Heavy Snow in Iowa, February 2, 2004

Name: Heavy Snow in Iowa, February 2, 2004
Start: 2004-02-02T04:00
End: 2004-02-02T17:00
Location: Iowa

February 2, 2004 · NWS DMX · 20 events in 20 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 20 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: 20

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 DMX wrote it up.

A widespread snow event took place during the 1st and 2nd of February. An Arctic airmass was in place over Iowa during the last few days of January while low pressure formed over the southern Rockies. The surface low did not become very well organized until the late afternoon of the 2nd, however there was a pronounced upper level trough traversing the central U.S. A large area of isentropic lift produced a broad area of snow over the central U.S. The northward transport of warm air was very evident between 800 and 850 mb, where soundings indicated a layer of above freezing air already by the evening of the 1st. This event was a long and drawn out event with the first snow beginning before sunrise on the 1st. It snowed for 18 to 24 hours in most places before the snow reached warning criteria. The snow continued through much of the day on the 2nd, however accumulation rates were low. The evidence of the warm air was apparent during the evening of the 1st as sleet and some freezing drizzle was reported over about the southeast half of Iowa. There were even reports of thunder received from Marshall County. The sleet and freezing drizzle did not become a major problem, but did continue off and on for several hours from the mid afternoon through the evening of the 1st. Snow was falling quite heavily during the evening of the 1st until a strong dry punch moved over the state. This stopped the snow over the southeast half of the state and help to produce a narrow deformation band of snow running from near Omaha to near Mason City. Snow was persistent in this area with snowfall totals in the 8 to 11 inch range common. Some of the heavier totals included nearly 13 inches at Britt in Hancock County, and 11 inches in Fort Dodge in Webster County. There were several reports in the 9 to 10 inch range as well.

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.

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 1, 3:35 PM CST, 12 hours 25 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
335 PM CST SUN FEB 1 2004

IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>061-070>073-081>083-
092>094-021200-
ADAIR-ADAMS-AUDUBON-BLACK HAWK-BOONE-BREMER-BUTLER-CALHOUN-CARROLL-
CASS-CERRO GORDO-CLARKE-CRAWFORD-DALLAS-DECATUR-EMMET-FRANKLIN-
GREENE-GRUNDY-GUTHRIE-HAMILTON-HANCOCK-HARDIN-HUMBOLDT-JASPER-
KOSSUTH-MADISON-MARSHALL-PALO ALTO-POCAHONTAS-POLK-RINGGOLD-SAC-
STORY-TAMA-TAYLOR-UNION-WARREN-WEBSTER-WINNEBAGO-WORTH-WRIGHT-
335 PM CST SUN FEB 1 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL IOWA...ALONG
AND NORTHWEST OF A TAMA-INDIANOLA-LAMONI LINE.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT
SNOW WILL INCREASE IN COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OVER CENTRAL IOWA
OVERNIGHT. EXPECT PERIODS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW...WITH ADDITIONAL
SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES BY MORNING OVER MOST
OF CENTRAL IOWA. ROADS WILL BECOME VERY SLICK AND HAZARDOUS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY
PERIODS OF MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE
DAY ON MONDAY...WITH ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES. AN
ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES COULD FALL IN THE MASON CITY AND WATERLOO
AREAS MONDAY EVENING BEFORE THE SNOW DIMINISHES. THE AXIS OF
HEAVIEST SNOWFALL WILL OCCUR FROM ATLANTIC...TO BOONE...TO MASON
CITY...WITH 8 TO 12 INCH AMOUNTS THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. LESSER
AMOUNTS OF 6 TO 8 INCHES ARE EXPECTED TO THE NORTHWEST AND
SOUTHEAST OF THAT LINE. AN INCREASING WIND MONDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT
WILL PRODUCE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW AND VERY DANGEROUS DRIVING
CONDITIONS.

THERE IS ANOTHER CHANCE OF ACCUMULATING SNOW ACROSS CENTRAL IOWA
LATE WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS ANTICIPATED FOR SNOWFALL REPORTS.

IAZ062-074-075-084>086-095>097-021200-
APPANOOSE-DAVIS-LUCAS-MAHASKA-MARION-MONROE-POWESHIEK-WAPELLO-WAYNE-
335 PM CST SUN FEB 1 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST IOWA...
SOUTHEAST OF A TAMA-INDIANOLA-LAMONI LINE.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT
A PERIOD OF SLEET OR SLEET MIXED WITH SNOW IS EXPECTED LATE TONIGHT
ALONG AND SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM CORYDON TO GRINNELL. SNOWFALL
ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD BE LESS THAN ONE INCH...BUT SLEET WILL STILL
PRODUCE SLICK ROAD CONDITIONS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY
A MIX OF SLEET AND SNOW WILL CONTINUE MONDAY MORNING...BEFORE
TRANSITIONING TO ALL SNOW. ACCUMULATIONS UP TO 6 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE
THROUGH THE DAY INTO THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. AN INCREASING
NORTHWEST WIND WILL PRODUCE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW FROM LATE
AFTERNOON THROUGH THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. EXPECT VERY HAZARDOUS
DRIVING CONDITIONS.

THERE IS ANOTHER CHANCE OF ACCUMULATING SNOW ACROSS CENTRAL IOWA LATE
WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS ANTICIPATED FOR SNOWFALL REPORTS.

KINNEY

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

20 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Audubon

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Audubon forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.685, -94.906 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Boone

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Boone forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.037, -93.932 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Calhoun

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Calhoun forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.385, -94.640 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Carroll

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Carroll forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.861 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Cass

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Cass forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.332, -94.928 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Cerro Gordo

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Cerro Gordo forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 43.082, -93.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Crawford

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Crawford forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.037, -95.382 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Franklin

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Franklin forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.733, -93.262 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Greene

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Greene forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.397 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Guthrie

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Guthrie forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 41.684, -94.501 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hamilton

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hancock

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Hancock forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 43.082, -93.734 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hardin

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Hardin forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.240 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Humboldt

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Humboldt forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.777, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Kossuth

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Kossuth forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 43.204, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pocahontas

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Pocahontas forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.734, -94.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Sac

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Sac forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.386, -95.105 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Webster

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Webster forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.428, -94.182 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Worth

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Worth forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 43.377, -93.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Wright

When: February 2, 4:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where: Wright forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.733, -93.735 (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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, February 2004

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: 5387343, 5387344, 5387345, 5387346, 5387347, 5387348, 5387349, 5387350, 5387351, 5387352, 5387353, 5387354, 5387463, 5387464, 5387465, 5387466, 5387467, 5387468, 5387469, 5387470.