January Weather Facts

Day1...

1999: The new year started with a vengeance weather wise as a major winter storm hit the area. A combination of snow, sleet and freezing rain left from 2 to 8 inches of frozen precipitation on the ground across the area. Very cold temperatures after the storm kept conditions icy into next week.

2003: A New Years Day winter storm made staying in and watching football the thing to do. Sleet started during the evening hours and accumulated to about 1 inch in a narrow band from the Columbia area east into St. Louis. 6 to 8 inches of snow fell in a band from Central to Northeast Missouri. 4 to 6 inches fell in remaining areas to the south.

2005: The first 5 days of the year experienced record rainfall and flooding from a stationary cold front. The greatest amounts of rain were along the I-44 corridor from Rolla, Mo through the St. Louis Metro Area into central Illinois ranging from 5.5 inches to 8 inches. Colder air was in northeast Missouri and west central Illinois and brought a couple of inches of snow. More information can be found in our events archives.

2010: The first 12 days of the year were much colder than normal. Average temperatures in St. Louis and Quincy, IL reached the top ten coldest average temperatures. More information can be found in our events archives.

Day2...

1996: A winter snowstorm moved northeast into central and eastern Missouri, dropping 6 to 9 inches of snow over the area. Two persons were killed in an automobile crash on a snowy road near Mexico MO in Audrain County, and more than 160 airline flights were cancelled out of Lambert airport in St. Louis.

2003: A winter storm moved through west central Missouri and central Illinois. The heaviest band of snow was from Columbia to Quincy, IL. Columbia received about 6 inches of snow and Quincy received about 8 inches of snow. The St. Louis area got about 4.5 inches of snow as well. More information can be found in our events archives.

2006: Severe weather moved through the early morning hours in the St. Louis area. There were numerous reports of hail and damaging winds. Also, two tornado tracks were found. One in St. Charles County and the other in western St. Louis County. More information can be found  in our events archives.

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Day3...

1996: A snowstorm with moderate to occasional heavy snow moved across central, northeast, and east central Missouri. Two to four inches of snow fell across the area with the greatest amounts along the Mississippi river in eastern Marion and Ralls counties. More than 40 flights were cancelled at Lambert Airport.

1950: A tornado causing F3 damage developed in Montgomery county (IL). Four farm houses were "reduced to splinters" and several barns were destroyed.

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Day4...

2004: A narrow band of freezing rain hits parts of Northeast Missouri between the 3rd and the 4th causing numerous power outages and several auto accidents on ice covered highways. Electric companies had to restore power to parts of Monroe, Marion and Ralls counties. Officials in Hannibal called it the worst ice they had seen since in over 10 years.

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Day5...

1884: The all time lowest temperature on record for St. Louis (-22 degrees) was recorded.

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Day6...

1995: In East-Central Missouri, a period of freezing rain, freezing drizzle, and sleet caused glazing with accumulations from one-quarter to three-quarters inch. The layer of ice left roads hazardous leading to hundreds of accidents leading to of major highways, including parts of Interstate 70 being shut-down for a short time until conditions improved.

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Day7...

1912: The lowest temperature on record at Columbia for the month of January (-20 degrees) was recorded.

2008: A widespread severe weather outbreak took place from Oklahoma to Michigan. In the St. Louis area 4 EF0 tornado tracks were uncovered across central and northeast sections of Missouri. There were also microbursts and downbursts found with estimated wind speeds as great as 50 to 60 mph. A hail swath was located across northern Moniteau County, southern Boone County and Eastern Callaway County. More information can be found in our events archives.

2011: A clipper system moved through the Bi-State area late in the evening leaving 1 to 3 inches of snow generally from Quincy, IL southeast to Salem, IL. The area southwest of the band only saw about 0.2 inches of snowfall. More information can be found in our events archives.

2010: Snowfall amounting to 2 to 5 inches in the Bi-State area aided in temperatures dropping even farther below zero from the cold spell that settled into the area on the first of the year. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day8...

1997: A winter storm affected much of central, east and northeast Missouri on the 8th and 9th. Snowfall amounts ranged from 3 to around 8 inches, with the heaviest snow. a general area of 5 to 7 inches, falling from Columbia east across the St. Louis area.

