Cold in Minnesota, February 16 to 18, 2006

Name: Cold in Minnesota, February 16 to 18, 2006
Start: 2006-02-16T18:00
End: 2006-02-18T12:00
Location: Minnesota

February 16 to 18, 2006 · NWS DLH · 15 events in 15 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 15 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: 15

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 DLH wrote it up.

Temperatures from -15 to -25 along with winds of 15 to 20 mph created wind chills of -45 to -55 across much of northern Minnesota through the period. Wind chills dropped that low elsewhere across the rest of the DLH CWA. Duluth International Airport had a low of -19 with winds at 20 mph caused wind chills of -40 to -50 on the 17th.

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 Duluth, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 16, 5:11 PM CST, 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 16, 5:11 PM CST, 49 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
511 PM CST THU FEB 16 2006

.UPDATE...RAPID DETERIORATION OF WEATHER CONDITIONS EXPECTED ACROSS
BAYFIELD/ASHLAND/IRON COUNTIES OF NORTHWEST WISCONSIN THROUGH 7 PM.

INCREASINGLY COLD AIR.. COMBINED WITH LONG N/NNE FETCH LENGTHS AND
COMPLETELY OPEN AND STILL SEASONABLY WARM LAKE SFC TEMPS FROM 36-37
DEGREES WILL RESULT IN A RAPID INCREASE IN INTENSITY/COVERAGE OF
HEAVY LAKE-EFFECT SNOWS. KDLH RADAR TRENDS CONFIRM THIS ATTM WITH
A FEW ECHO TOPS IN DEVELOPING SNOW BAND OVER CHEQUAMEGON BAY BETWEEN
8-10KFT AGL..IMPLYING VERY VIGOROUS HEAT TRANSPORT/CONVECTION
UNDERWAY. ATTM IT APPEARS THAT LOCAL SNOWFALL RATES COULD EASILY
EXCEED 1 INCH PER HOUR FROM NOW THROUGH MIDNIGHT-3 AM TIME FRAME IN
HEAVIEST BANDS.

SFC PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL ALSO STRENGTHEN BETWEEN 1050+ ARCTIC HIGH
AND SFC LOW MOVING NEWD INTO LOWER MI.. RESULTING IN SFC WINDS
INCREASING TO 15 TO 25 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS.  THE COMBINATION OF
HEAVY SNOWFALL RATES AND INCREASING WINDS IS LIKELY TO RESULT IN
NEAR BLIZZARD CONDITIONS UNDER HEAVIEST SNOW BANDS AFFECTING THE
BAYFIELD PENINSULA/ASHLAND/HURLEY/US HIGHWAY 2/GOGEBIC RANGE WELL
INTO THE NIGHT TIME HOURS.

 MILLER

PREVIOUS DISCUSSION ISSUED 321 PM CST THU FEB 16 2006

.DISCUSSION...THERE IS NOT TIME TO GET ESOTERIC HERE BUT A 1057 MB
HIGH OVER SASKATCHEWAN COUPLED WITH A RAPIDLY DEEPEINIG STORM OVER
CHICAGO IMPLIES COLD ADVECTION FOR OUR AREA. IN SPITE OF THE LATE
DATE...THIS ARCTIC OUTBREAK...IN BOTH LONGEVITY AND INTENSITY IS A
PIECE OF WORK FOR JANUARY. A CORE OF 850 MB TEMPERATURES BELOW -40C
HEADING RIGHT FOR OUR AREA IS NOT SOMETHING WE HAVE SEEN FOR QUITE
AWHILE. WE SEEM TO BE GETTING WHAT THE OTHER SIDE OF THE NORTHERN
HEMISPHERE HAS GOTTEN ALL WINTER. AND...THIS COLD AIR WILL BE
COMING IN ON BRISK SURFACE WINDS...850 MB WINDS OF 30 TO 40 KTS
COUPLED WITH A VERY STEEP LAPSE RATE WILL CREATE EXTREME WIND
CHILLS FOR THE NEXT TWO OR THREE NIGHTS. WITH THE DEPARTING
CHICAGO LOW CREATING AN ONSHORE FLOW OFF LAKE SUPERIOR ONTO THE
WISCONSIN SHORE...VERY HEAVY LAKE-EFFECT SNOW WILL ALSO BE A
CONCERN IN SPITE OF THE EXTREMELY COLD COLUMN BEING LIMITED IN ITS
CAPACITY OF HOLDING MOISTURE.

