Iowa, 2022

Extreme Cold in Iowa, December 22 to 23, 2022

December 22 to 23, 2022 · NWS OAX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

A cold air outbreak resulted in low temperatures between -20 and -10 December 22 and 23. On Thursday Dec 23, most ground stations in the area did not observe a high temperature above 0 .

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 8 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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The toll

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

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 OAX wrote it up.

A cold air outbreak resulted in low temperatures between -20 and -10 December 22 and 23. On Thursday Dec 23, most ground stations in the area did not observe a high temperature above 0 . Strong wind gusts were observed all 3 days with the strongest gusts occurring on Dec 23. Peak wind gusts were between 30-50 mph. The coldest wind chills observed were between -51 and -30 .

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Harrison

When
December 22, 2:00 AM CST to December 23, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Harrison forecast zone
Reported by
Official NWS Observations
Coordinates
41.683, -95.817 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Interpolation of ground stations near the area had Harrison County mostly below -30 wind chills for approximately 33 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Pottawattamie

When
December 22, 2:00 AM CST to December 23, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Pottawattamie forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
41.337, -95.542 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Wind chill temperatures at the Council Bluffs AWOS remained mostly below -30 for 33 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Shelby

When
December 22, 3:00 AM CST to December 23, 11:30 AM CST
Where
Shelby forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
41.685, -95.310 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Wind chill temperatures at the Harlan AWOS remained mostly below -30 for 32.5 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Monona

When
December 22, 3:00 AM CST to December 23, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Monona forecast zone
Reported by
Official NWS Observations
Coordinates
42.052, -95.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Interpolation of ground stations near the area had Monona County mostly below -30 wind chills for approximately 32 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Mills

When
December 22, 4:00 AM CST to December 23, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Mills forecast zone
Reported by
Official NWS Observations
Coordinates
41.034, -95.621 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Interpolation of ground stations near the area had Mills County mostly below -30 wind chills for approximately 28 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Montgomery

When
December 22, 4:30 AM CST to December 23, 8:30 AM CST
Where
Montgomery forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
41.030, -95.156 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Wind chill temperatures at the Red Oak AWOS remained mostly below -30 for 28 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Fremont

When
December 22, 5:00 AM CST to December 23, 4:00 AM CST
Where
Fremont forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
40.746, -95.605 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Wind chill temperatures at the Shenandoah AWOS remained mostly below -30 for 23 hours.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Page

When
December 22, 7:00 AM CST to December 23, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Page forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
40.739, -95.150 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Wind chill temperatures at the Clarinda AWOS remained mostly below -30 for 26 hours.

What these are

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.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, December 2022

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1065099, 1065163, 1065103, 1065161, 1065159, 1065101, 1065102, 1065100.