Ice Storm in Iowa, February 7 to 8, 2001

Name: Ice Storm in Iowa, February 7 to 8, 2001
Start: 2001-02-07T16:00
End: 2001-02-08T02:00
Location: Iowa

February 7 to 8, 2001 · NWS ARX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

Ice accumulations of 1/4 inch were common across northeast Iowa due to freezing rain. Law enforcement officials reported a widespread glaze of ice, especially on sidewalks and secondary roads.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 8 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: 8

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 ARX wrote it up.

Ice accumulations of 1/4 inch were common across northeast Iowa due to freezing rain. Law enforcement officials reported a widespread glaze of ice, especially on sidewalks and secondary roads.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS La Crosse, WI wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 7, 3:45 PM CST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 7, 3:45 PM CST, 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
345 PM CST WEB FEB 7 2001

PRIMARY CONCERNS WILL BE PRECIPITATION TYPES AND AMOUNTS THROUGH
FRIDAY...AND STRONG WINDS ON FRIDAY.

LATEST SURFACE ANALYSIS HAD A WARM FRONT FROM NORTHERN KANSAS EAST
THROUGH CENTRAL MISSOURI INTO SOUTHERN ILLINOIS. LOCAL RADARS SHOWED
A BROAD AREA OF LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOW OVER THE FORECAST AREA. KDMX
RADAR SHOWING SOME REDEVELOPMENT OF PRECIPITATION OCCURRING IN
CENTRAL IOWA. TEMPERATURES LATE THIS AFTERNOON WERE IN THE LOWER TO
MIDDLE 20S IN SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND WEST CENTRAL WISCONSIN...AND
THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 20S IN NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN.
OBSERVATIONS AT KMCW AND KALO INDICATED THE PRECIPITATION HAD
CHANGED OVER TO FREEZING RAIN.

ETA/AVN MUCH CLOSER ON LOW LEVEL TEMPERATURE STRUCTURE LAST TWO RUNS
THAN EARLIER. WARM AIR INTRUSION AT 850 MB REACHES INTO EXTREME
SOUTHERN MINNESOTA AND MOST OF SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN ZONES DURING THE
NIGHT. STRONG LOW LEVEL WARM AIR ADVECTION ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA
THROUGH MOST OF THE NIGHT...BUT PUSHING INTO EASTERN WISCONSIN
TOWARDS 08/12Z. WARM AIR ADVECTION INCREASES ACROSS WESTERN
WISCONSIN INTO EXTREME EASTERN SECTIONS OF MINNESOTA AND IOWA BY
THURSDAY AFTERNOON (09/00Z). JET MAX MOVES TO NORTH OF AREA ON
THURSDAY AFTERNOON...AND STRONG UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE AREA SITTING
ACROSS REGION BY 09/00Z AND LINGERS THROUGH 09/18Z. MODEL SOUNDINGS
INDICATE FAR NORTHWESTERN ZONES WILL HAVE SNOW AS THE DOMINANT
PRECIPITATION TYPE THROUGH FRIDAY. IN THE SOUTHEAST ZONES OF
SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN...MODEL SOUNDINGS INDICATE PRECIPITATION GOING
OVER TO FREEZING RAIN THIS EVENING AND LASTING INTO MORNING.
IT MAY BE WARM ENOUGH FOR RAIN IN SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN THURSDAY
AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING...BUT SHOULD CHANGE BACK TO FREEZING
RAIN SOMETIME IN THE EVENING. PRECIPITATION TYPE GOES BACK TO SNOW
BY FRIDAY MORNING. IN BETWEEN...TOO WIDE A VARIETY OF PRECIPITATION
TYPES TO SPELL OUT. STRONG COLD FRONT PUSHES EAST OF THE AREA EARLY
FRIDAY MORNING. STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION BY 09/12Z. SURFACE
PRESSURE GRADIENTS BECOME VERY STRONG DURING THE DAY. WINDS AT 850
MB IN THE 40 TO 45 KT RANGE BY 09/18Z.

BELIEVE SIGNIFICANT ICING ON TAP FOR SOUTHERN ZONES...SO ISSUED ICE
STORM WARNING EARLIER TODAY FOR TONIGHT. WILL LEAVE OTHER CURRENT
ADVISORIES AND WARNINGS RUN FOR TONIGHT. THERE WILL BE A BREAK IN
THE PRECIPITATION DURING THE MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON HOURS.
PRECIPITATION WILL BEGIN AGAIN RANGING FROM SNOW IN THE FAR
NORTHWESTERN ZONES TO RAIN IN SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN. THE
PRECIPITATION SHOULD CHANGE OVER TO SNOW EARLY IN SOUTHEAST
MINNESOTA AND NORTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN. PRECIPITATION WILL CHANGE
FROM RAIN TO FREEZING RAIN DURING THE EARLY EVENING HOURS IN
SOUTHWEST WISCONSIN AND EVENTUALLY TO SNOW.  WINDS WILL BECOME A
SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM FOR BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW BY NOON FRIDAY.
WINDS WILL ALSO PRESENT A PROBLEM FOR NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHWEST
WISCONSIN WHERE TREES AND POWER LINES ARE EXPECTED TO HAVE A
SIGNIFICANT ICE ACCUMULATION ON THEM.

THANKS FOR COORDINATION WITH MPX...MKX...GRB...DMX...AND DVN.

.LSE...WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT...MNZ079-086-087-WIZ017-029-032-
       033.
    ICE STORM WARNING TONIGHT...NE IA AND SW WI...IAZ008>011-018-
    019-029-030-WIZ054-055-061.
    WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT...PARTS OF SE MN AND WI
    ...MNZ088-094>096-WIZ034-041>044-053.
    WINTER STORM WATCH THURSDAY AFTERNOON/NIGHT INTO FRIDAY...ENTIRE
    AREA...IAZ008>011-018-019-029-030-MNZ079-086>088-094>096-WIZ017-
    029-032>034-041>044-053>055-061.

NELSON

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Mitchell

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Mitchell forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.356, -92.789 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Floyd

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Floyd forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.060, -92.789 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Howard

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Howard forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.357, -92.317 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Chickasaw

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Chickasaw forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.060, -92.318 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Winneshiek

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Winneshiek forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.291, -91.844 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Allamakee

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Allamakee forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 43.284, -91.378 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Fayette

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Fayette forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 42.863, -91.844 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Ice Storm, Clayton

When: February 7, 4:00 PM CST to February 8, 2:00 AM CST
Where: Clayton forecast zone
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 42.845, -91.341 (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 Iowa in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, February 2001

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: 5229634, 5229635, 5229636, 5229637, 5229638, 5229639, 5229640, 5229641.