Heavy Snow in Iowa, December 1 to 31, 2000

Name: Heavy Snow in Iowa, December 1 to 31, 2000
Start: 2000-12-01T00:00
End: 2000-12-31T23:59
Location: Iowa

December 1 to 31, 2000 · NWS DVN · 21 events in 21 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 21 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: 21

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.

December 2000 across the upper midwest was noteworthy for record-setting snowfall amounts at many locations. Snowfall amounts of 8 to 10 inches were common from a major storm that swept across the area on December 10th and 11th. Much of the remainder of the month was characterized by a persistent northwest flow pattern with frequent Alberta Clipper storm systems, which produced snowfall amounts of generally 2 to 6 inches over eastern Iowa, as well as periodic Arctic air outbreaks. In the Quad Cities, the total snowfall for the month was 32.0 inches, which broke the old mark for the month of 22.0 inches. December was also the snowiest month ever in the Quad Cities. the previous record was 26.7 inches in January of 1979. The snow depth on Christmas Day was 11 inches, which topped the old record of 8 inches. Dubuque also had a record-setting December. The total snowfall was 37.6 inches, which established records for December and all-time monthly snowfall. The heavy snow during the month was a factor in the roof collapse at two Clinton businesses during early January of 2001.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

21 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Benton

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Benton forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.080, -92.066 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Buchanan

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Buchanan forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.471, -91.838 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Cedar

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Cedar forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.772, -91.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Clinton

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Clinton forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.898, -90.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Delaware

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Delaware forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.471, -91.367 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Des Moines

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Des Moines forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Dubuque

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Dubuque forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.469, -90.882 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Henry

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Henry forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 40.988, -91.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Iowa

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Iowa forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.686, -92.065 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jackson

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jackson forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.172, -90.574 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jefferson

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.032, -91.949 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Johnson

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Johnson forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.672, -91.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jones

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Jones forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.121, -91.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Keokuk

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Keokuk forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.337, -92.179 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Lee

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lee forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 40.642, -91.479 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Linn

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Linn forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.079, -91.599 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Louisa

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Louisa forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.219, -91.260 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Muscatine

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Muscatine forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.484, -91.113 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Scott

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Scott forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.637, -90.623 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Van Buren

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Van Buren forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 40.753, -91.950 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Washington

When: December 1, 12:00 AM CST to December 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Washington forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.336, -91.718 (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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 2000 Every state in 2000 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, December 2000

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: 5177259, 5177260, 5177261, 5177262, 5177263, 5177264, 5177265, 5177266, 5177267, 5177268, 5177269, 5177270, 5177271, 5177272, 5177273, 5177274, 5177275, 5177361, 5177362, 5177363, 5177364.