Every tornado, hurricane, flood, blizzard, heat wave, record, earthquake, eruption, tsunami, wildfire and geomagnetic storm on record for December 22, in any year, each linked to its full record.
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Every event with a place, colored by kind. Tap one to open its record.
By deaths, damage and strength together, across every archive.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck Damghan, Qumis, Iran. It killed 200,000 people and did extreme (about $25 million or more) damage.
Winter storms and snow
Snowstorm of December 22, 2009 was ranked category 5, Extreme, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Northern Rockies and Plains. It lasted from December 22, 2009 to December 29, 2009.
Volcanoes
Krakatau, Indonesia erupted with a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 4. It killed 437 people, left 10 missing, injured 31,943, destroyed 2,844 houses and did $250 million in damage. The eruption caused a tsunami.
Tsunamis
A tsunami with a source recorded as volcano and landslide struck Krakatau, Indonesia, with a maximum water height of 85 meters. It killed 437 people, left 10 missing, injured 31,943 and did $250 million in damage.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck Gaoual-Koumbia, Guinea. It killed 443 people, left 200 missing, injured 1,436, destroyed 4,000 houses and did $8 million in damage.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 8.3 earthquake struck Xinjiang Province, China. It killed 280 people, destroyed 2,000 houses and did severe (about $5 to $25 million) damage.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck Ain Temouchent, Northern, Algeria. It killed 24 people, injured 175, destroyed 3,000 houses and did $60.9 million in damage.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Ulawun, Rabaul, Papua New Guinea. It killed 10 people and did $25 million in damage.
Earthquakes
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Paso Robles,templeton,atascadero, California, United States. It killed 2 people, injured 47, destroyed 40 houses and did $263 million in damage.
Earthquakes
An earthquake struck Augsburg, Innsbruck, Germany, Austria. It killed 19 people.
Tornadoes
An F3 tornado touched down in Barnwell County, South Carolina and tracked 5.8 miles, 100 yards wide at its widest, killing 1 and injuring 4. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: W Barnwell, SC.
Winter storms and snow
Snowstorm of December 22, 1908 was ranked category 3, Major, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Southeast. It lasted from December 22, 1908 to December 23, 1908.
16 on December 22, oldest first.
An F2 tornado touched down in Sampson County, North Carolina, killing 2 and injuring 5. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: W Clinton, NC.
An F2 tornado touched down in Noxubee County, Mississippi and 200 yards wide at its widest, killing 1 and injuring 18. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: S Cookeville, MS.
An F3 tornado touched down in Barnwell County, South Carolina and tracked 5.8 miles, 100 yards wide at its widest, killing 1 and injuring 4. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: W Barnwell, SC.
An F2 tornado touched down in Barnwell County, South Carolina and 100 yards wide at its widest, killing 1 and injuring 4. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: Snelling, SC.
An F2 tornado touched down in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana and tracked 1.9 miles, 100 yards wide at its widest, killing 2 and injuring 4. From Grazulis's record of significant tornadoes: Maringouin/Livonia, LA.
A cold front sweeping through Southern California, was accompanied by strong, gusty winds and bursts of moderate to heavy precipitation. As the front moved through the San Gorgonio Pass, a short lived tornado spun up at Cabazon.
A tornado developed in the southeast quadrant of an HP supercell associated with an eastward moving cold front.
An EF3 tornado touched down in Gordon, Floyd, Bartow counties, Georgia and tracked 11.42 miles, 880 yards wide at its widest, injuring 4.
A deep trough, quite characteristic of the early winter season of 2011-2012, was anchored across the southwest U.S. with broad southwest flow aloft evident from the southwest U.S. toward the mid-Atlantic.
In response to a strong upper level shortwave, a surface low developed over the northwestern Gulf of Mexico and rode along a previously stalled front across northwest Central Alabama, Thursday, December 22, 2011.
A cold front moving through southeast Louisiana allowed the development of a line of thunderstorms that produced several reports of severe weather.
3 on December 22, oldest first.
Hurricane Gloria reached its peak of 130 kt (150 mph) with a central pressure of 990 mb, a category 4 storm.
Typhoon Jack was a powerful and unusually slow-moving late-season tropical cyclone that threatened Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in December 1989. The final tropical cyclone of the year in the western North Pacific, Jack was designated 36W by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) and 8932 by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Tropical Storm Nock-ten passed across portions of Micronesia during the last half of |the month.
