Winter Storm — Jefferson, Iowa

2021-02-04 · Jefferson, Iowa

Event narrative

Rain and wintry mix started the day, leading to snow (heavy at times), where between 1 and 3 inches of snow fell throughout Jefferson County. Strong winds were also noted in the afternoon, with a peak gust at 47 mph reported at the Fairfield Airport AWOS.

Wider weather episode

A fast moving arctic cold front brought dangerous conditions to portions of the area. Rain, mixed with freezing rain and sleet moved into eastern Iowa during the early morning, then as a cold front moved in from the west during the mid morning, the rain switched to snow. Strong winds and falling temperatures behind the front caused wet roads to quickly freeze. Snow fell for several hours after the change over and became heavy at times, with widespread 2 to 6 inches of snowfall. Winds behind the front were 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 45 mph during the afternoon and evening causing blowing snow in open areas. Whiteout conditions were seen in open areas, and some areas experienced periods of near blizzard conditions, especially across east central and northeast Iowa. Significant drifting snow continued into Feb. 5. Wind chills dropped to 5 below to 15 below zero late Thursday night and Friday morning along and north of I-80.

Key impacts: transportation delays, traffic accidents, and road closures.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 942270. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.