A late season winter storm moved from the central Plains into the Great Lakes on 5 March 2006. The first wave of snow mixed with some sleet occurred during the pre-dawn hours and caused little if any problems.
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.
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 episode as NWS DVN wrote it up.
A late season winter storm moved from the central Plains into the Great Lakes on 5 March 2006. The first wave of snow mixed with some sleet occurred during the pre-dawn hours and caused little if any problems. The second wave of snow occurred toward the end of the morning commute and into early afternoon. Several traffic accidents were reported in Jo Daviess County Illinois. The heaviest snowfall occurred along the U.S. 20 corridor where 4 to 6 inches of snow fell.
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 Quad Cities, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 5, 5:00 AM CST, 5 hours earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 500 AM CST SUN MAR 5 2006 .DISCUSSION... BUSY BUSY WEATHER ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING...TEMPERATURES AT THE SURFACE ARE AROUND FREEZING ACROSS THE AREA...AND WITH THE WARM LAYER ALOFT ABOVE FREEZING...WOULD NORMALLY BE EXPECTING ANOTHER BOUT OF FREEZING RAIN LIKE WE HAD ABOUT MID FEBRUARY. HOWEVER... THIS TIME WE HAVE SOME VERY LOW DEWPOINTS TO CONTEND WITH...AND THAT HAS BEEN CHANGING THE PRECIPITATION OVER TO SNOW WHERE HIGHER REFLECTIVITIES ARE SHOWING ON THE RADAR. HOWEVER...SOME OTHER LOCATIONS ARE SEEING THE FREEZING RAIN OR SLEET WHEN NOT IN THE HEAVIER PRECIPITATION. ITS A REAL MESS OUT THERE. THE SURFACE PATTERN IS OF A SURFACE LOW CENTER OVER CENTRAL KANSAS...WITH A TROUGH EXTENDING STRAIGHT NORTH ACROSS THE DAKOTAS TO ANOTHER LOW OVER SOUTHERN SASKATCHEWAN. A WARM FRONT EXTENDS ACROSS CENTRAL MISSOURI AND ILLIONIS. THE WARM FRONT MOVES VERY LITTLE TODAY...AND THE SURFACE LOW MOVES EAST ALONG IT...AND BY EVENING THE SURFACE LOW...MUCH WEAKENED...IS NEAR KSTL. DURING THIS ENTIRE TIME WE ARE GETTING STRONG ISENTROPIC LIFT ACROSS THE AREA...AND WIDESPREAD PRECIPITATION CAN BE EXPECTED TODAY. THE MAIN QUESTION IS PRECIP TYPE...WHICH IS ALWAYS A TRICKY QUESTION. FOR NOW...EXPECT THAT THE MIX WILL CONTINUE...BUT CHANGING MORE TOWARDS RAIN ACROSS THE SOUTH AS WARMER TEMPERATURES EASE IN...BUT REMAINING MIXED OR GOING OVER TOWARDS SNOW ACROSS THE NORTH. BY THIS EVENING...THE TROUGH SHIFTS EAST...AS DOES THE LIFT...AND PRECIPITATION CUTS OFF FROM WEST TO EAST ACROSS THE AREA DURING THE EVENING. BY THIS TIME...PRECIPITATION SHOULD BE ENDING OR CHANGING OVER TO SNOW BEFORE ENDING. AREAS ACROSS THE NORTH MAY RECEIVE UP TO 4 INCHES OF SNOW. THESE AMOUNTS COULD BE HIGHER IF MORE OF THE PRECIPITATION WAS ALL SNOW...BUT THE MIXED NATURE OF THE PRECIP IS CUTTING DOWN AMOUNTS DESPITE THE HIGH WATER EQUIVALENTS. THAT SAID...HAVE GONE WITH AN EXPANSION OF THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN AREA...EXTENDING IT TO THE SOUTH WHERE MORE MIXED PRECIPITATION AND SNOW IS FALLING. ALSO WITH THE PRECIPITATION LINGERING INTO THE EVENING HOURS ACROSS THE NORTH... HAVE EXTENDED THE ADVISORY IN TIME TO 9 PM TO ACCOUNT FOR THIS. BY MONDAY A SECONDARY SHORTWAVE MOVES ACROSS THE AREA...AND THOUGH IT IS JUST A GLANCING BLOW WITH MAINLY CHANNELED PVA...COMBINED WITH SOME MID LEVEL INSTABILITY FEEL THAT SNOW IS A POSSIBILITY ON MONDAY AS THIS WAVE MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. THIS DRIES UP BY MONDAY EVENING. THIS SYSTEM QUICKLY MOVES OFF TO THE EAST THEN...AND RIDGING BUILDS ACROSS THE AREA MONDAY NIGHT AND EARLY TUESDAY. BY TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING ANOTHER SYSTEM IS SPREADING RAINFALL INTO THE AREA. HOWEVER...THIS SYSTEM APPEARS TO BE ALL