Heavy Snow, Benton
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Benton forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.080, -92.066 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow and Hail in Iowa, March 8 to 30, 1998
Numerous roads and schools were closed across East Central Iowa and Northwest Illinois after heavy bands of snow deposited 4 to 12 inches of snow across the region. Many vehicles were stranded along I-80 and I-380 as gusty winds whipped the snow into drifts up to 8 feet high.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 11 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
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 15
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.
Numerous roads and schools were closed across East Central Iowa and Northwest Illinois after heavy bands of snow deposited 4 to 12 inches of snow across the region. Many vehicles were stranded along I-80 and I-380 as gusty winds whipped the snow into drifts up to 8 feet high.
The radar
The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 134 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:06 UTC.
Event by event
9 heavy snow, 3 hail, 1 heavy rain, 1 thunderstorm wind, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Buchanan
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Buchanan forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.471, -91.838 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Delaware
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Delaware forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.471, -91.367 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Dubuque
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Dubuque forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.469, -90.882 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Iowa
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Iowa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 41.686, -92.065 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Jefferson
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Jefferson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 41.032, -91.949 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Jones
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Jones forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.121, -91.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Keokuk
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Keokuk forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 41.337, -92.179 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Linn
- When
- March 8, 10:00 AM CST to March 9, 11:00 AM CST
- Where
- Linn forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.079, -91.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Benton
- When
- March 30, 2:09 PM CST
- Where
- Benton County, 4 mi W of Vinton
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.170, -92.120
Hail, Delaware
- When
- March 30, 2:44 PM CST
- Where
- Delaware County, Delaware
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Coordinates
- 42.470, -91.350
Heavy Rain, Linn
- When
- March 30, 5:00 PM CST
- Where
- Linn County, Palo
- Coordinates
- 42.079, -91.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Strong thunderstorm dumped 3 inches of rain on Palo
Thunderstorm Wind, Jefferson
- When
- March 30, 6:16 PM CST
- Where
- Jefferson County, Fairfield
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Coordinates
- 41.000, -91.980
Hail, Des Moines
- When
- March 30, 7:58 PM CST
- Where
- Des Moines County, Yarmouth
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Coordinates
- 41.020, -91.320
Funnel Cloud, Clinton
- When
- March 30, 8:28 PM CST
- Where
- Clinton County, 1 mi E of Delmar
- Coordinates
- 41.898, -90.532 (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.
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
- Heavy Rain
- Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
- Funnel Cloud
- A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flash Flood in Alabama, March 8, 1998
- Flooding in Georgia, March 8 to 21, 1998
- Winter Storm in Illinois, March 8 to 9, 1998
- Flooding in Alabama, March 8 to 17, 1998
- Tornadoes in South Carolina, March 8, 1998
- Avalanche in Colorado, March 8, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Alabama, March 8, 1998
- Tornado in North Carolina, March 8, 1998
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in Massachusetts, March 8 to 13, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Florida, March 8, 1998
- Flooding in Georgia, March 8 to 14, 1998
- Tornado in North Carolina, March 8, 1998
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, March 1998
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: 5643354, 5643355, 5643486, 5643487, 5643488, 5643489, 5643490, 5643491, 5643492, 5643493, 5643494, 5643498, 5643495, 5643496, 5643497.