When were some of the most memorable snow events in Houston?
Snow is on the way for Houston, and maybe a lot of it. Significant snow is a rare event here, so Chief Meteorologist Mike Iscovitz has a look back at some of the most memorable snow events in Houston history. Also, if you’re wondering why we’re getting snow and areas north, like Dallas, aren’t. Mike has a quick explainer.
HOUSTON – The snow we are expecting on Monday night into Tuesday could be one for the record books.
Much of the area is expected to get two to four inches of snow, while some parts could see six to seven inches.
Houston area snowfall through history
Feb. 14-15, 1895
The Valentine’s Day snowstorm of 1895 is one of the most-talked about storms in the history of this area.
Houston received 20 inches of snow, our all-time record.
15 inches of snow hit Galveston.
Feb. 12, 1960
4.4 inches of snow fell in Houston on Feb. 12, 1960.
It is the second-highest snowfall total for Houston in recorded history.
That second place spot could be challenged by this year’s snow!
Dec. 24-25, 2004
Who can forget the rare White Christmas of 2004!
Snow started to fall right around midnight on Christmas Eve in 2004.
Houston saw about one inch, while other areas, like Brazoria or Fort Bend Counties saw about two to three inches.
Down to the south, in areas like Victoria and Bay City, the snow was quite heavy, with a streak of nine to twelve inches of snow.
Dec. 10, 2008 and Dec. 4, 2009
2008 and 2009 were the only years on record that we had measurable snow in back-to-back years.
Dec. 7-8, 2017
2017 was a memorable year with the Hurricane Harvey catastrophe and the Houston Astros championship.
We also had snow in December.
Feb. 15, 2021
A license plate covered in snow on a truck in McKinney, Texas, U.S., on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. The energy crisis crippling the U.S. showed few signs of abating Tuesday as blackouts left almost 5 million customers without electricity, while refinerie
-2021’s snow is something we won’t soon forget.
That’s when ice and snow left millions of Texans without power.
Texans dealt with blackouts while dealing with temperatures down in the teens.
Most Snow in Houston History
By the numbers:
- Feb. 14-15, 1895 – 20″
- Feb. 12, 1960 – 4.4″
- Jan. 31, 1949 – 3.1″
- Jan. 30, 1949 – 3.1″
- January 22, 1940 – 2.8″
Houston Weather Forecast
Houston weather: How much snow will we see?
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for much of southeast Texas. FOX 26 meteorologist John Dawson takes a look at how much snow we expect to see and how much ice and freezing rain later this week.
Timeline:
Monday Forecast
Snow and ice should not be a concern early Monday either, but it will be cold.
Temperatures will be below freezing on Monday morning and our high for the day is only expected to hit 39 degrees.
The wind chill will be well below freezing, so bundle up if you have MLK Day plans.
We expect the snow and ice to start falling on Monday night.
Tuesday Forecast
Snow, sleet and ice could continue to fall on Tuesday.
In the latest models, it looks like we will see more snow than freezing rain.
That’s good because it is easier to deal with.
We expect much of the area to see two to four inches, but some areas could see six to seven inches of snow.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the FOX 26 weather team.
