Louisiana
A little water makes a lot of snow. Why future snow melt won’t lead to floods.
If you’ve been a weather nerd and checking the National Weather Service’s hourly precipitation tallies, you might have noticed something appears to be off with the measurements of Tuesday’s snowstorm.
Precipitation measurements are in the tenths and hundreds of an inch, though widespread measurements of the blanket of snow falling across the state are in the several inches.
Baton Rouge, for instance, had a reported 6 inches of snow by midday Tuesday, though hourly measurements from Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport only measured 0.27 inches of precipitation.
What’s the deal?
Vincent “Vinny” Brown, an LSU climatologist, said those National Weather Service precipitation measurements are in liquid amounts, not snow accumulation totals.
The ice crystals that make up snow take up more volume than liquid water, but exactly what that ratio is in any given snowstorm can involve a number of factors.
One old rule of thumb is 10-to-1, or 10 inches of snow for every 1 inch of liquid, but forecasters have developed other ways to predict snow accumulations.
The Kuchera snow ratio, for example, is a widely used statistical method that relies on the warmest temperatures in the air column to try to estimate snowfall.
But it can be a difficult task. According to the National Weather Service, factors such as the amount of ice in a snow cloud, the types of snowflakes being formed, how warm it is between the snow cloud and the surface of the Earth, and windiness can all increase or decrease the amount of snow hitting the ground.
Deep cold can push the snow-to-water ratio to as much as 20-to-1, the Weather Service says. Some academic papers published by the American Meteorological Society say that ratio can range from 3-to-1 to 100-to-1.
Phil Grigsby, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Slidell, said published snowfall tallies are measurements of actual accumulations on the ground or other surfaces that the service’s network of observers are reporting.
“Those are actual people going out and measuring them … on patio tables and decks and things like that,” he said.
He added that this difference between snow volume and water volume means the eventual melting of south Louisiana’s coating of snow is unlikely to have much of an impact on local waterways.
Grigsby added that the snow falling across south Louisiana is on the dry side and that means the snow-to-water ratio is even wider than the typical rule of thumb.
That means even less water will ultimately run off once the snow melts.
“This won’t cause any flooding issues at all,” Grigsby said.
NEWTON COUNTY, Texas. (KPLC) – A DeRidder man reported missing was found dead in the Sabine River Sunday morning, according to the Newton County Sheriff’s Office.
Newton County Sheriff Colton Havard said Jordan Jamal Allen was located around 7:50 a.m. on July 12 with help from Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens, the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office, and 409 Search and Rescue.
Authorities say the body was recovered not far from where Allen went under Friday night near the U.S. 190 bridge east of Bon Wier at the Texas-Louisiana state line.
The sheriff said that Allen and a woman were said to be wading across the river Friday when the current began pulling the woman.
The sheriff said Allen tried to help her, but went under around 8:45 p.m. and wasn’t seen again. He said the woman made it back to land safely.
We will have more in this story as it develops.
Copyright 2026 KPLC. All rights reserved.