ASIDE FROM THE LAKE EFFECT SITUATION TONIGHT...WE ANCPT VERY DRY
WEATHER. PRIND TEMPERATURES WILL MODERATE BEGINNING THE MIDDLE OF
NEXT WEEK. HOWEVER THIS MODERATION WILL BE BRIEF...LITTLE...AND
TEMPORARY. AGAIN...THIS KIND OF OUTBREAK IS IMPRESSIVE...ALMOST
FANTASTIC UNDER A LATE FEBRUARY SUN.

&&

.AVIATION...AREAS OF LIGHT SNOW WITH MVFR-IFR CIGS AND VSBYS WILL
AFFECT OUR FCST AREA THROUGH AT LEAST THIS EVENING...AS A LARGE
UPPER LEVEL TROUGH CROSSES THE UPPER MIDWEST. CONDITIONS SHOULD
IMPROVE FOR MOST AREAS LATE TONIGHT OR TOMORROW MORNING...BUT SCT TO
ISOLD SHSN MAY LINGER ACROSS PARTS OF THE REGION LATER TONIGHT AND
ON FRIDAY...ESPECIALLY FOR AREAS JUST SOUTH OF LAKE SUPERIOR WHICH
WILL RECEIVE APPRECIABLE LAKE EFFECT SNOWFALL.

&&

.DLH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...

MN...WIND CHILL WARNING UNTIL 12 PM CST SATURDAY FOR MNZ010-MNZ011-
     MNZ012-MNZ018-MNZ019-MNZ020-MNZ021-MNZ026.

     WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 6 PM FRIDAY TO 12 PM CST SATURDAY FOR
     MNZ025-MNZ033-MNZ034-MNZ035-MNZ036-MNZ037-MNZ038.

     WIND CHILL ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST FRIDAY FOR MNZ025-MNZ033-
     MNZ034-MNZ035-MNZ036-MNZ037-MNZ038.

WI...WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 6 PM FRIDAY TO 12 PM CST SATURDAY FOR
     WIZ001-WIZ002-WIZ003-WIZ004-WIZ006-WIZ007-WIZ008-WIZ009.

     WIND CHILL ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST FRIDAY FOR WIZ001-WIZ002-
     WIZ003-WIZ004-WIZ006-WIZ007-WIZ008-WIZ009.

     LAKE EFFECT SNOW WARNING UNTIL 10 AM CST FRIDAY FOR WIZ002-
     WIZ003-WIZ004.

EOM/BERDES

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 16, 4:11 PM CST, 1 hour 49 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
411 PM CST THU FEB 16 2006

LSZ121-140>148-162-MNZ010>012-018>021-025-026-033>038-WIZ001>004-
006>009-171330-
BAYFIELD TO OAK POINT WI-GRAND PORTAGE TO GRAND MARAIS MN-
GRAND MARAIS TO TACONITE HARBOR MN-
TACONITE HARBOR TO SILVER BAY HARBOR MN-
SILVER BAY HARBOR TO TWO HARBORS MN-TWO HARBORS TO DULUTH MN-
DULUTH MN TO PORT WING WI-PORT WING TO SAND ISLAND WI-
SAND ISLAND TO BAYFIELD WI-OAK POINT TO SAXON HARBOR WI-
OPEN WATERS OF LAKE SUPERIOR WEST OF A LINE FROM SAXON HARBOR WI
TO GRAND PORTAGE MN-KOOCHICHING-NORTHERN ST. LOUIS-
NORTHERN COOK/NORTHERN LAKE-NORTHERN ITASCA-CENTRAL ST. LOUIS-
SOUTHERN LAKE/LAKESHORE-SOUTHERN COOK/LAKESHORE-NORTHERN CASS-
SOUTHERN ITASCA-SOUTHERN CASS-CROW WING-NORTHERN AITKIN-
SOUTHERN AITKIN-CARLTON/SOUTHERN ST. LOUIS-PINE-DOUGLAS-
BAYFIELD-ASHLAND-IRON-BURNETT-WASHBURN-SAWYER-PRICE-
411 PM CST THU FEB 16 2006

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST MINNESOTA...
NORTHWEST WISCONSIN AND ADJACENT WATERS OF WESTERN LAKE SUPERIOR.