10 on December 22, oldest first.
A cold front became stationary north of Puerto Rico on Saturday 22. This system in combination with strong northeast winds caused intermittent showers over the north sections of Puerto Rico producing between three to four inches of rain.
Additional rain during the month of December led to more river flooding during the latter portion of the month.
1 billion US gallons of coal fly ash slurry. The coal-fired power plant, located across the Clinch River from the city of Kingston, used a series of ponds to store and dewater the fly ash, a byproduct of coal combustion.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
There was a break in the weather during most of the day of December 18th, but the next storm arrived during the late afternoon and continued overnight and into the next day. By the time midnight arrived, Bakersfield had recorded a record 1.37 inch of rain.
The winter solstice arrived on the 21st with near record warmth in southeast Ohio. Temperatures reached into the upper 60s to lower 70s. In a fast wind flow above the ground, a squall line raced northeast into the area after midnight.
A slow moving front allowed for an extensive rain shield to blanket portions of the Midsouth with numerous training of moderate to heavy rain showers affecting northwest Mississippi and west Tennessee during the afternoon and evening hours of December 22nd.
2018 Northern Province floods in Sri Lanka caused from heavy rainfall in five main districts of Northern Province including Jaffna, Mannar, Mullaithivu, Vavuniya and Kilinochchi beginning around 22 December 2018 on a full moon Poya Day. As of 22 December according to Disaster Management Centre (DMC), more than 45000 people from mere nearly 14000 families were reported to have been affected.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Two separate frontal systems merged to form a powerful winter storm over the Great Lakes from December 22 to December 24 bringing multiple hazards to the region including heavy rain, snow, strong winds and a very cold air mass in its wake.
A coastal low pressure system interacted with a warm front resulting in a widespread two to three inches of rain with localized amounts up to four inches. This resulted in numerous road closures due to high water and small streams overflowing their banks.
Two separate frontal systems merged to form a powerful winter storm over the Great Lakes from December 22 to December 24 bringing multiple hazards to the region including heavy rain, snow, strong winds and a very cold air mass in its wake.
16 on December 22, oldest first.
Strong winds blew across Oklahoma on December 22, 1961. In Chickasha, power lines were blown down, causing a fire that damaged a cotton warehouse. Strong winds over northern Oklahoma that afternoon damaged many roofs, blew down power lines, and shattered plate glass store windows. A 75-foot section of a brick wall fell in Enid, and an oil rig was toppled by the wind near Hennessey.
From the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma.
Severe thunderstorm wind gusts blew tiles off house roofs and tore down trees over a widespread area in Cape Coral.
Localized strong winds below a mountain gap damaged trailers and mobile homes at Cold Creek near Indian Springs.
Strong gusty west to northwesterly winds following the passage of a cold front brought down a few trees and limbs onto utility lines across southern Maine causing scattered outages.
An area of low pressure moved northeast through eastern Canada Monday night (December 21st) and Tuesday (December 22nd). Much colder air moved in on strong winds that accompanied and followed the associated cold front.
Strong, gusty west to northwest winds spread across Arkansas following the passage of a cold front on the afternoon and evening of the 22nd.
A strong cold front pushed through central Illinois during the late evening and overnight hours from December 22nd into the 23rd. Several|reports of damaging straight line wind gusts were received shortly after frontal passage.
A line of thunderstorms moved across the area during the morning hours of the 22nd producing damage.
This event was an upper-level low that followed an inside slider trajectory, passing just north of the region and providing gusty north-northeast winds on the 22nd and 23rd, but little in the way of precipitation.
A fast moving area of low pressure caused strong to severe storms across portions of Central Mississippi on the morning of the December 22. The storms caused some damaging winds in the form of blown down trees, and some structural damage, mainly in Lamar county.
Strong west winds followed in the wake of the departing low pressure system during the day on the 22nd in New Jersey. Peak wind gusts averaged around 45 mph inland and around 50 mph along the coast and knocked down additional weak trees, tree limbs and wires.
The winter solstice arrived on the 21st with record warmth in a large section of West Virginia. Temperatures reached the upper 60s to mid 70s for much of the western lowlands. In a fast wind flow above the ground, a squall line raced northeast into the area after midnight.
A front tracked through the area triggering isolated thunderstorms over east Tennessee during the overnight hours. With the aid of a strong low-level wind field a few of the storms produced a damaging wind downing some trees and powerlines.
