Iowa, 1997

Flooding in Iowa, February 18 to 28, 1997

February 18 to 28, 1997 · NWS OAX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

Mild temperatures melted snowcover in a short period allowing for a sudden runoff into streams and rivers which were still intact with thicker than normal ice. The runoff into the streams and rivers was sufficient to break up the ice.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 8 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
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  • Cold
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  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
8

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.

Mild temperatures melted snowcover in a short period allowing for a sudden runoff into streams and rivers which were still intact with thicker than normal ice. The runoff into the streams and rivers was sufficient to break up the ice. Ice jams formed at many locations causing flooding. The more significant flooding occurred along the Boyer river and was aggravated by ice jams at Woodbine downstream to below Logan where considerable agricultural lowlands caught the brunt of the overflows. State Highway 30 was closed for two days near Woodbine. The Nishnabotna river flooded lowlands in Fremont county and entered the city park at Hancock for a brief time.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Monona

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Monona forecast zone
Coordinates
42.052, -95.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Harrison

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Harrison forecast zone
Coordinates
41.683, -95.817 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Fremont

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Fremont forecast zone
Coordinates
40.746, -95.605 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Montgomery

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Montgomery forecast zone
Coordinates
41.030, -95.156 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Page

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Page forecast zone
Coordinates
40.739, -95.150 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Shelby

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Shelby forecast zone
Coordinates
41.685, -95.310 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Pottawattamie

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Pottawattamie forecast zone
Coordinates
41.337, -95.542 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Mills

When
February 18, 6:00 PM CST to February 28, 12:00 PM CST
Where
Mills forecast zone
Coordinates
41.034, -95.621 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flood
Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, February 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: 5590763, 5590764, 5590765, 5590766, 5590767, 5590768, 5590769, 5590770.