March 4, 2019 Record Cold

Snow Across the Great Lakes, Central Appalachians, and Northeast; Unsettled Weather in the West

Light to moderate snow will continue into Saturday over the Great Lakes, Central Appalachians, and Northeast. This weekend into next week, a series of atmospheric rivers will bring gusty winds, periods of heavy rain, and mountain snow to northern California and the Pacific Northwest. Colder temperatures are in store for the weekend from the Great Lakes to East Coast. Read More >

Public Information Statement National Weather Service Chicago IL 406 AM CST Wed Mar 6 2019 /506 AM EST Wed Mar 6 2019/ ...March 4-5, 2019 Cold in Perspective... The following are some numbers on the March 4-5 cold. March 4 was record-breaking cold for the date and the first time seeing that degree of cold in March in quite some time. -------- MORNING LOW TEMPERATURE ON MARCH 4 While not a daily record, the subzero readings in March were impressive especially considering no snow on the ground at both official climate sites. The low of -3 in Chicago was the coldest March temperature since 2002 (-7 on March 4) and tied for the 7th coldest March low temperature on record. This was the first subzero in Chicago in March with < 1 inch of snow on the ground since 1943. The low of -4 in Rockford was the coldest March temperature since 2015 (-5 on March 6). -------- AFTERNOON HIGH TEMPERATURE ON MARCH 4 Daily Record Low Maximum Temperatures for March 4: 2019 Previous Record Chicago 12 17 (1890) Rockford 10 14 (2002) The last time a March high temperature this cold had been observed in Chicago was 1943 (10 on March 2), and for Rockford was 2014 (9 on March 2). This was tied for the 5th coldest March high temperature on record in Chicago. This was tied for the second coldest March high temperature on record in Rockford: Rank High Temp Date 1. 9 March 2, 2014 2. 10 March 4, 2019 10 March 8, 1932 -------- Back to back highs below 20 were observed in Rockford on the 4th and 5th, which was only the 9th time on record that had happened in March. $$ MTF