MONDAY
RED STICK FLY FISHERS PROGRAM: 7 p.m., Bluebonnet Regional Library, 9200 Bluebonnet Blvd., Baton Rouge. Open to the public. Email Brian Roberts: roberts.brian84@gmail.com. Website: rsff.org
WEDNESDAY
FLIES & FLIGHTS: 7-9 p.m, Rally Cap Brewing, 11212 Pennywood Ave., Baton Rouge. Casual fly tying. Open to public. Email Chris Williams: thefatfingeredflytyer@gmail.com
THURSDAY
ACADIANA FLY RODDERS PROGRAM: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Open to public. Email Darin Lee: at cbrsandcdc@gmail.com. Website: acadianaflyrodders.org
FRIENDS OF NRA/SOUTHWEST LA BANQUET: 6 p.m., Riverside Bar & Grill, 3748 Louisiana 3059, Lake Charles. Call Brack Cole 337-912-1620. Email: jbcoleair@yahoo.com
ONGOING
STATEWIDE TOURNAMENT & ANGLERS RODEO/S.T.A.R.: Through Sept. 7, Coastal Conservation Association’s summer-long fishing event. Tagged redfish, coastal/offshore species categories & youth division. CCA membership required. Website: ccalouisiana.com/star
LOTTERY HUNTS
DOVE/TEAL: July 27 application deadline for dove hunt on Elbow Slough Wildlife Management Area and teal hunt on White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area. Website applications only on Wildlife & Fisheries/Louisiana Outdoors License, Permits and Tags webpage. Fee $8.50. Details: dove hunt, David Hayden at dhayden@wlf.la.gov; teal hunt, Lance Ardoin at lardoin@wlf.la.gov
AROUND THE CORNER
JULY 21 — LAFAYETTE KAYAK FISHING CLUB MEETING: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Call 337-232-5854. Website: lafayettekayakfishing.com
JULY 21-22 — GULF COUNCIL SHRIMP COMMITTEE MEETING: Gulf Council office, 4107 W. Spruce St., Tampa, Florida. In conjunction with Scientific and Statistical committees. Website: gulfcouncil.org
JULY 23 — ACADIANA BUGS & BREWS: 6 p.m., Pack and Paddle, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette. Casual fly tying and local beers provided. Open to the public. Email Darin Lee: cbrsandcdc@gmail.com. Website: packpaddle.com
JULY 23-25 — International Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo, Grand Isle Marina & Otto Candies Pavilion, Grand Isle. Website: tarponrodeo.org
JULY 24-25—BASSMASTER JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP: Kentucky Lake, Paris, Tennessee. Website: bassmaster.com
JULY 26 — SOUTH LOUISIANA HIGHPOWER CLUB MATCH: 8:30 a.m., Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Range, St. Landry Road, Gonzales. NRA XTC & F-Class match rifle or service rifle, 200-yard/50-rounds match course. Fee $15 members, $20 nonmembers, $5 juniors. $25 annual club (first match free) and Civilian Marksmanship Program membership (allows purchases from CMP). Call Mike Burke, 337-380-8120. Email: SouthLAHighPower@hotmail.com
FISHING/SHRIMPING
SHRIMP: Spring inshore season closed except for Breton/Chandeleur sounds; all outside waters open.
OPEN RECREATIONAL SEASONS: Private recreational red snapper; gray triggerfish; flounder; lane, blackfin, queen and silk snappers and wenchmen among other snapper species; all groupers except closed for goliath and Nassau groupers in state/federal waters.
CLOSED SEASONS: Greater amberjack; bluefin tuna; gag, goliath and Nassau groupers in state/federal waters. Commercial greater amberjack season closed.
LDWF UPDATES
Closed: Roads on Pomme de Terre, Richard Yancey & Bogue Chitto WMAs (flooding)
Drawdowns: Saline Lake (Natchitoches/Winn parishes through Oct. 5); Iatt Lake (Grant Parish through Oct. 5).
Louisiana State Police reported an Ascension Parish resident died in a fatal crash in Livingston Parish.
According to an LSP Troop A news release, 68-year-old Gwendolyn Blank of St. Amant died in the two-vehicle crash along Highway 1032 near Debbie Lane around 3:30 p.m. July 11.
Per the release, the preliminary investigation found that a 2016 Toyota Avalon was traveling south on the highway when, at the same time, a 2023 Dodge Ram was traveling northbound.
For reasons still under investigation, the Toyota crossed the center line in a left-hand curve and collided head-on with the truck, troopers reported in the realease.
Blank, who was the front seat passenger in the car, sustained serious injuries and was transported to a hospital, where she later died, according to LSP.
Troopers reported the driver of the car sustained moderate injuries, and a juvenile rear-seat passenger had minor injuries, while the driver of the truck received minor injuries.
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