Cold/Wind Chill, Republic
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Republic forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.828, -97.651 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold in Kansas, February 1 to 4, 1996
Record setting to near record setting cold covered northeast and northcentral Kansas (as well as the entire central plains) from the 1st through the 4th. Daytime highs in some areas failed to reach zero.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 23 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 23
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS TOP wrote it up.
Record setting to near record setting cold covered northeast and northcentral Kansas (as well as the entire central plains) from the 1st through the 4th. Daytime highs in some areas failed to reach zero. These readings were quite extreme and rare for the local area where little if any snow was on the ground during the coldest time.Low temperatures plunged to between 10 below and 20 below zero with wind chills of 40 below to 60 below zero. These extreme readings caused water pipes to burst, water meters to freeze, inoperative vehicles, overworked heating systems and a host of other problems associated with prolonged extreme cold. Most schools, especially rural areas, cancelled classes while many businesses and activities were curtailed or cancelled. Some people thought it was the coldest in about 25 years.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
23 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.
Cold/Wind Chill, Washington
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Washington forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.784, -97.087 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Marshall
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Marshall forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.784, -96.523 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Nemaha
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Nemaha forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.784, -96.014 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Brown
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Brown forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.827, -95.564 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Cloud
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Cloud forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.480, -97.649 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Clay
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Clay forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.350, -97.165 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Riley
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Riley forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.297, -96.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Pottawatomie
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Pottawatomie forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.379, -96.342 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Jackson
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Jackson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.417, -95.794 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Jefferson
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Jefferson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.236, -95.383 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Ottawa
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Ottawa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.133, -97.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Dickinson
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Dickinson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.867, -97.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Geary
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Geary forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.002, -96.752 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Morris
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Morris forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.687, -96.650 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Wabaunsee
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Wabaunsee forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.953, -96.205 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Shawnee
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Shawnee forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.042, -95.756 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Douglas
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Douglas forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.885, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Lyon
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Lyon forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.456, -96.153 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Osage
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Osage forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.652, -95.727 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Franklin
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Franklin forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.565, -95.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Coffey
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Coffey forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.237, -95.734 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Anderson
- When
- February 1, 7:00 PM CST to February 4, 3:00 PM CST
- Where
- Anderson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 38.214, -95.293 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Cold/Wind Chill
- Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Cold in Wisconsin, February 1 to 4, 1996
- Cold in Mississippi, February 1 to 4, 1996
- Cold in Wyoming, February 1 to 4, 1996
- Cold in Wisconsin, February 1 to 5, 1996
- Cold in Michigan, February 1 to 6, 1996
- Cold in Wisconsin, February 1 to 4, 1996
- Cold in Montana, February 1, 1996
- Ice Storm in Mississippi, February 1 to 2, 1996
- Cold in Ohio, February 1 to 5, 1996
- Winter Storm in Texas, February 1 to 2, 1996
- Winter Storm in Alabama, February 1 to 3, 1996
- Winter Storm in Mississippi, February 1 to 3, 1996
More
Every storm in Kansas in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, February 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5540361, 5540362, 5540530, 5540531, 5540532, 5540533, 5540534, 5540535, 5540536, 5540537, 5540538, 5540539, 5540540, 5540541, 5540542, 5540543, 5540544, 5540545, 5540546, 5540547, 5540548, 5540549, 5540550.