.

A broad Pacific trough slowly moved inland across the western United States. Unsettled westerly flow out of this system, paired with a series of embedded disturbances, resulted in a prolonged period of moderate to heavy snow in the higher elevations. A strong cold front produced heavy snow bands, one of which sat over east-central Utah for several hours. Winds gusted up to 55 mph in the mountains and up to 40 mph in the valleys. Bitterly cold temperatures moved into the region in the wake of the trough's passage on New Year's Day.