A warm front advanced slowly north over the state ahead of a deepening upper-level trough digging into the Mississippi Valley, bringing deep moisture and an increasingly unstable air mass to North and Central Georgia.
A deepening low pressure system moved up the spine of the Appalachians into New York, spreading moderate to heavy rainfall across the region from Thursday, December 20th into Friday, December 21st, 2018.
A highly anticipated strong Arctic Cold front arrived during the evening hours, which not only brought the onset of an intense bitterly cold wave for the next few days, but also produced a surge of strong and damaging wind gusts along the front.
72 on December 22, oldest first.
Snowstorm of December 22, 1908 was ranked category 3, Major, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Southeast. It lasted from December 22, 1908 to December 23, 1908.
Snowstorm of December 22, 1966 was ranked category 2, Significant, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Northeast. It lasted from December 22, 1966 to December 26, 1966.
Snowstorm of December 22, 1989 was ranked category 2, Significant, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Southeast. It lasted from December 22, 1989 to December 25, 1989.
Blizzard conditions developed across parts of Mono County from 3 PM to 9 PM. Wind gusts of 61 to as high as 87 kts were reported in the Mammoth Lakes area. A tree fell on a house in Mammoth Lakes. Another tree fell on a power line, knocking power out for over half the town.
The second in the series of storm systems dumped heavy snow two days after storm #1. This system was characterized by very strong lift in a deformation zone northeast of the center of upper level low pressure.
An ice storm during the late afternoon left slick roads across the western southern tier. Numerous auto accidents occurred. Ice accumulated up to 1/2" and combined with several inches of snow to create hazardous conditions.
A strong arctic cold front moved through North Texas on the 21st, bringing freezing temperatures to all of North Texas by the morning of the 22nd. Southwest winds aloft produced overrunning conditions, resulting in cloudy skies and a mixture of freezing rain, sleet, and snow.
A crippling ice storm struck the three state region of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi at one of the worst times, just before Christmas. Much of the fall and early winter season of late 1998 had been very mild for southerners.
A shallow dome of artic air spread across northern Louisiana while low pressure formed in the northern Gulf of Mexico pulling warm moist air northward over the top of the cold air. The result was widespread freezing rain, sleet and freezing drizzle.
A major ice storm affected about the southern three-quarters of Arkansas as Christmas Day approached. Freezing rain and sleet developed across southern Arkansas during the evening of the 22nd...and spread north.
A shallow arctic air mass spread southward across all of southwest Arkansas while low pressure formed in the Gulf of Mexico spreading warm moist air northward over the top of the artic air mass. This resulted in widespread freezing rain, freezing drizzle, and sleet.
The ice storm left minor accumulations of ice in valley locations due to warm ground temperatures. Most of the ice was on trees and bridges. Most roads were only wet. In higher elevations, the ice was much heavier. Around 5,000 customers lost power in McMinn and Meigs counties.
Much of north Mississippi was hit with an ice storm. Most counties reported between 1/4 to 1/2 inch of ice on their roads with some locations in the southern part of the region reporting as much as 3 inches of ice.
This first significant lake effect snowstorm of the season was a long lasting one. Arctic air surged into the region following the passage of a strong cold front. The activity off Lake Erie did subside a couple of times during the event, but only for a few hours each time.
Freezing drizzle/rain with a few reports of snow and sleet. Icing on area roads caused a significant number of automobile accidents.
The season's first lengthy lake effect episode began late on the 21st following a cold front. Off Lake Erie, snow fell at the rate of two inches per hour at the peak of the storm. The band drifted from the ski country to the southern suburbs of Buffalo.
This lake effect event began as some of the coldest air of the season crossed the Great Lakes. Meandering snow squall produced snowfall rates of two inches an hour. The activity began off Lake Erie during the early morning hours of the 22nd as a cold front crossed the region.
A record setting winter storm affected northern Ohio on December 22nd and 23rd. The impact and damage caused by this storm has been compared to the Blizzard of January 1978. Low pressure developed over eastern Texas early on the 22nd and then moved quickly northeast.
A record setting winter storm affected northern Ohio on December 22nd and 23rd and dumped both heavy snow and freezing rain on Knox, Holmes, Wayne and Stark Counties. The impact and damage caused by this storm has been compared to the Blizzard of January 1978.
