Iowa, 2014

Dense Fog in Iowa, December 14 to 15, 2014

December 14 to 15, 2014 · NWS DVN · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Dense fog developed over much of eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois around midnight the morning of the 14th and lingered into the day. S.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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  • Cold
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  • Marine and coastal
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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
8
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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.

Dense fog developed over much of eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois around midnight the morning of the 14th and lingered into the day. Atmospheric mixing driven by the sun caused the fog to lift during the day of the 14th in areas generally south of U.S. Highway 30. Areas along the U.S. Highway 20 corridor, however, remained under a blanket of dense fog through the day and into the next morning. Fog finally lifted around mid morning on the 15th. At least one accident with injuries was reported in the Dubuque area, which may have been indirectly related to the fog.

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 Dec 14, 12:14 AM CST, 2 hours 46 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 14, 12:14 AM CST, 2 hours 46 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 13, 11:33 PM CST, 3 hours 27 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

5 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.

Dense Fog, Dubuque

When
December 14, 3:00 AM CST to December 15, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Dubuque forecast zone
Injuries
0 direct, 8 indirect
Reported by
ASOS
Coordinates
42.469, -90.882 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog persisted through the day. According to a local TV station report, eight people, including 6 children, were injured in a car accident on Highway 20 near Peosta just before 2 pm.

Dense Fog, Delaware

When
December 14, 4:00 AM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
Where
Delaware forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
42.471, -91.367 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Buchanan

When
December 14, 4:00 AM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
Where
Buchanan forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
42.471, -91.838 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Jackson

When
December 14, 4:00 AM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
Where
Jackson forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
42.172, -90.574 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense Fog, Jones

When
December 14, 4:00 AM CST to December 15, 2:00 PM CST
Where
Jones forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
42.121, -91.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Dense Fog
Fog reducing visibility to a quarter mile or less, filed where it caused accidents or disruption.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, December 2014

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: 546632, 546634, 546635, 546636, 546637.