NATIONAL STORM SUMMARY
DECEMBER 2017
3-9: In the mid-South, light precipitation provided only temporary relief from an extremely dry autumn. In contrast, an early-season winter storm provided beneficial moisture across the Deep South and the lower Southeast. However, the late-week storm
also produced rare and significant snow in parts of southern Texas and from near the central Gulf Coast into the southern Mid-Atlantic region, causing travel and electrical disruptions. At week’s end, snow fell along the middle and northern Atlantic
Coast. Elsewhere, Midwestern precipitation was mostly light, except for heavier snow showers downwind of the Great Lakes. Snow accompanied the cold weather into the Deep South. Austin, TX, received 1.3 inches of snow on December 7, just 3 days after
reaching 85°F. No snow had ever previously fallen on December 7 in Austin, nor in San Antonio, TX, where 1.9 inches fell. December 8 featured daily-record snowfall totals in locations such as Asheville, NC (8.6 inches); Jackson, MS (5.1 inches); and
Birmingham, AL (4.0 inches). Asheville’s 2-day (December 8-9) storm total reached 9.8 inches. Five inches of snow fell on the 8th in College Station, TX, and Meridian, MS, while an inch officially blanketed Mobile, AL, and Corpus Christi, TX. In
Deep South Texas, where measurable snow fell for the first time since December 25, 2004, accumulations included 1.0 inch in Harlingen and 0.3 inch in
Brownsville. And, prior to 2004, Brownsville had not received measurable snow since February 14-15, 1895. By December 9, snow shifted into the Atlantic Coast States, where daily-record amounts reached 4.6 inches at New York’s LaGuardia Airport; 4.1
inches in Philadelphia, PA; and 4.0 inches at Virginia’s Dulles Airport. Farther south, daily-record rainfall totals for December 8 included 2.62 inches in Florence, SC, and 1.86 inches in Augusta, GA. Earlier, rainfall on December 5 in Corpus
Christi, TX, had totaled 2.09 inches—a record for the date. Meanwhile, early-week precipitation across the northern Intermountain West resulted in a daily-record snowfall (4.8 inches on December 4) in Casper, WY. In Michigan, record-setting
precipitation totals for December 4 included 1.27 inches in Sault Sainte Marie and 0.83 inch in Marquette. Elsewhere, periodic high winds blasted coastal southern California, where peak gusts during the morning of December 5 were clocked to 80 mph in
Fremont Canyon and 79 mph in the Malibu Hills at Decker Canyon. Subsequently, Boney Mountain, CA, registered a gust to 85 mph on the evening of December 6, while Fremont Canyon nearly matched its earlier reading with a gust to 77 mph on the morning of
the 7th.

10-16: Cold air settled across the Great Lakes and Northeastern States, accompanied by snow showers and squalls. Snow was particularly heavy downwind of the Great Lakes. Most of the remainder of the country experienced dry weather, although periods of
precipitation affected areas from the Pacific Northwest to the northern and central Rockies. Late in the week, beneficial rain developed across the western Gulf Coast region and spread into the lower Mississippi Valley. Some of the week’s most
significant snow fell in the Great Lakes region on December 13, when daily-record amounts reached 8.9 inches in Syracuse, NY, and 7.1 inches in Green Bay, WI. In New York, December 10-16 snowfall totaled 18.5 inches in Syracuse, 15.6 inches in Buffalo,
and 14.1 inches in Rochester. Similarly, weekly snowfall in Michigan totaled 15.4 inches in Marquette, 13.5 inches in Grand Rapids, and 12.6 inches in Muskegon. Toward week’s end, precipitation began to increase across the Northwest, where daily-
record totals for December 16 included 0.44 inch in Sheridan, WY, and 0.26 inch in Livingston, MT. Farther south, record setting rainfall totals for December 16 were set in Texas locations such as Austin (1.29 inches) and San Antonio (0.92 inch).
However, several sections of the country remained extremely dry. For example, Flagstaff, AZ, which recently completed its driest September-November period on record, did not receive any precipitation during the first 16 days of December.

