Cold in Nebraska, December 20 to 23, 1998

Name: Cold in Nebraska, December 20 to 23, 1998
Start: 1998-12-20T00:00
End: 1998-12-23T18:00
Location: Nebraska

December 20 to 23, 1998 · NWS GID · 24 events in 24 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 24 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: 24

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.

After weeks of unseasonably warm weather across south-central Nebraska, a strong arctic surge brought a quick end to the warmth. Temperatures steadily declined into the single digits by the evening of the 20th as arctic air sagged south across the area. Snowfall for the event was light and ranged from 1 to 3 inches. As the cold air deepened by the morning of the 22nd, temperatures fell well below zero. The coldest morning of the season so far was on the 23rd, when temperatures dropped as low as 17 below zero with clear skies. Wind chill readings ranged from 20 to 45 below zero. The cold surge gave way to warmer weather by Christmas Day.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

24 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Webster

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Webster forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.176, -98.500 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, York

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: York forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.873, -97.597 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Adams

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Adams forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.525, -98.501 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Buffalo

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Buffalo forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.855, -99.075 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Clay

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.524, -98.051 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Dawson

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Dawson forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.870, -99.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Fillmore

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Fillmore forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.525, -97.596 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Franklin

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.176, -98.953 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Furnas

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Furnas forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.177, -99.912 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Gosper

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Gosper forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.515, -99.831 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Greeley

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Greeley forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.567, -98.521 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Hall

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Hall forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.873, -98.502 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Hamilton

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.874, -98.023 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Harlan

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Harlan forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.177, -99.405 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Howard

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Howard forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.220, -98.517 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Kearney

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Kearney forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.507, -98.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Merrick

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Merrick forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.170, -98.038 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Nance

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Nance forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.397, -97.992 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Nuckolls

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Nuckolls forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.176, -98.047 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Phelps

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Phelps forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.511, -99.414 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Polk

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Polk forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.187, -97.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Sherman

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Sherman forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.221, -98.976 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Thayer

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Thayer forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.176, -97.595 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Valley

When: December 20, 12:00 AM CST to December 23, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Valley forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.567, -98.982 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill: Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Nebraska in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Nebraska, December 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: 5675586, 5675587, 5677551, 5677552, 5677553, 5677554, 5677555, 5677556, 5677557, 5677558, 5677559, 5677560, 5677561, 5677562, 5677563, 5677564, 5677565, 5677566, 5677567, 5677568, 5677569, 5677570, 5677571, 5677572.