Ice Storm, Jewell
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Jewell forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.785, -98.218 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Ice Storm in Kansas, December 21 to 22, 1997
A steady light freezing rain the morning of the 21st left a slippery glaze of ice on area roads and sidewalks. Travel was treacherous on the ice covered roads.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 6 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
- 4
- Property damage
- $100,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 6
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 GID wrote it up.
A steady light freezing rain the morning of the 21st left a slippery glaze of ice on area roads and sidewalks. Travel was treacherous on the ice covered roads. The slippery driving conditions were blamed for a two-vehicle collision near Cawker City.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
6 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Ice Storm, Mitchell
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Mitchell forecast zone
- Injuries
- 4 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $100,000
- Coordinates
- 39.393, -98.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Ice Storm, Osborne
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Osborne forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.350, -98.768 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Ice Storm, Phillips
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Phillips forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.785, -99.347 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Ice Storm, Rooks
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Rooks forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.350, -99.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Ice Storm, Smith
- When
- December 21, 4:00 AM CST to December 22, 5:00 AM CST
- Where
- Smith forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.785, -98.785 (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
- Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in New Mexico, December 21 to 27, 1997
- Ice Storm in Kansas, December 21, 1997
- High Surf in Hawaii, December 21 to 23, 1997
- Ice Storm in Iowa, December 21 to 22, 1997
- Ice Storm in Nebraska, December 21 to 22, 1997
- Flood in Florida, December 21 to 31, 1997
- Tornado in California, December 21, 1997
- Flash Flooding in Texas, December 21, 1997
- Ice Storm in Missouri, December 21, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, December 21, 1997
- Flash Flood in Texas, December 21, 1997
- Winter Storm in Arizona, December 21 to 23, 1997
More
Every storm in Kansas in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Kansas, 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: 5625161, 5625162, 5625163, 5625164, 5625165, 5625166.