A major winter storm dumped from 10 to 20 inches of snow across most of southern Illinois, clogging interstates and shutting down most businesses near the peak of the Christmas shopping season.
A potent winter storm affected northern Ohio on December 22nd and 23rd. Low pressure developed over eastern Texas early on the 22nd and then moved quickly northeast.
A snow storm of historic proportions affected central Indiana on 22-23 December 2004.
A potent winter storm affected northwestern Ohio on December 22nd and 23rd. Low pressure developed over eastern Texas early on the 22nd and then moved quickly northeast.
A potent winter storm affected western Pennsylvania on December 22nd and 23rd. Low pressure developed over eastern Texas early on the 22nd and then moved quickly northeast.
A record-setting winter storm dumped up to 18 inches of snow across western Kentucky, closing Interstate 24 and shutting down most businesses near the peak of the Christmas shopping season.
A mix of snow and ice, caused by snow, sleet and freezing rain, accumulated around 1 to 2 inches with the most, 3 inches across Houston County. In Humphreys County, a portion of Interstate 40 was closed across the Tennessee River bridge for a while due to icy conditions.
A surface and upper level low pressure center tracked northeast across the Ohio Valley on Wednesday, December 22nd and exited the region on the 23rd. A swath of heavy snow cut through southeast Indiana and into the Miami Valley of Ohio.
A winter storm brought heavy snow to south central Indiana. Storm total amounts of 20 to 30 inches were reported over the area. High winds developed later in the day on the 23rd, creating drifts of snow up to four or five feet.
A winter storm began with freezing rain. This left a layer of ice about one inch thick on surfaces. Two to four inches of snow and sleet fell on top of this. A hangar collapsed at the airport in Elizabethtown, destroying a few airplanes.
A mixture of snow and sleet spread across North Central Texas during the early morning and daytime hours, affecting virtually all of North Central Texas. Snow and sleet accumulations ranged from a trace in the southeast up to 3 inches in Eastland and Erath counties.
A winter storm began with freezing rain, then changed over to sleet and snow over parts of south central and east central Kentucky. Ice accumulations up to one half inch were reported, with up to an inch of snow or sleet on top.
A winter storm produced a mixture of sleet and snow across much of northern, western and central Arkansas during the day and early evening hours of the 22nd. Snowfall totals across the affected area generally ranged from 2 to 4 inches.
An ice storm hit portions of the Mississippi Delta just before Christmas and coated most of Bolivar and Sunflower counties with 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch of ice.
A winter storm brought a mix of sleet and snow to West Tennessee. Southern sections of West Tennessee picked up between 2 and 3 inches of sleet. Northern sections of West Tennessee saw between 4 and 7 inches of snow.
The first snowfall of the season for parts of central and southern Oklahoma and western north Texas produced widespread snowfall totals of 1-3 inches with a few isolated areas receiving up to 4 inches of snow, especially in southeast Oklahoma.
A surface and upper level low pressure center tracked northeast across the Ohio Valley on Wednesday, December 22nd and exited the region on the 23rd. A swath of heavy snow cut through southeast Indiana and into the Miami Valley of Ohio.
A winter storm brought a mix of sleet and snow to much of East Arkansas. Southern sections saw more sleet than snow and had as much as 2 inches of sleet. In northern sections, snow accumulated to between 4 and 8 inches.
A winter storm dropped about three to six inches of sleet and snow over the area. Some structural damage was reported, mainly to outbuildings and service station canopies. About 3300 residents were without power for some period of time.
Heavy snow developed across the southern Big Country. Snowfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches with a few reports up to 6 inches. There was one report of up to 8 inches in a narrow band across northern Runnels County.
Two teenage hikers were caught in a hard slab avalanche on the east side of Kelso Mountain, about 3 miles south of Bakerville and about 1 mile east of the summit of Torreys Peak. One young man -- an 18-year-old from Colorado Springs -- was buried and killed.
One to two inches of snow combined with strong winds to create white out conditions east of Amarillo and also near Pampa. The snow and blowing snow contributed to a major vehicular accident on Interstate 40 near the intersection of U.S.
Snowstorm of December 22, 2007 was ranked category 1, Notable, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Upper Midwest. It lasted from December 22, 2007 to December 24, 2007.
A quick moving upper level wave entered western Oklahoma during the morning hours and quickly moved east through the state during the late morning and afternoon hours. A quick burst of heavy snow accompanied the storm system.
