Heavy Snow in Iowa, January 5, 2015

Name: Heavy Snow in Iowa, January 5, 2015
Start: 2015-01-05T12:00
End: 2015-01-05T23:00
Location: Iowa

January 5, 2015 · NWS DMX · 23 events in 23 counties and zones

Strong warm air advection took place across Iowa during the day on the 5th. The airmass was quite cold with shallow Arctic air in place.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 23 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: 23

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.

Strong warm air advection took place across Iowa during the day on the 5th. The airmass was quite cold with shallow Arctic air in place. At the same time a weak surface front pushed southeast out of Nebraska into northern Missouri. This was a fairly typical Alberta Clipper type weather system. Snow began to fall heavily around mid day and lasted through the evening. A band of heavy snow fell from northwest of Fort Dodge through Oskaloosa. In the band, six to nearly 8 inches of snow fell in a 12 hour period. The heaviest snow fell in Ankeny, where 7.8 inches was measured. Around 7.5 inches fell in the Ames area. There was little wind associated with the storm, however road conditions became quite slick.

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 5, 9:35 AM CST, 2 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 5, 9:35 AM CST, 2 hours 25 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 5, 4:25 AM CST, 7 hours 35 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

23 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Calhoun

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Calhoun forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.385, -94.640 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Boone

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Boone forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.037, -93.932 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Dallas

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Dallas forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.685, -94.040 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Polk

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Polk forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.686, -93.573 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Marion

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Marion forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.099 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Carroll

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Carroll forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.861 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Greene

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Greene forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.397 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Warren

When: January 5, 12:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Warren forecast zone
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.561 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pocahontas

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Pocahontas forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.734, -94.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Humboldt

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Humboldt forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.777, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Webster

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Webster forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.428, -94.182 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hamilton

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hardin

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Hardin forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.240 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Story

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Story forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.036, -93.465 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Marshall

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Marshall forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.036, -92.999 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Tama

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Tama forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.080, -92.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Jasper

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Jasper forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.686, -93.054 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Poweshiek

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Poweshiek forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.686, -92.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Mahaska

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Mahaska forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 41.335, -92.641 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Black Hawk

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Black Hawk forecast zone
Reported by: Social Media
Coordinates: 42.470, -92.309 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Kossuth

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Kossuth forecast zone
Reported by: Law Enforcement
Coordinates: 43.204, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Wright

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Wright forecast zone
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 42.733, -93.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Grundy

When: January 5, 2:00 PM CST to 11:00 PM CST
Where: Grundy forecast zone
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 42.402, -92.791 (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 2015 Every state in 2015 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, January 2015

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: 548132, 548133, 548134, 548135, 548136, 555894, 555895, 555897, 548137, 548138, 548139, 548140, 548141, 548142, 548143, 548144, 548145, 548146, 548147, 555896, 555898, 555899, 555900.