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Day9...

1997: A winter storm affected much of central, east and northeast Missouri on the 8th and 9th. Snowfall amounts ranged from 3 to around 8 inches, with the heaviest snow. a general area of 5 to 7 inches, falling from Columbia east across the St. Louis area. Besides the snow, strong winds and very cold temperatures moved in on the night of the 9th, causing drifting snow and very cold wind chills.

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Day10...

1982: The lowest temperature on record at Quincy for the month of January (-21 degrees) was tied. With such a low temperature, the lowest wind chill on record for their location (-51) was also recorded on the same day. In St. Louis the wind chill was recorded at -44 which was the second lowest wind chill on record for that location. In Columbia, the 4th lowest wind chill (-41) was recorded.

2011: A winter storm affected the entire CWA during the afternoon and evening hours leaving 6 inches of snow in central and northeast Missouri. Snowfall totals gradually decreased moving to the southeast. The St. Louis Metro Area saw about 2.5 to 3 inches of snow and southeast Missouri got 1 to 2 inches. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day11...

No significant events were recorded

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Day12...

1890: A tornado producing F2 damage formed near Washington University and moved NE, crossing the Mississippi River just south of Venice. Over 100 homes and other buildings were unroofed or damaged. The tornado cause 4 deaths and 15 injuries.

1974: The 9th lowest wind chill at Quincy (-37) was recorded.

1998: Freezing drizzle began during the early morning hours and produced a thin glaze of ice across most roads. The hardest hit areas were in Central and East Central Missouri. At least 5 deaths and numerous injuries occurred in vehicle accidents due to the ice covered roads.

2005: Severe weather associated with a powerful cold front moved through the area bringing golf ball sized hail and wind gusts greater than 60 mph as well as 1 to 3 inches of rainfall. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day13...

2005: As a powerful cold front moved through the area beginning on the 12th the rain quickly changed to snow in the early morning hours. This brought up to 4 inches of snow from the Eastern Ozarks through the St. Louis Metro Area and into Central Illinois. More information can be found in our events archives.

2007: Sleet and freezing rain totals of 1.5 inches and greater in the nothern part of the CWA did significant damage to trees and limbs. This resulted in more than 100,000 homes and businesses losing power. There was also some flooding in the eastern Ozarks which took the life of one man who attempted to cross a flooded roadway. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day14...

1979: The 10th lowest wind chill at Columbia (-30) was recorded.

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Day15...

1997: A winter storm started the night of the 15th with a mix of freezing rain and sleet across much of central, east and northeast Missouri. from 1/4 to 1/2 inch of ice was left on area roads. By mid-morning of the 16th, snow began falling, with amounts ranging from 3 to 8 inches.

2007: Another round of storms following the events on the 13th brought an additional half an inch of ice accumulation to portions of central and northeast Missouri. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day16...

1977: The 4th lowest wind chill values for St. Louis (-38) and Quincy (-43) were recorded. In Columbia the wind chill was recorded as -36 making it the 6th lowest for that location.

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Day17...

No significant events were recorded

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Day18...

1995: Between the 18th and 19th, 19.7 inches of snow fell at Columbia. This is the greatest 24-hour snowfall total on record for this location. The damage from this storm (including all areas affected) totaled almost 2.5 million dollars.

1994: The 8th lowest wind chill on record at Quincy (-37) was recorded. In St. Louis, the wind chill bottomed out at -29 making it the 10th lowest wind chill on record for that location.

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Day19...

1995: Between the 18th and 19th, 19.7 inches of snow fell at Columbia. This is the greatest 24-hour snowfall total on record for this location.

2011: A band of heavy snow dropped 6 to 12 inches of snow along the Interstate 70 corridor late in the night. Surrounding areas saw less with southeast Missouri only seeing an inch or two. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day20...

1985: The lowest temperature on record at Quincy for the month of January (-21 degrees) was tied.

1985: The lowest wind chills on record for St. Louis (-48) and Columbia (-44) were recorded. The wind chill at Quincy was -50 which is the 2nd lowest wind chill for that location.

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Day21...

No significant events were recorded

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Day22...