A powerful area of low pressure brought heavy snow and near blizzard conditions to portions of central, south-central and southeast Kansas on December 22nd. Heavy snow began to fall across the area between 0700 and 1000 CST.
An intense winter storm moved into western Kansas early Saturday morning, December 22nd. This storm brought snow to most of Dodge City’s CWA, with nearly every county reporting blizzard conditions during the day Saturday.
Snowstorm of December 22, 2009 was ranked category 5, Extreme, on NOAA’s Regional Snowfall Index, strongest in the Northern Rockies and Plains. It lasted from December 22, 2009 to December 29, 2009.
Fog and light freezing drizzle produced a thin layer of ice on area roads, including Interstate 70. Accidents were reported in both Sherman and Thomas counties resulting in three fatalities and three injuries. Dozens of other non-injury accidents were reported.
A storm over the Pacific Northwest on the 21st moved to the Great Basin on the 22nd, into northern Arizona on the 23rd and crossed New Mexico from northwest to southeast late on the 23rd into the early morning hours of the 24th.
A strong upper level low pressure system that slowly moved south over Arizona and then over southern New Mexico brought copious amounts of snow to the state. Some of the areas that were hit the hardest included the same areas that were blanketed by snow from the previous storm.
Slippery road surfaces, attributable to the arrival of a winter storm a few days earlier in concert with very light snow from the morning into the early afternoon on the 22nd, contributed to a rash of automobile accidents, slide-offs and roll-overs across central Kansas on the…
Four-days of heavy snowfall left several feet of snow in the Seldovia/Homer/Anchor Point, Alaska area resulting in widespread power outages in the communities and two sunken fishing vessels.
A series of weak moved from the Ohio Valley across Southern New England. This drew warm air north over Southern New England even as colder air moved south at the surface.
A quick moving storm system moved from the Ohio River Valley across southern New England and brought snow to New York during the morning commute on December 22nd and ending shortly after the evening commute. A widespread 3 to 7 inches of snow fell across northern NY.
A 31 year old man riding in the Wyoming Range to the East of Alpine was riding a snowmobile in steep terrain when he triggered a 100 foot by 100 foot slab avalanche. The avalanche flipped his snowmobile and he was pinned under the snowmobile for an hour before being dug out.
The late fall and early winter of 2020 yielded a lot of snow for portions of northern and western Oklahoma as several snow producing storms took their aim on the region. Through this date in 2020, several locations already had well over a foot of snow for the young winter season. A few of the totals for October through the middle of December were Arnett with 32.3 inches, Fargo with 27.1 inches, and Woodward with 21.3 inches. Locations farther east toward Alva, Fairview, and Watonga accumulated between 12 and 20 inches. Oklahoma City had seen 6.8 inches of snow, close to its yearly average.
From the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma.
A long duration winter storm affected all of northern Indiana with multiple hazards across including heavy snow, blowing snow, strong winds, whiteouts, and dangerous wind chills. Blizzard conditions were experienced across portions of northwest and north central Indiana.
A 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.
An 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.
A powerful arctic front swept through the Mid-South during the afternoon and evening on December 22nd. Temperatures dropped as much as 20 degrees in the first hour after the frontal passage.
A storm system initially brought one to two hours of freezing drizzle during the early morning hours of December 22nd before precipitation changed over to light snow.
A 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.
A 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.
A strong arctic cold front moved through the region December 22nd. The system brought a very rare combination of accumulating snowfall (generally 1-3) combined with very strong northwest winds (20-30 mph sustained, 35-45 mph gusts) which yielded sporadic near-blizzard conditions…
A large winter system impacted Iowa and much of the Midwest in the days leading up to Christmas 2022. Snow began to fall across Iowa on the 21st and lasted through the morning of the 22nd, blanketing most of the state in a widespread depth of two to four inches.
Several inches of snow followed by rapid intensification of a low-pressure system over the Great Lakes led to a multi-day winter storm for much of Minnesota.
An amazing cold front barged through central Kentucky during the evening of December 22nd. The front caused temperatures to crash 50 degrees in 12 hours, from the 40s on the afternoon of the 22nd to subzero readings the following morning.
An abnormally strong and cold upper-level low pressure system plunged southward through much of the central and eastern United States, bringing a blast of Arctic air. These historically cold temperatures impacted all of Middle Tennessee beginning late on December 22, 2022.
