Ice Storm in Kansas, March 16 to 17, 1998

Name: Ice Storm in Kansas, March 16 to 17, 1998
Start: 1998-03-16T13:00
End: 1998-03-17T02:53
Location: Kansas

March 16 to 17, 1998 · NWS DDC · 39 events in 24 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 39 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: $1.2 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 39

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 DDC wrote it up.

Ice storm occurred with anywhere from 1/2 inch of ice accumulation on roadways to several inches of ice accumulations on objects such as radio towers. Every radio station in the area had damage due to the ice accumulation. There was one report of a chunk of ice falling completely through a cab of a pickup. Fortunately...no one was inside at the time. KRPH's 800 foot radio tower completely fell down with a reported 6 inches of ice accumulation. 1450 power poles came down across the area. Power was out for 4 to 6 days in some places. A USDA weather related disaster was declared.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

39 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Edwards

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Edwards forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.888, -99.312 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ellis

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ellis forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.915, -99.317 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Finney

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Finney forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.044, -100.737 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ford

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ford forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.692, -99.888 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Gray

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Gray forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.738, -100.438 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Haskell

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Haskell forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.562, -100.871 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Hodgeman

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Hodgeman forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.088, -99.898 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Kiowa

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Kiowa forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.558, -99.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Lane

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Lane forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.481, -100.466 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ness

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ness forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.479, -99.916 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Pawnee

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Pawnee forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.181, -99.237 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Pratt

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Pratt forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.648, -98.740 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Rush

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Rush forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.523, -99.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Scott

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.482, -100.907 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Stafford

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Stafford forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.031, -98.717 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Trego

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Trego forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.914, -99.873 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ellis

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ellis forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.915, -99.317 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Finney

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Finney forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.044, -100.737 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ford

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ford forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.692, -99.888 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Grant

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Grant forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.562, -101.308 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Gray

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Gray forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.738, -100.438 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Hamilton

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.999, -101.791 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Haskell

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Haskell forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.562, -100.871 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Hodgeman

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Hodgeman forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.088, -99.898 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Kearny

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Kearny forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.000, -101.320 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Kiowa

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Kiowa forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.558, -99.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Lane

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Lane forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.481, -100.466 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Meade

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Meade forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.238, -100.366 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Morton

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Morton forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.191, -101.799 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Ness

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Ness forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.479, -99.916 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Pawnee

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Pawnee forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.181, -99.237 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Pratt

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Pratt forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.648, -98.740 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Rush

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Rush forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.523, -99.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Scott

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.482, -100.907 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Seward

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Seward forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.193, -100.851 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Stafford

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Stafford forecast zone
Coordinates: 38.031, -98.717 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Stanton

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Stanton forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.563, -101.784 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Stevens

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Stevens forecast zone
Coordinates: 37.192, -101.312 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Trego

When: March 16, 1:00 PM CST to March 17, 2:53 AM CST
Where: Trego forecast zone
Property damage: $1.2 million
Coordinates: 38.914, -99.873 (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 Kansas in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Kansas, 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: 5638730, 5638731, 5638732, 5638733, 5638734, 5638735, 5638736, 5638737, 5638738, 5638828, 5638829, 5638830, 5638831, 5638832, 5638833, 5638834, 5638835, 5638836, 5638837, 5638838, 5638839, 5638840, 5638841, 5638842, 5638843, 5638844, 5638845, 5638846, 5638847, 5638848, 5638849, 5638850, 5638851, 5638852, 5638853, 5638854, 5638855, 5638856, 5638857.