Extreme Cold/Wind Chill in North Dakota
Every extreme cold/wind chill event the National Weather Service has filed in North Dakota, 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 North Dakota.
- 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
- 1,839
- Deaths
- 4
- Injuries
- 0
- Damage
- None recorded
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 1 to 2, 2011Dangerous wind chill conditions redeveloped across the region the night of February 1 through February 2 as Arctic high pressure remained over the area. Winds up to 15 mph combined with subzero temperatures to result in wind chill temperatures of 40 below to 50 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, December 10, 2000A frigid airmass covered the northern plains over an extended time period with subzero temperatures and dangerous wind chills.In western Morton county, in the city of Hebron, a women died due to exposure while walking home early sunday morning.Early morning temperature was 18…
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 13 to 14, 2008Wind chill temperatures ranged from 25 below to 35 below zero Sunday night (January 13th) through Monday morning (January 14th). Early on Monday morning, a newspaper carrier found a man dead near the front steps of the bishop's residence at St. Mary's Cathedral on Broadway.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 4, 2014A woman on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, Sioux County, succumbed to very cold temperatures in her home due to the lack of propane for her heat. There was no heat for the house.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, December 14 to 15, 2008After a significant winter storm that brought a blizzard to western and central North Dakota moved out of the Northern Plains, wind chill continued to be a problem.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, December 20 to 21, 2008Strong cold air advection combined with gusty northwest winds resulted in wind chill temperatures of 40 below to near 50 below zero from Saturday the 20th, through Sunday morning the 21st.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 28 to 30, 2008Bitter cold arctic air with temperatures of 10 to 25 below zero, and winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 55 mph, resulted in wind chills of 40 to 60 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 6 to 8, 2010After a winter storm that brought near blizzard conditions to western and central North Dakota moved out of the Northern Plains, dangerous wind chill conditions developed as Arctic high pressure pushed south across south central Canada and into the Northern Plains.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 18 to 20, 2012After a very mild start to the 2011-2012 winter season, an arctic airmass moved south over the Northern Plains region, resulting in air temperatures and wind chill temperatures to fall to 30 below zero and colder over west and central North Dakota.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 30 to 31, 2013Arctic high pressure building into the Northern Plains brought a prolonged period of dangerous wind chill temperatures to the area. Wind chills as low as 55 below zero were recorded. This wind chill event continued into February 1 for parts of the area.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, December 6 to 7, 2013Subzero temperatures combined with winds up to 15 miles per hour to produce wind chill temperatures as low as fifty below zero during the evening of the 6th and the morning of the 7th.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 4 to 6, 2014Subzero temperatures as cold as 25 below zero combined with winds gusting to around 30 miles per hour to produce life threatening wind chill temperatures colder than 40 below zero for a period of three days. Lowest wind chills observed were as cold as 62 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 5 to 15, 2021Frigid arctic high pressure situated along the lee of the Canadian Rockies into northeast Montana gradually pushed over the Northern Plains, bringing life threatening cold to western and central North Dakota. This after what had been a mild winter to that point.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 16 to 19, 2025A frigid Arctic airmass settled over the region bringing very low wind chills to western and central North Dakota, with most locations experiencing minimum wind chill values of 45 below to around 60 below.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 8, 2011Dangerous wind chill conditions developed across North Dakota the morning of February 8 as Arctic high pressure moved into the region. Winds up to 15 mph combined with subzero temperatures to result in wind chill temperatures of 40 below to near 50 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 29 to 30, 2019Arctic high pressure settled over the Northern Plains bringing extremely cold weather. The lowest reported temperature was 49 below zero near Coleharbor and near Rugby. The lowest wind chill value reported was 62 below near Linton.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 22 to 23, 2014Wind speeds of 10 to 20 miles per hour combined with subzero temperatures to produce wind chill temperatures as low as 45 below zero during the evening of the 22nd and early morning of the 23rd.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 22 to 26, 2026Arctic air settled into the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest resulting in a prologued period of extreme cold and wind chills across eastern North Dakota.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 9 to 10, 2008Bitter cold arctic air with temperatures of 15 to 30 below zero, and winds of 15 to 35 mph and gusts up to 45 mph, resulted in wind chills of 40 to near 60 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, February 1, 2011Dangerous wind chill conditions developed across North Dakota January 31 through February 1 as Arctic high pressure pushed into the region. North winds up to 15 mph combined with subzero temperatures to result in wind chill temperatures of 40 below to 55 below zero.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 31, 2011Dangerous wind chill conditions developed across the Northern Plains Monday night January 31st through Tuesday morning February 1st as Arctic high pressure pushed south into the region.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 20 to 21, 2013An Arctic Airmass building across the Northern Plains brought sub-zero temperatures and winds up to twenty miles per hour from the 20th into the morning of the 21st.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, March 1 to 2, 2014Arctic air over the Northern Plains combined with winds of around ten mile per hour to create wind chill temperatures as cold as 45 below zero February 28th through March 2nd. See February Storm Data for the beginning of this event.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 29 to 30, 2023For a period of 2 days, dangerously cold wind chills affected Eastern North Dakota. Wind Chills got as low as -54F during this period. This event was caused by an arctic air mass that settled into the region after a system on the 27th.
- Extreme Cold in North Dakota, January 14, 2024Arctic air settled in after the blizzard and caused extreme cold and wind chills in eastern North Dakota.
More
Extreme Cold/Wind Chill everywhereEvery kind of event in North Dakota
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.