17-23: Two rounds of heavy rain brought drought relief to the mid-South, but also halted outdoor activities. Weekly rainfall generally totaled 2 to 6 inches from northeastern Texas into the Tennessee Valley and the southern Appalachians. A broader area
of light precipitation covered much of the South, East, and lower Midwest, benefiting pastures, winter grains, and cover crops. In contrast, little or no precipitation fell in the nation’s southwestern quadrant. Early in the week, heavy rain developed
across the interior Southeast. By December 19, daily-record rainfall totals were broken in numerous locations, including El Dorado, AR (3.77 inches), and Tyler, TX (2.96 inches). Meanwhile, heavy precipitation spread inland across the Northwest. On
December 19, daily-record totals in Washington included 2.22 inches in Bellingham and 1.12 inches in Spokane. Kalispell, MT, received 15.9 inches of snow from December 19-22, nearly two-thirds (10.4 inches) of which fell on the 19th. Elsewhere in
Montana, record-setting snowfall totals for December 20 included 6.5 inches in Glasgow and 4.7 inches in Great Falls. The weekly snowfall in Great Falls reached 12.2 inches. In Wyoming, Casper netted a daily-record snowfall (6.0 inches) for December 21.
Rain returned to the mid-South late in the week, while snow again blanketed parts of the North. In Nebraska, daily-record snowfall totals for December 23 included 8.5 inches in Scottsbluff; 4.8 inches in Grand Island; and 4.5 inches in North Platte.
Significant, late-week snow also cloaked portions of the Intermountain West. Despite some snow in the Sierra Nevada, the average water content of the high elevation snowpack stood at just 2 inches by December 21—only one-third of normal for the date.
Farther east, daily-record rainfall totals for December 22 climbed to 4.33 inches in Little Rock, AR; 3.33 inches in Memphis, TN; and 2.06 inches in Paducah, KY. Elsewhere in Kentucky, record-breaking precipitation amounts for December 23 totaled 2.03
inches in Jackson and 2.01 inches in Bowling Green. In West Virginia, totals of 1.48 inches in Charleston and 1.41 inches in Huntington also set records for the 23rd. Arkansas weekly (December 17-23) rainfall reached 9.21 inches in Stuttgart, 7.16
inches in Harrison, and 6.81 inches in Little Rock. In contrast, Amarillo, TX, marked a 71st consecutive day (October 14 – December 23) without measurable precipitation—approaching its 1956-57 all-time record of 75 days. Similarly, Albuquerque, NM,
experienced at least 79 consecutive days (October 6 – December 23) without measurable precipitation, the longest such streak in that location since 1956. Farther west, Pendleton, OR, received 4.0 inches of snow on December 22—a record for the date—
just 3 days after posting the aforementioned daily-record high.

24-30: As bitterly cold air began to stream across the mostly unfrozen Great Lakes, locally epic snowfall rates developed. From December 23-30, Erie, PA, received 86.7 inches of snow. On December 25-26, Erie was buried by more than 5 feet (60.5 inches)
of snow, 34.0 inches of which fell on Christmas Day. Erie’s snowiest day had been November 22, 1956, when 20.0 inches fell. In addition, Erie’s monthly snowfall totaled 121.3 inches, nearly doubling its monthly standard of 66.9 inches set in
December 1989. Meanwhile in New York, an observer near Redfield received a state-record 62.2 inches of snow in a 48-hour period from December 25-27. In Michigan, monthly snowfall reached 51.7 inches in Muskegon, 40.7 inches in Sault Sainte Marie, and
32.9 inches in Grand Rapids. Muskegon’s total was boosted by a daily-record snowfall (14.7 inches) on December 29. Farther west, periods of snow also affected the Northwest. Seattle, WA, received an inch of snow on December 25, tying a Christmas Day
record. Weekly snowfall totaled 14.2 inches in Billings, MT, aided by a daily record sum (8.9 inches) on December 29. Elsewhere on the 29th, daily-record precipitation totals included 1.77 inches in Pullman, WA, and 1.33 inches in Lewiston, ID.
Meanwhile, a stripe of Midwestern snow resulted in record-setting snowfall totals for December 29 in locations such as Waterloo, IA (5.0 inches), and Dayton, OH (3.3 inches).

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