Ice Storm in Iowa, December 21 to 22, 1997

Name: Ice Storm in Iowa, December 21 to 22, 1997
Start: 1997-12-21T14:00
End: 1997-12-22T07:00
Location: Iowa

December 21 to 22, 1997 · NWS DMX · 44 events in 44 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 44 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: $88,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 44

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 DMX wrote it up.

An upper level low pressure system moved into the southern Rockies and advanced northeast into the midwest. As is often the case during an El Nino winter, there was little cold air in place over Iowa. Even though the surface low passed well to the south of the state, leaving Iowa in what would normally be the snow area of the system, precipitation took the form of freezing rain. Freezing rain and sleet moved into the state during the afternoon on the 21st and spread northeast slowly. The heaviest accumulation of ice was over the south third of the state with ice accretion of one to two tenths of an inch. Amounts were generally under one tenth inch farther north. During the early morning hours of the 22nd, the precipitation changed to light snow for a period of time as the upper low passed over the state. Damage from the storm was relatively minor with spotty reports of power outages and broken tree limbs. Many of the tree limbs fell due to the fact they had been weakened by several very wet snows earlier. Road conditions deteriorated as the freezing rain and sleet advanced north. Though no major travel problems were reported, there were hundreds of reports of cars slipping into ditches.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

44 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Wright

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Wright forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.733, -93.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Adair

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Adair forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.331, -94.471 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Adams

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Adams forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.029, -94.699 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Appanoose

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Appanoose forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.743, -92.869 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Audubon

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Audubon forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.685, -94.906 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Black Hawk

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Black Hawk forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.470, -92.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Boone

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Boone forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.037, -93.932 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Bremer

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Bremer forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.775, -92.318 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Butler

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Butler forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.732, -92.790 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Calhoun

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Calhoun forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.385, -94.640 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Carroll

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Carroll forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.861 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Cass

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Cass forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.332, -94.928 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Clarke

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Clarke forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.029, -93.785 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Crawford

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Crawford forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.037, -95.382 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Dallas

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Dallas forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.685, -94.040 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Davis

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Davis forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.748, -92.410 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Decatur

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Decatur forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.738, -93.786 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Franklin

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.733, -93.262 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Greene

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Greene forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.397 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Grundy

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Grundy forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.402, -92.791 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Guthrie

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Guthrie forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.684, -94.501 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Hamilton

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Hardin

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Hardin forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.240 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Humboldt

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Humboldt forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.777, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Jasper

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Jasper forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.686, -93.054 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Lucas

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Lucas forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.029, -93.328 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Madison

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Madison forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.331, -94.016 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Mahaska

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Mahaska forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.335, -92.641 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Marion

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Marion forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.099 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Marshall

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Marshall forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -92.999 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Monroe

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Monroe forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.030, -92.869 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Pocahontas

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Pocahontas forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.734, -94.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Polk

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Polk forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.686, -93.573 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Poweshiek

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Poweshiek forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.686, -92.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ringgold

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Ringgold forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.735, -94.244 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Sac

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Sac forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.386, -95.105 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Story

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Story forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -93.465 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Tama

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Tama forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.080, -92.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Taylor

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Taylor forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.737, -94.696 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Union

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Union forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.028, -94.242 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Wapello

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Wapello forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.031, -92.409 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Warren

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Warren forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.561 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Wayne

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Wayne forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 40.740, -93.327 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Webster

When: December 21, 2:00 PM CST to December 22, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Webster forecast zone
Property damage: $2,000
Coordinates: 42.428, -94.182 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Ice Storm: Freezing rain accumulating a quarter inch or more of ice, or less where it caused significant damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, December 1997

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: 5621890, 5622461, 5622462, 5622463, 5622464, 5622465, 5622466, 5622467, 5622468, 5622469, 5622470, 5622471, 5622472, 5622473, 5622474, 5622475, 5622476, 5622477, 5622478, 5622479, 5622480, 5622481, 5622482, 5622483, 5622484, 5622485, 5622486, 5622487, 5622488, 5622489, 5622490, 5622491, 5622492, 5622493, 5622494, 5622495, 5622496, 5622497, 5622498, 5622499, and more.