Extreme Cold/Wind Chill in Indiana
Every extreme cold/wind chill event the National Weather Service has filed in Indiana, year by year, with the most significant episodes. Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.
The most significant on the map
The most significant extreme cold/wind chill episodes in Indiana.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 340
- Deaths
- 2
- Injuries
- 0
- Damage
- None recorded
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Extreme Cold and Cold in Indiana, January 23 to 24, 2026Following a period of sub-zero temperatures and lingering impacts from previous winter weather, most central Indiana counties remained under a deep arctic influence as the 23rd began.
- Winter Storm and Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 22 to 24, 2022An arctic cold front crossed Indiana from west to east during the early afternoon to early evening of the 22nd, as an area of low pressure deepened along this passing boundary.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 23 to 24, 2022An arctic front associated with a winter storm brought dangerous wind chills to area from the early morning hours of December 23rd to the early morning hours of December 24th.
- Winter Storm and Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 22 to 24, 2022A 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. Evansville plummeted to -30, which was the coldest since December 22, 1989.
- Extreme Cold and Lake-Effect Snow in Indiana, February 18 to 19, 2015Dangerous wind chills to 20 below zero and accumulating lake effect snow showers affected far north-central Indiana behind an arctic cold front February 18th into February 19th.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 14 to 15, 2024Low temperatures on the morning of the 14th included widespread readings of -9 to zero degrees across central Indiana, with westerly winds sustained around 15-25 mph for most locations. This combination brought widespread wind chill values as low as -20 to -33 degrees.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 26 to 30, 2026A deep upper trough reinforced by a series of short waves plunging arctic air through interior North America, maintained persistent anomalous cold over central Indiana through January's final week, which was enhanced by a deep snow pack over most zones.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 14 to 15, 2025Following an additional moderate/heavy snowfall during the 13th's midday to evening, most central Indiana counties were covered by a generally 3 to 6 inch snow depth.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 6 to 7, 2014An arctic airmass took residence over the region behind a strong winter storm January 6th and 7th. West winds between 20 and 30 mph, occasionally gusting to 40 mph, created dangerous wind chill values between 30 and 45 degrees below zero.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 8, 2015January 5th through January 10th featured a prolonged period of very cold weather and sub-zero wind chills. The most extreme and dangerous push of this arctic air occurred on January 8th when wind chills dropped to between 20 below zero and 30 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 29 to 31, 2019A dangerous arctic air mass overspread northern Indiana late on January 29th through the morning hours of January 31st. Wind chills between 30 and 50 degrees below zero were common.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 14, 2024An arctic airmass overspread northern Indiana bringing dangerous wind chills. The combination of very cold temperatures in the single digits below zero and gusty west to southwest winds of 20 to 30 mph produced wind chills as cold as 25 below to 35 below zero.
- Extreme Cold and Cold in Indiana, January 14 to 17, 2024Bitterly cold air combined with winds gusting to 35 mph at times allowed wind chills to drop to 30 below to 40 below zero across all of northwest Indiana from the early morning of January 14th through the morning of January 15th.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 22 to 24, 2022A cold front crossed the Ohio Valley Thursday evening, with plummeting temperatures and strong winds. Sustained 20 to 30 mph winds had higher gusts of 35 to 45 mph.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 12 to 31, 2000An invasion of arctic air occurred on December 12. The arctic air became permanently entrenched over the region for the remainder of the month, resulting in the second coldest December on record at Evansville.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 1 to 4, 2001The prolonged arctic freeze that began during the second week of December finally ended by January 4. During the first few days of the new year, temperatures averaged 15 to 25 degrees below normal. Overnight lows were around zero.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 15, 2009In the wake of an arctic cold front, gusty northwest winds from 15 to 25 mph combined with a surge of arctic air to produce wind chills from minus 5 to minus 15 degrees.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 30, 2019An arctic airmass was pushed into the Ohio Valley behind a cold front. Temperatures in the single digits below zero combined with wind gusts of 30 to 45 mph, creating wind chills from 20 to 40 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 25 to 27, 2026A cold air mass with sub-freezing temperatures that originated from Siberia was reinforced by a major winter storm that brought a snowpack across portions of southwest Indiana on the 25th.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 15 to 16, 2009Very cold temperatures combined with strong winds to create dangerously low wind chill values on January 15th which continued into the morning hours of January 16th. Low temperatures on the morning of January 15th dropped to 10 below to 15 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 6 to 7, 2014An extremely cold arctic airmass settled over northwest Indiana with minimum observed wind chills falling into the -40 F to nearly -50 F range area-wide. Some of the coldest wind chill reports include Valparaiso at -46 F and Rensselaer at -42 F.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 1 to 2, 2018Bitterly cold air spread across northwest Indiana on January 1st & 2nd. Wind chill values were around 30 below zero across Benton County during the morning of January 1st.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, January 30 to 31, 2019Extremely cold air moved across northwest Indiana on January 30th and 31st. Low temperatures on January 30th included -20 at Gary; -19 at Valparaiso and -18 at Rensselaer. The lowest observed wind chills included -51 at Gary; -47 at Rensselaer and at Valparaiso.
- Extreme Cold in Indiana, December 22 to 24, 2022An arctic cold front moved across northwest Indiana during the late afternoon and early evening of December 22nd. Temperatures were in the middle 30s ahead of the front and fell into the single digits within hours after the cold front passed.
- Extreme Cold and Cold in Indiana, January 23 to 24, 2026Bitterly cold air moved across northwest Indiana on January 23rd and January 24th with wind chills 20 below to 30 below zero.
More
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill everywhereEvery kind of event in Indiana
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.