Winter Storm — Jefferson, Indiana

2022-12-22 to 2022-12-23 · Jefferson, Indiana

Event narrative

Snowfall of 2 to 4 inches accumulated with blowing snow and strong wind gusts of 30-40 mph. Rapidly falling temperatures resulted in slick roads and significant travel impacts.

Treacherous travel conditions were noted throughout December 23rd, a busy holiday travel day. Wind chills of -25 to -30 were observed on the morning of the 23rd.

Wider weather episode

An amazing cold front barged through southern Indiana 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. Light rain ahead of the front quickly changed to light snow behind it with 1 to 3 inches falling in many locations. A band of 4 to 5 inches of snow developed from Salem, Indiana to Frankfort, Kentucky. The snow and plunging temperatures were accompanied by wind gusts to 40 mph and wind chills down to 30 degrees below zero, some of the coldest wind chills seen in 25 years. Daytime readings on the 23rd did not get out of the single digits. Near blizzard conditions were observed during the snowfall with visibility limited to a half mile. People were urged to avoid travel on one of the busiest holiday travel days of the year. Numerous crashes and closures were reported on state highways due to the snow and extreme cold temperatures. The extreme cold also resulted in scattered power outages and rolling blackouts in parts of the area.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1071234. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.