Illinois, 2018

Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Illinois, January 15, 2018

January 15, 2018 · NWS PAH · 19 events in 19 counties and zones

Snow developed along an Arctic cold front as it sliced southeast across southern Illinois during the morning hours. As the front slowed down over the Tennessee Valley late in the day, a weak surface low developed on the front.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 19 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
19

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 PAH wrote it up.

Snow developed along an Arctic cold front as it sliced southeast across southern Illinois during the morning hours. As the front slowed down over the Tennessee Valley late in the day, a weak surface low developed on the front. This caused snow to linger across the Ohio River counties through the evening hours. The result was an area of heavy snowfall from Vienna south and east, where 4 to 7 inches was reported. The heaviest reported snowfall was in Massac County near Metropolis, where 7 inches fell. Across the remainder of southern Illinois, including Marion, Carbondale, and Harrisburg, amounts ranged from 1 to 3 inches. Visibility was frequently reduced below one mile in the heavy snowfall area. Much of the snow melted on treated road surfaces during the day, but conditions rapidly deteriorated after dark as temperatures dropped through the 20's. Wind chill indices were in the teens during most of the snowstorm. Actual air temperatures fell into the teens as the snow ended. These cold temperatures reduced the effectiveness of road salt, which slowed recovery efforts in the wake of the storm. The new snowfall on top of snow from the January 12th storm raised total snow depths to near 10 inches near the Ohio River.

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 Paducah, KY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 14, 11:09 PM CST, 3 hours 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 14, 11:09 PM CST, 3 hours 51 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

13 winter weather, 6 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Perry

When
January 15, 3:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Perry forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.084, -89.367 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Jefferson

When
January 15, 4:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.301, -88.924 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Wayne

When
January 15, 4:00 AM CST to 11:00 AM CST
Where
Wayne forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.430, -88.426 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Jackson

When
January 15, 4:00 AM CST to 11:00 AM CST
Where
Jackson forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.785, -89.382 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Edwards

When
January 15, 5:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where
Edwards forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.417, -88.053 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Franklin

When
January 15, 5:00 AM CST to 11:00 AM CST
Where
Franklin forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.992, -88.924 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Hamilton

When
January 15, 5:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where
Hamilton forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.082, -88.539 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Wabash

When
January 15, 6:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where
Wabash forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.446, -87.844 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, White

When
January 15, 6:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where
White forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
38.088, -88.180 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Williamson

When
January 15, 6:00 AM CST to 12:00 PM CST
Where
Williamson forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.730, -88.930 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Saline

When
January 15, 7:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Saline forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.753, -88.541 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Gallatin

When
January 15, 7:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where
Gallatin forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.763, -88.230 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Union

When
January 15, 7:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
Union forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.471, -89.255 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Alexander

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where
Alexander forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.192, -89.338 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pulaski

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 9:00 PM CST
Where
Pulaski forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.223, -89.127 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Massac

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 10:00 PM CST
Where
Massac forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.219, -88.708 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Pope

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 10:00 PM CST
Where
Pope forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.413, -88.562 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hardin

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 10:00 PM CST
Where
Hardin forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.518, -88.267 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Johnson

When
January 15, 8:00 AM CST to 8:00 PM CST
Where
Johnson forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
37.460, -88.881 (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.
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

More

Every storm in Illinois in 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyWarnings in Illinois, January 2018

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: 728725, 728724, 728726, 728732, 728727, 728729, 728730, 728728, 728731, 728733, 728734, 728735, 728736, 733382, 733383, 733384, 733385, 733386, 733387.