Cold in Nebraska, December 18 to 19, 1996

Name: Cold in Nebraska, December 18 to 19, 1996
Start: 1996-12-18T01:00
End: 1996-12-19T04:00
Location: Nebraska

December 18 to 19, 1996 · NWS OAX · 30 events in 30 counties and zones

Strong northwest winds combined with cold temperatures to produce wind chills of 30 to 50 below zero.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 30 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 30

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 OAX wrote it up.

Strong northwest winds combined with cold temperatures to produce wind chills of 30 to 50 below zero.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

30 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Knox

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Knox forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.637, -97.892 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Cedar

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Cedar forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.599, -97.252 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Thurston

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Thurston forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.158, -96.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Antelope

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Antelope forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.177, -98.067 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Pierce

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Pierce forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.264, -97.601 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Wayne

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Wayne forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.209, -97.119 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Boone

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Boone forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.707, -98.067 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Madison

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Madison forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.917, -97.601 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Stanton

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Stanton forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.917, -97.194 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Cuming

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Cuming forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.916, -96.787 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Platte

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Platte forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.571, -97.521 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Colfax

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Colfax forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.574, -97.086 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Dodge

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Dodge forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.578, -96.654 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Butler

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Butler forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.226, -97.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Saunders

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Saunders forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.226, -96.637 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Seward

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Seward forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.872, -97.139 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Lancaster

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Lancaster forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.784, -96.688 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Saline

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Saline forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.524, -97.141 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Jefferson

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.176, -97.143 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Gage

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Gage forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.262, -96.689 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Burt

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Burt forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.852, -96.329 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Washington

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.531, -96.222 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Douglas

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Douglas forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.295, -96.154 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Sarpy

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Sarpy forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.113, -96.112 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Cass

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Cass forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.910, -96.141 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Otoe

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Otoe forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.649, -96.135 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Johnson

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Johnson forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.393, -96.265 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Nemaha

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Nemaha forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.388, -95.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Pawnee

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Pawnee forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.132, -96.237 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Richardson

When: December 18, 1:00 AM CST to December 19, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Richardson forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.125, -95.717 (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

Every storm in Nebraska in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in Nebraska, December 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5581698, 5581699, 5581700, 5581701, 5581702, 5581703, 5581704, 5581705, 5581706, 5581707, 5581708, 5581709, 5581710, 5581711, 5581712, 5581713, 5581714, 5581715, 5581716, 5581717, 5581718, 5581719, 5581720, 5581721, 5581901, 5581902, 5581903, 5581904, 5581905, 5581906.