RAINFALL... AND LOOKS TO HOLD SOME DECENT RAINFALL AMOUNTS WITH IT...DUE TO HAVING SOME THUNDER POTENTIAL. WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...THE ACTIVE PATTERN CONTINUES THROUGH THE PERIOD. MODELS ARE ALREADY HAVING A HARD TIME WITH PHASING ISSUES BY WEDNESDAY...AND THINGS OUGHT TO BE VERY INTERESTING WHEN THAT SYSTEM COMES THROUGH...AND AGAIN ON FRIDAY. WILL HAVE TO KEEP AN EYE ON DEVELOPMENTS WITH THESE SYSTEMS AS NEW MODEL RUNS COME IN...AS WE COULD HAVE SOME DECENT RAINFALL AMOUNTS WITH EACH SYSTEM. && .DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 9 PM SUNDAY FOR DELAWARE... DUBUQUE AND JACKSON COUNTIES. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM SUNDAY FOR LOCATIONS ALONG/NORTH OF HIGHWAY 30. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM FOR INTERSTATE 80 CORRIDOR. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL NOON FOR WASHINGTON...LOUISA...HENRY... AND DES MOINES COUNTIES. IL...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT UNTIL 9 PM FOR JO DAVIESS...STEPHENSON...AND CARROLL COUTNIES. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM FOR WHITESIDE...BUREAU AND PUTNAM COUNTIES. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 3 PM FOR ROCK ISLAND...HENRY AND MERCER COUNTIES. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL NOON FOR HENDERSON...WARREN AND MCDONOUGH COUNTIES. MO...NONE. && LE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 525 AM CST SUN MAR 5 2006 IAZ040>042-051>054-063>068-076>078-087>089-098-099-ILZ001-002-007- 009-015>018-024>026-034-035-MOZ009-010-061100- BENTON IA-BUCHANAN IA-BUREAU IL-CARROLL IL-CEDAR IA-CLARK MO- CLINTON IA-DELAWARE IA-DES MOINES IA-DUBUQUE IA-HANCOCK IL- HENDERSON IL-HENRY IA-HENRY IL-IOWA IA-JACKSON IA-JEFFERSON IA- JO DAVIESS IL-JOHNSON IA-JONES IA-KEOKUK IA-LEE IA-LINN IA-LOUISA IA- MCDONOUGH IL-MERCER IL-MUSCATINE IA-PUTNAM IL-ROCK ISLAND IL- SCOTLAND MO-SCOTT IA-STEPHENSON IL-VAN BUREN IA-WARREN IL- WASHINGTON IA-WHITESIDE IL- 525 AM CST SUN MAR 5 2006 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS...NORTHWEST ILLINOIS...WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS...EAST CENTRAL IOWA...NORTHEAST IOWA...SOUTHEAST IOWA AND NORTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A WINTRY MIX OF PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED TODAY. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE THROUGH MIDDAY SUNDAY. PRECIPITATION IN THE FORM OF MIXED SNOW...SLEET...AND FREEZING RAIN WILL AFFECT AREAS NORTHEAST OF A LINE FROM WILLIAMSBURG IOWA TO MACOMB ILLINOIS. THE BEST CHANCES FOR FREEZING RAIN ARE BETWEEN INDEPENDENCE IOWA...CLINTON IOWA...STERLING ILLINOIS...MACOMB BILLIONS...BURLINGTON IOWA...AND WILLIAMSBURG IOWA...WHERE UP TO A TENTH OF AN INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION IS POSSIBLE. MOSTLY RAIN WILL AFFECT AREAS SOUTH OF A WILLIAMSBURG IOWA TO MACOMB ILLINOIS LINE. THIS PRECIPITATION WILL END SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM TWO TO FOUR INCHES IN THE NORTHEAST PART OF THE REGION...TO LITTLE IF ANY ACCUMULATIONS ALONG AND SOUTH OF AN IOWA CITY TO ALEDO ILLINOIS. ANY KIND OF WINTRY PRECIPITATION CAN BE EXPECTED TO ADVERSELY IMPACT TRAVEL CONDITIONS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS THE ENTIRE REGION. IF THIS RAIN MATERIALIZES...IT COULD RESULT IN ELEVATED STREAM LEVELS. OTHERWISE...THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT...THOUGH REPORTS OF SNOWFALL AND FREEZING PRECIPITATION WOULD BE APPRECIATED. LE
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Also from co-op observers.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Illinois in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, March 2006
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: 5497768.