Extreme Cold in Minnesota, January 29 to 30, 2008

Name: Extreme Cold in Minnesota, January 29 to 30, 2008
Start: 2008-01-29T16:00
End: 2008-01-30T11:00
Location: Minnesota

January 29 to 30, 2008 · NWS DLH · 15 events in 15 counties and zones

An Arctic air mass combined with brisk winds to produce wind chills of 40 to 55 below in northeast Minnesota during the evening of January 29 through the morning hours of January 30. Many school districts canceled classes due to the extreme weather.

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.

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 Jan 28, 4:01 PM CST, 23 hours 59 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 28, 4:01 PM CST, 23 hours 59 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DULUTH MN
401 PM CST MON JAN 28 2008

.DISCUSSION...MAIN FORECAST CONCERN FOR THE SHORT TERM CONTINUES
TO BE THE IMPENDING ARCTIC FRONTAL PASSAGE WITH A WINTRY MIX OF
PRECIPITATION TONIGHT...THE SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW FOR
TUESDAY...AND THEN THE VERY COLD WIND CHILLS TUESDAY AFTERNOON
THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING.

LATEST SFC ANALYSIS SHOWS COLD FRONT JUST CROSSING INTO NWRN
MINNESOTA...WITH TEMPS DROPPING 20 DEGREES IN A FEW HOURS BEHIND
THE FRONT. AT THE SAME TIME...ECHOES ARE INCREASING IN COVERAGE
AND INTENSITY ON REGIONAL RADAR...WITH RAIN ALREADY BEING REPORTED
ACROSS OUR SWRN ZONES. THIS PRECIP IS MAINLY ASSOCIATED WITH AN
UPPER-LEVEL SHORTWAVE LIFTING NE ACROSS THE UPPER MIDWEST AHEAD OF
THE MAIN TROUGH. THE CONCERN IS THAT AS THE COLDER AIR MOVES IN
FROM THE WEST...THE RAIN MAY BECOME FREEZING RAIN FOR A SHORT
PERIOD BEFORE THE PRECIP CHANGES OVER TO SNOW. THIS WILL MOST
LIKELY HAPPEN BETWEEN 9PM AND 3AM TONIGHT. HOWEVER WE EXPECT ALL
OF THE PRECIP TO CHANGE OVER TO SNOW BY 6AM TUESDAY.

THE MAIN SHORTWAVE TROUGH IS THEN EXPECTED TO ROTATE OVER THE
REGION ON TUESDAY...BRINGING LIGHT SNOW TO OUR FCST AREA. BOTH
THE GFS AND NAM SHOW ACCUMULATING SNOW TO SOME DEGREE...WITH THE
HIGHEST AMOUNTS ACROSS NWRN WI. THE SNOW SHOULD QUICKLY TAPER OFF
TO SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS TUESDAY EVENING AS THE UPPER LEVEL
SUPPORTS SHIFTS EAST OF OUR FCST AREA. BECAUSE OF THE WINTRY MIX
OF PRECIP EXPECTED TONIGHT AND SNOW/BLOWING SNOW EXPECTED ON
TUESDAY...HAVE OPTED TO GO WITH A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR ALL
OR OUR FCST AREA THROUGH TOMORROW.

AS THE TEMPERATURES CONTINUE TO PLUMMET TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND
TUESDAY NIGHT...WIND CHILL READINGS WILL BECOME DANGEROUS WITH
READINGS RANGING FROM 30 TO 50 BELOW ZERO. THEREFORE HAVE UPGRADED
THE WIND CHILL WATCH TO A WARNING FOR OUR ENTIRE CWA MAINLY FOR
TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING.

&&

.AVIATION...CONDITIONS WILL DETERIORATE TONIGHT AS THE COLD FRONT
CROSSES THE NORTHLAND...WITH MVFR/IFR CIGS EXPECTED LATER TONIGHT
AND TOMORROW. THE RAIN WILL CHANGE OVER TO FREEZING RAIN OR SNOW
TONIGHT...AND THEN BECOME ALL SNOW BY TUESDAY MORNING AS THE WIND
SHIFTS OUT OF THE NORTHWEST USHERING IN MUCH COLDER AIR. DUE TO THE
STRONG WINDS...BLOWING SNOW WILL COMBINE WITH THE FALLING SNOW TO
CAUSE VERY REDUCED VSBYS.

