Winter Weather — Coles, Illinois

2009-12-25 to 2009-12-27 · Coles, Illinois

Event narrative

Numerous traffic accidents were reported across Coles County due to snow-covered roadways. The most significant incident occurred on I-57 near the 180 mile marker between Mattoon and Negoa at 11:30 AM on December 27th when a multi-vehicle accident sent several people to area hospitals with minor injuries.

Wider weather episode

A complex and slow-moving system brought an extended period of snow to central Illinois from December 25th through December 27th. The first wave of significant snow occurred during the night of December 25th through midday on the 26th. Due to favorable temperature and moisture conditions aloft, very large snow flakes were produced, resulting in impressive snowfall rates. By the time the wave departed the area by the late afternoon of December 26th, a wide swath of 3 to 6 inch snow accumulations had occurred along and west of the Illinois River. A weaker wave brought another period of light snow during the morning of December 27th. By the time the precipitation ended, all of central Illinois had picked up between 3 and 5 inches of snow, with 7 to 9 inch amounts common along and west of the Illinois River. Due to the prolonged period of snow, numerous traffic accidents occurred around the area.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 205308. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.