Name: Winter Weather in Missouri, February 5 to 6, 2008
Start: 2008-02-05T01:00
End: 2008-02-06T13:30
Location: Missouri

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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: 2

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 DVN wrote it up.

Intense low pressure brought near record snowfalls to the region on February 5-6, 2008. Copious amounts of gulf moisture, combined with a deepening storm system, resulted in periods of heavy snow and embedded thundersnows. The surface low tracked from northwest Arkansas to southern Illinois, while the deepening upper low moved into northern Illinois. The snow fell for more than 24 hours dumping widespread 10 to 15 inch amounts in portions of eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois. From southeast Iowa to western Illinois 4 to 7 inches of snow accumulated. Lesser amounts were noted in northeast Missouri. The highest total was near Winslow in Stephenson county in Illinois with a whopping 18 inches. In some areas this was the biggest snowfall since January 1979. Schools were closed and there were many cars stuck in the deep snow or slid into ditches.

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 Quad Cities, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 4, 9:33 PM CST, 3 hours 27 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 4, 9:33 PM CST, 3 hours 27 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
933 PM CST MON FEB 4 2008

.UPDATE...
THE DENSE FOG ADVISORY WAS EXTENDED UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR AREAS
NORTHEAST OF A LINE FROM KOTM THROUGH KBRL TO WEST OF KMQB.
VISIBILITIES SOUTHWEST OF THIS LINE HAVE IMPROVED CONSIDERABLY. EXPECT
LOCATIONS IN THE REMAINING ADVISORY TO SEE A GRADUAL IMPROVEMENT
THE REST OF THE EVENING AS THE SURFACE LOW OVER NERN MO MOVES INTO
NERN IL...ALLOWING NW WINDS TO PICK UP IN THE WAKE OF THE LOW
PRESSURE. ALSO TWEAKED TEMPS UP IN THE NORTHWEST A COUPLE OF
DEGREES. THEY WERE RUNNING SLIGHTLY WARMER THAN FCST AND WITH CAA
EXPECTED TO REMAIN WEAK OVERNIGHT...TEMPS SHOULD END UP CLOSE TO
WHAT THE 00Z RUC WAS SHOWING.

NO CHANGES WERE MADE TO THE WINTER STORM WATCH FOR TUESDAY
AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING. THE 00Z NAM CONTINUES TO SHOW
SIGNIFICANT PCPN BREAKING OUT OVER THE CWA TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND
SPREADING ACROSS THE AREA TUESDAY NIGHT. QPF AMOUNTS BY 18Z
WEDNESDAY ARE QUITE IMPRESSIVE AND SIMILAR TO EARLIER RUNS.

&&

.DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
IA...DENSE FOG ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT FOR BENTON-
     BUCHANAN-CEDAR-CLINTON-DELAWARE-DUBUQUE-IOWA-JACKSON-
     JOHNSON-JONES-KEOKUK-LINN-LOUISA-MUSCATINE-SCOTT-WASHINGTON.

     WINTER STORM WATCH FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY
     MORNING FOR BENTON-BUCHANAN-CEDAR-CLINTON-DELAWARE-DES
     MOINES-DUBUQUE-HENRY IA-IOWA-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-JOHNSON-
     JONES-KEOKUK-LEE-LINN-LOUISA-MUSCATINE-SCOTT-VAN BUREN-
     WASHINGTON.

IL...DENSE FOG ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST TONIGHT FOR BUREAU-CARROLL-
     HENDERSON-HENRY IL-JO DAVIESS-MCDONOUGH-MERCER-PUTNAM-ROCK
     ISLAND-STEPHENSON-WARREN-WHITESIDE.

     WINTER STORM WATCH FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY
     MORNING FOR BUREAU-CARROLL-HANCOCK-HENDERSON-HENRY IL-JO
     DAVIESS-MCDONOUGH-MERCER-PUTNAM-ROCK ISLAND-STEPHENSON-
     WARREN-WHITESIDE.

MO...WINTER STORM WATCH FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY
     MORNING FOR CLARK-SCOTLAND.

&&

DLF

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 4, 5:00 AM CST, 20 hours before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
500 AM CST MON FEB 4 2008

IAZ040>042-051>054-063>068-076>078-087>089-098-099-ILZ001-002-007-
009-015>018-024>026-034-035-MOZ009-010-051100-
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-
500 AM CST MON FEB 4 2008

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

RAIN WILL DEVELOP AND MOVE NORTHEAST ACROSS EASTERN IOWA TODAY.
WHERE TEMPERATURES ARE BELOW FREEZING...IT WILL BE FREEZING RAIN.
THIS FREEZING RAIN IS EXPECTED TO MAINLY AFFECT LOCATIONS NORTHWEST
OF A LINE FROM SIGOURNEY TO DUBUQUE IOWA. IT WILL CAUSE A GLAZE OF
ICE TO FORM... ESPECIALLY ON ELEVATED OR EXPOSED SURFACES.  AROUND A
TENTH OF AN INCH OF ICE IS POSSIBLE WHERE THIS FREEZING RAIN FALLS.

IN ADDITION...FOG HAS DEVELOPED FOR LOCATIONS SOUTH OF INTERSTATE
80...WITH VISIBILITIES REDUCED TO AROUND A HALF MILE.  SOME
LOCATIONS HAVE VISIBILITIES OF ONLY A QUARTER MILE.  THIS FOG IS NOT
EXPECTED TO IMPROVE UNTIL WINDS INCREASE LATER THIS MORNING.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM LOOKS TO AFFECT THE AREA TUESDAY
INTO WEDNESDAY. THIS STORM HAS THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE WIDESPREAD
SIGNIFICANT SNOW AMOUNTS. CURRENT INFORMATION SUGGESTS THAT THE
HEAVIEST SNOW WILL FALL TUESDAY NIGHT. WINDS WILL ALSO INCREASE
TUESDAY NIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY WHICH SHOULD CAUSE BLOWING AND
DRIFTING. EMERGENCY MANAGERS...SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS...AND HIGHWAY
DEPARTMENTS SHOULD LISTEN TO LATER FORECASTS REGARDING THIS STORM.

YET ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM IS EXPECTED TO AFFECT THE AREA ON
THURSDAY. ALTHOUGH NOT AS STRONG AS THE STORM TUESDAY INTO
WEDNESDAY...IT IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE SOME ACCUMULATING SNOW
THURSDAY INTO THURSDAY NIGHT.

LOOKING AT FRIDAY AND BEYOND...THE ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN IS
EXPECTED TO CONTINUE. CURRENT INFORMATION SUGGESTS THAT AN ALBERTA
CLIPPER STORM SYSTEM MAY AFFECT THE REGION OVER THE WEEKEND.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY OR TONIGHT.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Scotland

When: February 5, 1:00 AM CST to February 6, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Scotland forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 40.453, -92.147 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Clark

When: February 6, 3:00 AM CST to 1:30 PM CST
Where: Clark forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 40.410, -91.738 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Missouri in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Missouri, February 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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 84102, 84101.