Heavy Snow — Macon, Illinois

2026-01-24 to 2026-01-25 · Macon, Illinois

Event narrative

Weather observers measured 6 to 8 inches of snow across Macon County...including 6.0 inches in Decatur. Due to both falling and drifting snow, travel became extremely hazardous...leading to numerous traffic accidents on area roadways.

Wider weather episode

A vigorous upper-level disturbance interacting with a nearly stationary frontal boundary draped across the Deep South produced a prolonged overrunning snowfall event across central and southern Illinois from the morning of January 24th to the morning of January 25th.

By the time the snow tapered off and came to an end, significant amounts had been observed...especially along and south of the I-70 corridor where amounts of 8 to 12 inches were common. Some of the highest totals were recorded across southern Richland County around Olney where a few reports indicated 13-14 inches. Amounts decreased further north, with 4-8 inches along the I-72 corridor from Jacksonville to Danville...and just 1 to 3 inches along and north of a Macomb to Peoria line. Northeasterly winds gusting 20-25mph on January 24th and north-northwesterly winds gusting 25-30mph on January 25th created considerable drifting of the snow in places.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1318022. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.