Illinois, 2019Extreme Cold and Cold in Illinois, January 29 to 31, 2019
January 29 to 31, 2019 · NWS DVN · 13 events in 13 counties and zones
A strong arctic high pressure system brought historic cold to much of the Midwest January 29th through January 31st. Numerous low temperature records were broken, including all-time record lows at Moline.
Every event with a place to put it; 13 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
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- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 13
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.
A strong arctic high pressure system brought historic cold to much of the Midwest January 29th through January 31st. Numerous low temperature records were broken, including all-time record lows at Moline. A state record low temperature was observed by the Mount Carroll Cooperative Observer on January 31st when they record a low of -38F. In addition, life threatening wind chills were reported with values below -30 degrees for many hours. Numerous schools, churches, and businesses closed during the arctic outbreak.
Cold/Wind Chill, Carroll
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Carroll forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 42.069, -89.934 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
A state record low temperature was recorded on January 31st when the Cooperative Observer recorded a low temperature of -38 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, the lowest wind chill at the Savanna Airport was -53 at 335 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Rock Island
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Rock Island forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.467, -90.567 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Several record cold temperatures were broken at the Moline. Record low temperatures were broken on the 30th and 31st when the low temperatures were -29 and -33 Fahrenheit respectively. The -33 degrees on the 31st also broke the records for lowest temperature at the site ad January as well as the all time record low. A record cold high was recorded on January 30th when Moline had a high of -8 degrees. The lowest wind chill was -52 at 229 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Stephenson
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Stephenson forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 42.352, -89.662 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The lowest wind chill at the Freeport AWOS was -53 at 555 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Jo Daviess
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Jo Daviess forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 42.366, -90.212 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The lowest wind chill at the Dubuque ASOS was -55 at at 653 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Whiteside
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Whiteside forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.756, -89.914 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The lowest wind chill at the Sterling-Rock Falls AWOS was -56 at 556 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Henry
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 1:00 PM CST
- Where
- Henry forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.353, -90.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Bureau
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Bureau forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.404, -89.529 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Putnam
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Putnam forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.205, -89.286 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Mercer
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Mercer forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 41.205, -90.741 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Henderson
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Henderson forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 40.818, -90.925 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The lowest wind chill at the Burlington ASOS was -46 at 253 AM on January 30th.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Warren
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Warren forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 40.849, -90.615 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hancock
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- Hancock forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 40.404, -91.165 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The lowest wind chills at the Keokuk and Fort Madison were -43 (555 AM) and -47 (235 AM) respectively.
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, McDonough
- When
- January 29, 6:00 PM CST to January 31, 10:00 AM CST
- Where
- McDonough forecast zone
- Reported by
- Official NWS Observations
- Coordinates
- 40.456, -90.678 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
- Cold/Wind Chill
- Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.
- Extreme Cold/Wind Chill
- Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- Extreme Cold in Iowa, January 29 to 31, 20192 deaths · 22 events
- Extreme Cold in Wisconsin, January 29 to 31, 20192 deaths · 20 events
- Cold in Michigan, January 29 to 31, 20192 deaths · 17 events
- Extreme Cold in Minnesota, January 29 to 31, 20191 death · $55,000 · 7 events
- Extreme Cold in Minnesota, January 29 to 31, 20191 death · 42 events
- Winter Weather in Virginia, January 29, 20191 death · 12 events
- Extreme Cold in Illinois, January 29 to 31, 20191 death · 1 event
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Vermont, January 29 to 30, 2019$110,000 · 16 events
- Extreme Cold in Iowa, January 29 to 31, 201951 events
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 29 to 30, 201932 events
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in New York, January 29, 201927 events
- Dense Fog in California, January 29, 20191 injured · $20,000 · 4 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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 804916, 804917, 804918, 804919, 804920, 804921, 804922, 804923, 804924, 804925, 804926, 804927, 804928.