Heavy Snow in Iowa, December 24, 1997

Name: Heavy Snow in Iowa, December 24, 1997
Start: 1997-12-24T11:00
End: 1997-12-24T21:30
Location: Iowa

December 24, 1997 · NWS DVN · 19 events in 19 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 19 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: 19

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 DVN wrote it up.

Snow and heavy snow blanketed much of East Central and Southeast Iowa, and West Central Illinois causing greatly reduced visibilities, slick roads and numerous accidents. Most areas had snowfall amounts from 3 to 6 inches. However, a band of heavier snow produced amounts in the 6 to 8 inch range from southeastern Iowa into western Illinois.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

19 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Cedar

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Cedar forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.772, -91.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Clayton

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Clayton forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.845, -91.341 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Clinton

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Clinton forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.898, -90.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Des Moines

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Des Moines forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Dubuque

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Dubuque forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.469, -90.882 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Henry

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Henry forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.988, -91.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Iowa

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Iowa forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.686, -92.065 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jackson

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Jackson forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.172, -90.574 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jefferson

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.032, -91.949 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Johnson

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Johnson forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.672, -91.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jones

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Jones forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.121, -91.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Keokuk

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Keokuk forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.337, -92.179 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Lee

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Lee forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.642, -91.479 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Linn

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Linn forecast zone
Coordinates: 42.079, -91.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Louisa

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Louisa forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.219, -91.260 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Muscatine

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Muscatine forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.484, -91.113 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Scott

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.637, -90.623 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Van Buren

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Van Buren forecast zone
Coordinates: 40.753, -91.950 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Washington

When: December 24, 11:00 AM CST to 9:30 PM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Coordinates: 41.336, -91.718 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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: 5621925, 5621926, 5621927, 5621928, 5621929, 5621930, 5621931, 5621932, 5621933, 5621934, 5621935, 5621936, 5621937, 5621938, 5621939, 5621940, 5621941, 5621942, 5621943.