Winter Weather in Illinois

Events

2,917

Deaths

48

Injuries

174

Damage

$1.9 million

• Winter Weather in Illinois, February 5, 20104 deaths · 5 injured · 4 eventsA storm system tracking from Texas eastward across the Gulf States, spread light snow into central Illinois on February 5th.
• Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Illinois, December 1, 20084 deaths · 7 eventsA major winter storm moved through the Midwest from November 30th through early on December 1st. Moderate to heavy snow impacted locations along and north of I-74...with portions of Tazewell, Woodford, and McLean counties picking up in excess of 6 inches of snow.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, January 24, 20183 deaths · 4 injured · $1.5 million · 7 eventsFreezing drizzle and pockets of freezing rain developed during the early morning hours of January 24th across portions of northeast Illinois in the Chicago Metro area, which quickly led to icy conditions on roadways.
• Blizzard and Winter Weather in Illinois, December 12 to 13, 20103 deaths · 6 injured · 22 eventsAn intense area of low pressure tracked from Iowa into the eastern Great Lakes on Sunday, December 12th.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, January 12 to 13, 20123 deaths · 4 injured · 6 eventsA vigorous upper-level disturbance brought a swath of snow across mainly north-central Illinois on January 12th into the early morning of January 13th. Three to five inches of snow accumulated along and north of a Jacksonville...to Springfield...to Danville line.
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in Illinois, December 28, 20152 deaths · $5.0 million · 8 eventsA multi-faceted storm system impacted central Illinois from December 26th through 28th...bringing heavy rainfall, significant ice accumulations, and strong winds.
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in Illinois, January 22 to 23, 202447 injured · 30 eventsLow-level warm air advection overrunning cold surface air resulted in light freezing rain developing on the morning of Monday, January 22, continuing into that evening.
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in Illinois, January 20 to 21, 20101 death · 18 injured · $230,000 · 11 eventsAn upper-level disturbance tracked across the region on January 20th, bringing a period of freezing rain to central Illinois. Ice accumulations of one tenth to one quarter of an inch were common along and north of I-72.
• Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Illinois, December 13, 20252 deaths · 1 injured · 29 eventsAn upper-level disturbance interacting with an advancing Arctic cold front brought a period of heavy snow to central Illinois on December 13th.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, December 23, 20082 deaths · 4 injured · 2 eventsA storm system spread a wintry mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain across central Illinois on December 23rd. The precipitation was on the light side: however, locations along and south of I-72 reported a thin glaze of ice from the freezing rain.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, December 8, 20081 death · 20 injured · 9 eventsA warm front lifting northward out of Missouri triggered a band of freezing rain just north of the front on December 8, 2008. The freezing rain only lasted about an hour or two during the morning and early afternoon hours at any given location.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, December 12, 20101 death · 5 injured · 18 eventsThe first blast of winter weather followed a strong cold front that swept rapidly east across the Mississippi and Lower Ohio Valleys. Behind the front, widespread snow showers and very windy conditions produced difficult travel conditions.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, December 24, 20101 death · 4 injured · 19 eventsA weak low pressure system moved eastward across the Lower Mississippi Valley on Christmas Eve, reaching the Southeast states during the overnight hours. At the same time, a rather strong upper level disturbance moved southeast across the central Plains.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, January 2, 20121 death · 6 injured · 2 eventsScattered snow-showers combined with falling temperatures created icy conditions on area roadways. Numerous accidents were reported, including one that resulted in a fatality in Clark County.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, February 21, 20091 death · 5 injured · 1 eventA weak area of low pressure moving through the Ohio Valley produced 1 to 3 inches of snow in north central and eastern Illinois. Somewhat higher amounts of 4 to 5 inches were reported in Knox County. The snowfall produced slippery travel conditions and numerous auto accidents.
• Winter Storm and High Wind in Illinois, January 12 to 14, 20241 death · 50 kt wind · 41 eventsA strong double-barreled low pressure system brought two waves of accumulating snow to the region beginning during the early morning hours of January 12th through late morning then again later that evening through the early morning of January 13th.
• Winter Storm and Extreme Cold in Illinois, December 22 to 24, 20221 death · 38 eventsA powerful cold front swept through the region, with wind chills dropping to 20 to 30 below zero. These were the coldest wind chills observed in over 25 years across the region. Paducah, KY dropped down to a -21 wind chill, which was the coldest since February 3, 1996.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, December 29, 20181 death · 3 injured · 5 eventsFreezing drizzle developed during the early morning of December 29th and continued through late morning. A light glaze of ice accumulated on many roads causing numerous accidents and spin outs.
• Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Illinois, February 14 to 15, 20101 death · 1 injured · 19 eventsA strong upper level low moved southeast across Missouri, then east across Kentucky. The heaviest snowfall rates were associated with a deformation zone on the north side of the upper low.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, January 19 to 20, 20161 death · 1 injured · 19 eventsFrom one to three inches of snow fell across southern Illinois. The one-inch amounts were confined mainly along the Mississippi River. Amounts increased toward the northeast.
• Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Illinois, February 15 to 16, 20211 death · 1 injured · 19 eventsA strong winter storm moved across northern Illinois on February 15th and 16th, producing a widespread area of 4 to 8 inches of snow.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, February 25 to 26, 20201 death · 3 injured · 1 eventLow pressure tracking along a nearly stationary frontal boundary from the Deep South into the Appalachians spread snow into central Illinois from the night of February 25th through midday on February 26th.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, January 6, 20091 death · 2 injured · 5 eventsA storm system tracked from the Texas panhandle northeastward into the Ohio River Valley on January 6th, spreading a mixture of light freezing rain, sleet, and snow across central and southeast Illinois.
• Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Illinois, January 26 to 28, 20091 death · 1 injured · 11 eventsA powerful winter storm brought periods of snow to portions of central and southeast Illinois from late on January 26th through the morning of January 28th.
• Winter Weather in Illinois, February 6, 20071 death · 13 eventsAn Alberta Clipper type winter storm tracked from the Dakotas to near St. Louis, Missouri. This system spread accumulating snow of 2 to 5 inches across much of western and northwest Illinois. Isolated 6 inch amounts were also measured in northwest Illinois.

Winter Weather everywhereEvery kind of event in Illinois

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.