An Arctic cold front pushed through central Illinois on December 22nd, causing temperatures to plummet from early morning highs in the 30s to evening lows from zero to ten below zero.
A strong winter storm brought near blizzard conditions to the Ohio Valley during the overnight hours of Thursday, December 22nd.
A very strong cold front accompanied by an Arctic airmass infiltrated Arkansas on December 22nd. Along and just behind the front, precipitation fell as mainly snow over the northern half of the state.
12 on December 22, oldest first.
Unusually cold temperatures caused water pipes to freeze and break in several Bishop homes. The fire department responded to several calls and used vacuums and hoses to pump water from residences and Bishop's Union High School.
The extreme cold that had affected northwest South Carolina for most of December claimed another Oconee County victim early on the 23rd. This victim was a 48-year old female, found locked out of her home, who died due to exposure to the elements.
A 58 year-old man from Godfrey, Illinois was found dead in his home. He has not been seen for several days. Hypothermia was the suspected cause of death as the temperature in the home was 35 degrees at the time he was found.
The cold air that accompanied the series of Pacific storms between the 18th and 20th of the month, settled into the San Joaquin Valley, plunging lows into the mid to upper 20s during the morning of the 21st.
A 76 year old woman died from cold exposure on Roosevelt Road in Chicago on December 22nd. Low temperatures on December 22nd were in the upper teens.
Low temperature in the teens and a high near freezing contributed to the cold exposure death of man.
The coldest airmass since December of 1989 descended upon the Mid-South right before Christmas.
An Arctic air mass entered the region on the morning of December 22nd, plunging temperatures to below zero. Strong winds combined with the cold temperatures yielded wind chills between -25 and -40 below zero from roughly 10 am on 12/22 to noon on 12/23.
A 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.
Bitterly cold temperatures and wind chills arrived behind a very strong Arctic cold front. Wind chill values stayed zero or below for around 36 hours straight. In some cases, wind chills dropped into the -15 to -19 degree range for some locations.
A strong push of Arctic air arrived late on December 22nd across the Northern Ranchlands before sweeping through the Rio Grande Valley the morning of December 23rd. What followed were some of the coldest temperatures the region has seen in the month of December since 1989.
Cold temperatures were observed across portions of southwestern Pennsylvania, beginning on December 22, 2024 and continuing into the afternoon hours of December 23.
1 on December 22, oldest first.
Oshkosh recorded -47°F, Nebraska’s all-time minimum temperature, as the State Climate Extremes Committee lists it (a tie with an earlier value).
7 on December 22, oldest first.
The Livestock Fire was discovered on December 22, 1996, in New Mexico, and burned 2,240 acres.
The Unnamed Fire was discovered on December 22, 2001, in Tennessee, and burned 4,646 acres; the cause was recorded as arson/incendiarism.
The Willow City Fire was discovered on December 22, 2007, in Gillespie County, Texas, and burned 2,000 acres; the cause was recorded as human.
Winds increased in advance of a cold front and picked up considerable dust and soil from a field adjacent to Interstate 10 in Casa Grande.
The Hutchinson Rd Fire was discovered on December 22, 2010, in Cherokee County, Oklahoma, and burned 3,200 acres; the cause was recorded as human.
On December 22, extremely dry conditions in combination with gusty winds fueled a fire in the town of Reno, destroying more than $50,000 worth of hay.
The east-central portion of Colorado saw non-thunderstorm high sustained winds and gusts associated with a cold front beginning in the afternoon hours of December 22nd that continued until the afternoon hours of December 23rd.
19 on December 22, oldest first.
A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck Damghan, Qumis, Iran. It killed 200,000 people and did extreme (about $25 million or more) damage.
An earthquake struck Augsburg, Innsbruck, Germany, Austria. It killed 19 people.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Seikaido-Nankaido, Japan. It caused a tsunami.
A magnitude 5 earthquake struck Yunnan Province, China. It killed 4 people.
A magnitude 8.3 earthquake struck Xinjiang Province, China. It killed 280 people, destroyed 2,000 houses and did severe (about $5 to $25 million) damage.
An earthquake struck Ioannina,konitsa, Greece-Albania. It did severe (about $5 to $25 million) damage.
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck Gachala,gacheta,ubala,medina, Colombia. It killed 7 people and did severe (about $5 to $25 million) damage.
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck Tainan, Taiwan. It destroyed 121 houses.