.DAY ONE...THIS EVENING THROUGH TONIGHT

MODERATE TO LOCALLY HEAVY LAKE EFFECT SNOW WILL AFFECT THE SNOW BELT
OF NORTHWEST WISCONSIN ALONG THE SOUTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR
THROUGH TONIGHT. THE HEAVIEST SNOW WILL OCCUR ACROSS BAYFIELD...
ASHLAND AND IRON COUNTIES... WHERE ACCUMULATIONS FROM 8 TO 12
INCHES... WITH LOCALLY HEAVIER AMOUNTS... ARE EXPECTED.  STRONG
NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS FROM 15 TO 25 MPH WILL COMBINE WITH THE
SNOW TO RESULT IN NEAR-BLIZZARD CONDITIONS AT TIMES... CAUSING
SEVERELY LIMITED VISIBILITY IN BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW.

THE COLDEST AIR OF THE WINTER SEASON WILL MOVE INTO THE NORTHLAND
BEGINNING LATE TONIGHT.  THE COMBINATION OF TEMPERATURES FALLING
WELL BELOW ZERO BY FRIDAY MORNING... AND WIND SPEEDS FROM 10 TO 20
MPH WILL RESULT IN DANGEROUSLY COLD WIND CHILLS FROM 25 TO 35 BELOW
ZERO ACROSS MOST OF NORTHEAST MINNESOTA AND NORTHWEST WISCONSIN BY
LATE TONIGHT.

PLEASE SEE THE LATEST WINTER WEATHER INFORMATIONAL PRODUCTS ISSUED
BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN DULUTH FOR MORE
INFORMATION.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

DANGEROUSLY COLD WIND CHILLS FROM 30 TO 50 BELOW ZERO WILL CONTINUE
TO AFFECT MOST OF THE NORTHLAND FRIDAY... FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY
MORNING... AND WIND CHILL WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES HAVE BEEN ISSUED
FOR ALL OF NORTHEAST MINNESOTA AND NORTHWEST WISCONSIN THROUGH
SATURDAY MORNING.

LAKE EFFECT SNOW IS EXPECTED TO RAPIDLY DIMINISH FRIDAY MORNING OVER
NORTHWEST WISCONSIN... WITH ONLY SMALL ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS
FRIDAY MORNING.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SKYWARN SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED...BUT SNOWFALL
SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO PLEASE CALL IN THEIR REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN DULUTH.

 MILLER

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

15 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Lake

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern Lake forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.557, -91.935 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Itasca

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Itasca

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Northern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Central St. Louis

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Central St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Cook

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern Cook forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.817, -90.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Northern St. Louis

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Northern St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Cook / Northern Lake

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Northern Cook / Northern Lake forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.670, -90.975 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Koochiching

When: February 16, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Koochiching forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 48.245, -93.783 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Cass

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Northern Cass forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Cass

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern Cass forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Crow Wing

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Crow Wing forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.482, -94.071 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Aitkin

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Northern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Aitkin

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Southern St. Louis / Carlton

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Southern St. Louis / Carlton forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 47.091, -92.569 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Pine

When: February 17, 6:00 PM CST to February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Pine forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.121, -92.741 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill: Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Minnesota in 2006 Every state in 2006 This day in weather history Warnings in Minnesota, February 2006

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: 5491194, 5491195, 5491196, 5491197, 5491198, 5491199, 5491200, 5491202, 5491201, 5491203, 5491204, 5491205, 5491206, 5491207, 5491208.