Iowa, 2013Cold in Iowa, January 20 to 21, 2013
January 20 to 21, 2013 · NWS FSD · 6 events in 6 counties and zones
Moderate to strong northwest winds and bitterly cold air combined to lower wind chill readings to 20 to 35 degrees below zero over part of northwest Iowa from the evening of January 20th through the morning of January 21st.
Every event with a place to put it; 6 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
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 6
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.
Moderate to strong northwest winds and bitterly cold air combined to lower wind chill readings to 20 to 35 degrees below zero over part of northwest Iowa from the evening of January 20th through the morning of January 21st.
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 Sioux Falls, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 20, 5:15 PM CST, 45 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 20, 5:15 PM CST, 45 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 20, 2:06 PM CST, 3 hours 54 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>In the hours before
Local storm report, Jan 20, 2:26 PM CST, 3 hours 34 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Local storm report, Jan 20, 3:22 PM CST, 2 hours 38 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Local storm report, Jan 20, 5:19 PM CST, 41 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Local storm report, Jan 20, 5:24 PM CST, 36 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Local storm report, Jan 20, 5:35 PM CST, 25 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Local storm report, Jan 20, 5:38 PM CST, 22 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Cold/Wind Chill, Lyon
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- Lyon forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 43.381, -96.210 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
Cold/Wind Chill, Osceola
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- Osceola forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 43.379, -95.624 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
Cold/Wind Chill, Dickinson
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- Dickinson forecast zone
- Reported by
- Department of Highways
- Coordinates
- 43.378, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
Cold/Wind Chill, O'Brien
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- O'Brien forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS
- Coordinates
- 43.084, -95.625 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
Cold/Wind Chill, Clay
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- Clay forecast zone
- Reported by
- ASOS
- Coordinates
- 43.083, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
Cold/Wind Chill, Buena Vista
- When
- January 20, 6:00 PM CST to January 21, 12:00 PM CST
- Where
- Buena Vista forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS
- Coordinates
- 42.736, -95.151 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Northwest winds 15 to 30 mph combined with temperatures well below zero to lower wind chills to 20 to 35 degrees below zero.
- 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.
- Cold in Illinois, January 20, 20131 death · 1 event
- Cold in Wisconsin, January 20 to 21, 20131 death · 1 event
- High Wind in New York, January 20, 2013$265,000 · 67 kt wind · 17 events
- Strong Wind in Vermont, January 20, 2013$200,000 · 16 events
- High Wind and Strong Wind in New York, January 20, 2013$130,000 · 52 kt wind · 7 events
- Strong Wind in Massachusetts, January 20, 2013$39,000 · 5 events
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 20 to 21, 201327 events
- Lake-Effect Snow in New York, January 20 to 21, 2013$30,000 · 3 events
- Extreme Cold in Minnesota, January 20 to 22, 201324 events
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 20 to 21, 201318 events
- Extreme Cold in Maine, January 20 to 27, 201315 events
- Extreme Cold in South Dakota, January 20 to 21, 201311 events
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: 428981, 428982, 428983, 428984, 428985, 428986.