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck N Central, Tehran, Iran. It killed 3 people, injured 139 and did $1 million in damage.
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck Gaoual-Koumbia, Guinea. It killed 443 people, left 200 missing, injured 1,436, destroyed 4,000 houses and did $8 million in damage.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Ulawun, Rabaul, Papua New Guinea. It killed 10 people and did $25 million in damage.
3 struck northern Guinea, killing around 300 people, and injuring 1,500. Around 200 people went missing.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck Alajuela, Santiago DE Puriscal, Costa Rica. It killed 2 people, injured 350 and did $19.5 million in damage.
A magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck Kamchatka, Kuril Islands, Russia. It caused a tsunami.
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck Ain Temouchent, Northern, Algeria. It killed 24 people, injured 175, destroyed 3,000 houses and did $60.9 million in damage.
The 1999 Aïn Témouchent earthquake occurred on December 22 at 18:36:56 local time in northern Algeria. 6 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Paso Robles,templeton,atascadero, California, United States. It killed 2 people, injured 47, destroyed 40 houses and did $263 million in damage.
The 2003 San Simeon earthquake struck at 11:15 PST on December 22 on the Central Coast of California, about 7 miles (11 km) northeast of San Simeon. Probably centered in the Oceanic fault zone within the Santa Lucia Mountains, it was caused by thrust faulting and the rupture propagated southeast from the hypocenter for 12 miles (19 km).
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck Mozambique, Zimbabwe. It injured 10 and destroyed 600 houses.
1 on December 22, oldest first.
Krakatau, Indonesia erupted with a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 4. It killed 437 people, left 10 missing, injured 31,943, destroyed 2,844 houses and did $250 million in damage. The eruption caused a tsunami.
5 on December 22, oldest first.
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Seikaido-Nankaido, Japan.
A tsunami with a source recorded as meteorological struck Caroline Islands, Micronesia. It killed many people (about 101 to 1,000) and did severe (about $5 to $25 million) damage.
A tsunami with a source recorded as volcano struck Kavachi, Solomon Islands.
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck S. Kuril Islands, Russia, with a maximum water height of 0.52 meters.
A tsunami with a source recorded as volcano and landslide struck Krakatau, Indonesia, with a maximum water height of 85 meters. It killed 437 people, left 10 missing, injured 31,943 and did $250 million in damage.
6 on December 22, oldest first.
A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 1940, reached Kp 5 and lasted 3 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 22; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 60 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
A G2 (moderate) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 1950, reached Kp 6+ and lasted 18 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 35; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 53 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 1951, reached Kp 5+ and lasted 24 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 37; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 58 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 1989, reached Kp 5+ and lasted 9 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 27; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 58 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 1995, reached Kp 5 and lasted 3 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 20; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 60 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm began December 22, 2014, reached Kp 5+ and lasted 6 hours, with a daily Ap as high as 19; at that Kp the aurora may be seen from about 58 degrees geomagnetic latitude.
5 on December 22, oldest first.
Low far off in the northwest Pacific caused surf of 6 to 10 feet on the north shores of all the islands. Three professional surfers were injured, with one almost drowning, as high surf affected conditions at the Banzai Pipeline on Oahu's North Shore.
Swells generated strong currents across parts of the shoreline. A 69 year old man drowned at Gun Beach inTumon Bay as a result of strong currents along the reef line. At 1433 resucers received a call of a distreesedswimmer at Gun Beach.
Behind the series of cold Pacific storms that rolled through California earlier in the month, high pressure slowly built into the Central Valley of California between the 22nd and 26th.
Unseasonably warm and moist air contributed to the development of dense fog across southeast South Dakota, northwest Iowa, northeast Nebraska and southwest Minnesota on the morning of December 22.
A kayak capsized off the east coast of Ngaraard, Palau near the village of Elab. Strong currents within Ngedub Channel pulled the fisherman out into the open ocean.
Gathered from this site’s archives: the tornado record (NOAA SPC, and Grazulis before 1950), IBTrACS and the National Hurricane Center, NOAA NCEI’s Storm Events Database, Regional Snowfall Index, billion-dollar disasters list, State Climate Extremes Committee and hazard databases, USGS, NIFC, GFZ Potsdam’s Kp index (CC BY 4.0), the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma, and Wikidata (CC0), with article leads from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0, each credited where it appears. Rebuilt 2026-09-24.