Ice Storm in Oklahoma, December 22 to 24, 1998

Name: Ice Storm in Oklahoma, December 22 to 24, 1998
Start: 1998-12-22T18:00
End: 1998-12-24T20:00
Location: Oklahoma

December 22 to 24, 1998 · NWS SHV · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 ice storm, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 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

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, McCurtain

When: December 22, 6:00 PM CST to December 24, 8:00 PM CST
Where: McCurtain forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 34.115, -94.771 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A shallow arctic air mass spread southward across all of southwest Arkansas while low pressure formed in the Gulf of Mexico spreading warm moist air northward over the top of the artic air mass. This resulted in widespread freezing rain, freezing drizzle, and sleet. Overall, accumulations of ice and sleet was generally below one inch. The ice accumulated mainly across exposed surfaces such as trees, powerlines, bridges, and overpasses. Numerous power outages, a few automobile accidents, and a few downed trees were the result of the ice storm.

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 Oklahoma in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Oklahoma, 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: 5677648.