Heavy Snow in Iowa, January 31, 2011

Name: Heavy Snow in Iowa, January 31, 2011
Start: 2011-01-31T07:00
End: 2011-01-31T18:30
Location: Iowa

January 31, 2011 · NWS DMX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

S. during the day on the 31st.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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: 3

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.

An upper level system dropped southeast into the north central U.S. during the day on the 31st. This combined with an inverted trough across the state that resulted in snow across much of the state. The snow was heavier across the northern counties into Minnesota. The cold air in place resulted in high snow to water ratios with the system. A small part of far northern Iowa along the Minnesota border with Emmet, Kossuth, and Winnebago Counties received around 6 inches of snow from the system. The snow resulted in little in the way of any problems as it was quite light and fluffy and there was little wind with the snow.

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 Des Moines, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 31, 5:30 AM CST, 1 hour 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 31, 5:30 AM CST, 1 hour 30 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 31, 5:06 AM CST, 1 hour 54 minutes before

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In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 31, 2:06 AM CST, 4 hours 54 minutes before

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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Emmet

When: January 31, 7:00 AM CST to 6:30 PM CST
Where: Emmet forecast zone
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 43.378, -94.678 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Kossuth

When: January 31, 7:00 AM CST to 6:30 PM CST
Where: Kossuth forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 43.204, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Winnebago

When: January 31, 7:00 AM CST to 6:30 PM CST
Where: Winnebago forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 43.378, -93.734 (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 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, January 2011

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 269931, 269932, 269933.