1936: From the 22nd through the 31st, there were a record 10 days with temperatures below 0 degrees in St. Louis. 1989: the 5th lowest wind chill on record for Quincy (-41) was recorded.

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Day23...

2011: A weakening storm system moved through the area bringing 2 to 4 inches of snowfall to east central and northeast Missouri and central Illinois. Some isolated areas saw 5 inches of snow. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day24...

1950: The highest temperatures on record at St. Louis (77 degrees), Columbia (78 degrees) and Quincy (73 degrees) for the month of January were recorded.

1967: A tornado causing F4 damage killed 3 and injured 216 in St. Louis county.

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Day25...

1978: From the 25th through February 23rd, there were a record 30 days with temperatures below freezing in St. Louis.

2004: A combination of freezing rain, sleet and snow fell bringing the region to a standstill. 2-5 inches of sleet and snow accumulated over the area. Luckily it was a Sunday, as transportation was brought to a halt across the region.

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Day26...

1895: From the 26th through February 16th, there were 22 days with temperatures below freezing in St. Louis. This is the 3rd longest streak.

2009: The first major storm of the season tracked through the area from the late hours of the 26th to the 28th of the month. On this day the precipitation type varied from freezing rain in southeast Missouri with a band of heavy sleet accumulating to 3 inches in the southwestern part of the CWA to just southeast of the St. Louis Metro area. North of the Metro area cities saw around an inch of snow. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day27...

1997: A winter storm produced a coating of 1/2 to 1 inch of ice from Columbia northeast toward Hannibal. Trees and power lines were reported down in Boone, Moniteau, and Pike counties. By mid-afternoon, the colder temperatures had moved south into the St. Louis area. Rain quickly changed to freezing rain and sleet, creating a traffic nightmare during the afternoon rush hour.

2009: Heavy precipitation fell across the whole CWA mostly in the form of sleet with some freezing rain in southeastern Missouri. Sleet accumulations added an inch to the sleet already on the ground from the previous day in the eastern Ozarks while a wintery mix only added minor accumulations in the St. Louis Metro area. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day28...

1977: The 5th lowest wind chill value for Columbia (-36) was recorded. In Quincy, though the wind chill was recorded as -38 (which was a lower wind chill than in Columbia) it only ranked as the 7th lowest. In St. Louis, the wind chill bottomed out at -34 making it the 8th lowest wind chill on record for that location.

1909: In Columbia temperatures fell 55 degrees between the 28th and 29th. This temperature drop was associated with a blizzard which produced wind speeds in excess of 50mph for 18 consecutive hours on the 29th.

2009: In the early morning hours a low pressure developed over the Tennessee Valley causing snow to rapidly develop over east central and southeast Missouri. Total snow accumulations ranged from 6 to 8 inches. Some parts of south central Illinois saw as much as 10 inches of snow while the St. Louis Metro area saw about 6 inches. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day29...

1873: Though it is an unofficial record, the temperature at St. Louis was recorded as -23 degrees.

2002: With the temperature in the upper 20s to near 30, falling rain quickly froze on exposed surfaces such as trees and power lines. Parts of northeast Missouri from 1/2 to near 1 inch of ice accumulation. Power outages were widespread as trees, power lines and power poles broke from the weight of the ice. Some residents were without power for 3 to 5 days. Audrain, Boone, Knox, Lewis, Marion, Monroe, Ralls, and Shelby counties were declared Federal Disaster areas.

2010: A winter storm brought 6 to 7 inches of snow across portions of southeast Missouri and southern Illinois. The southern part of the St. Louis Metro area only saw about half an inch of snowfall. More information can be found in our events archives.

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Day30...

1982: Between the 30th and 31st, 13.9 inches of snow fell at St. Louis. This is the 3rd greatest 24-hour snowfall total on record for this location.

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Day31...

1982: Between the 30th and 31st, 13.9 inches of snow fell at St. Louis. This is the 3rd greatest 24-hour snowfall total on record for this location.

2008: A major winter storm late in the evening brought snowfall totals ranging from 1 to 3 inches in central Missouri, around 8 inches in St. Louis Metro area and up to 10 inches in central Illinois. At times snowfall rates approached 2 inches per hour. More information can be found in our events archives.

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