January 15-16, 2022 Winter Storm

January 15-16, 2022 Winter Storm

A wedge of cold air was in place across portions of north Georgia from the night of January 15th into the day on January 16th as a low pressure system pushed into the area. The result was an initial wintry mix transitioning to snow across much of north Georgia. Snowfall totals were highest in northeast Georgia where temperatures were coldest. Localized snow totals over six inches were recorded in these areas with lesser amounts farther west and south. This system ended the second longest snow drought for Atlanta, with 0.3" of snow officially recorded. Prior to this event, no measurable snow had fallen in Atlanta since January 2018, with this snowless streak second only to the streak from February 1948 to February 1952.

Additionally, very strong wind gusts over 50 mph accompanied this system late on the night of January 15th into the morning of January 16th. These strong wind gusts led to numerous reports of downed trees and power lines and left thousands of north Georgia homes and businesses without power.

Map of Snowfall Totals

Pictures

Wind Graphs

Map of Snowfall Totals

Snowfall totals were highest in northeast Georgia with other isolated higher amounts on the higher ridges in northwest Georgia. (Click map to enlarge)

Photos


Helen - courtesy of Dawn White	Helen - courtesy of Dawn White	Gainesville - courtesy of Bob Miller


Duluth - courtesy of Dustin Grau	Gainesville - courtesy of Savannah Louie	Gwinnett County - courtesy of Chris Kouns


Sugarloaf Pkwy in Gwinnett - courtesy of Mikal Bright	Atlanta - courtesy of Jennifer Watson

This satellite image from January 17th showed lingering snow cover across parts of north Georgia.

Strong Wind Gusts

Widespread wind gusts from 40 to over 50 mph were recorded across north Georgia. You can se the wind wind traces of several observing sites below indicating the early morning strong wind gusts. (For reference, 12:00 GMT is 7 AM EST)