January 1998 was an eventful weather month for the Coweeta LTER program.
From 6 to 8 January, 19.13 cm of rain was measured at the base weather station causing extensive flooding in the region along with three small to moderate landslides that blocked two roads at Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory.
The heavy rains were followed by heavy snows in the region on 27 January that accumulated to 75 cm in some parts of western North Carolina, closing interstate highways and requiring National Guard assistance in some areas.
These two unusually severe weather events contributed to the total January 1998 monthly precipitation of 31.37 cm compared to the 64-year average (1934 to 1997) of 17.45 cm at the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory base weather station.