&&

POINT TEMPS/POPS...
DLH   8  11 -20  -4 /  50  60  20  10
INL   0   3 -24  -8 /  60  40  20  20
BRD   2   5 -22  -4 /  50  40  10  10
HYR  15  17 -20  -2 /  50  70  20  10
ASX  19  21 -13   2 /  50  70  30  20

&&

.DLH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...

MN...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO MIDNIGHT CST
     TUESDAY NIGHT FOR NORTHERN COOK/NORTHERN LAKE-SOUTHERN
     COOK/LAKESHORE-SOUTHERN LAKE/LAKESHORE.

     WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 6 PM TUESDAY TO 12 PM CST WEDNESDAY FOR
     CARLTON/SOUTHERN ST. LOUIS-NORTHERN COOK/NORTHERN LAKE-PINE-
     SOUTHERN COOK/LAKESHORE-SOUTHERN LAKE/LAKESHORE.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 PM CST
     TUESDAY FOR CARLTON/SOUTHERN ST. LOUIS-CENTRAL ST. LOUIS-
     CROW WING-KOOCHICHING-NORTHERN AITKIN-NORTHERN CASS-
     NORTHERN ITASCA-NORTHERN ST. LOUIS-SOUTHERN AITKIN-SOUTHERN
     CASS-SOUTHERN ITASCA.

     WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 3 PM TUESDAY TO 12 PM CST WEDNESDAY FOR
     CENTRAL ST. LOUIS-CROW WING-KOOCHICHING-NORTHERN AITKIN-
     NORTHERN CASS-NORTHERN ITASCA-NORTHERN ST. LOUIS-SOUTHERN
     AITKIN-SOUTHERN CASS-SOUTHERN ITASCA.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 PM CST
     TUESDAY FOR PINE.

WI...WIND CHILL WARNING FROM 6 PM TUESDAY TO 12 PM CST WEDNESDAY FOR
     ASHLAND-BAYFIELD-BURNETT-DOUGLAS-IRON-PRICE-SAWYER-WASHBURN.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM MIDNIGHT TONIGHT TO 6 PM CST
     TUESDAY FOR ASHLAND-BAYFIELD-BURNETT-DOUGLAS-IRON-PRICE-
     SAWYER-WASHBURN.

BERDES/DAP

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Cass

When: January 29, 4:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Cass forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Cook

When: January 29, 4:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Cook forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.817, -90.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Koochiching

When: January 29, 7:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Koochiching forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 48.245, -93.783 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Northern St. Louis

When: January 29, 7:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Itasca

When: January 29, 7:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Cass

When: January 29, 8:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern Cass forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.950, -94.325 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern St. Louis / Carlton

When: January 29, 8:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern St. Louis / Carlton forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.091, -92.569 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Central St. Louis

When: January 29, 9:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Central St. Louis forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.590, -92.461 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Crow Wing

When: January 29, 9:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Crow Wing forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.482, -94.071 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Cook / Northern Lake

When: January 29, 9:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern Cook / Northern Lake forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.670, -90.975 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Itasca

When: January 29, 9:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern Itasca forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.510, -93.632 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Aitkin

When: January 29, 11:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Northern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Pine

When: January 29, 11:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Pine forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.121, -92.741 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Aitkin

When: January 29, 11:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Aitkin forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 46.608, -93.415 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Lake

When: January 29, 11:00 PM CST to January 30, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Southern Lake forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 47.557, -91.935 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill: Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Minnesota in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Minnesota, January 2008

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 74112, 74113, 74104, 74109, 74114, 74106, 74116, 74102, 74103, 74107, 74108, 74105, 74110, 74111, 74115.