February 2016 Weather Summary

Overview

February was a relatively mild weather month across central and southeast Illinois with temperatures averaging 2-4 degrees above normal.  Snowfall amounts varied from 3 to 7 inches, though as little as 2 inches in Olney to as much as 10 inches in Paris. Liquid equivalent precipitation was below normal again in February across central IL (half to 1 inch below normal for most areas), while far southeast IL south of I-70 had near or even above normal precipitation. Peoria and Jacksonville had around 0.60 inches of precipitation while Flora had 3.35 inches. Arctic airmasses did produce a week stretch of temperatures below freezing from Feb 8-15th.  Wind chills were down to 10-20 below zero at times over central and northern IL Feb 9-10th and Feb 12-14th. Record warmth occurred on Feb 20th and 28th with highs in the upper 60s to mid 70s.  Springfield reached 74 degrees on Feb 20th and 71 degrees on Feb 28th, and the last time it reached the 70s in February was on Feb 25th, 2000 when it was 72 degrees. Only 8 years since 1879 has Springfield had at least two days in the 70s during February. Very windy conditions prevailed on Feb 19th, 24th and 28th with wind advisories posted across the area. 

Significant Events

• February 14: An upper level disturbance brought a period of light to moderate snow to central and southeast Illinois on Valentine's Day (Sunday Feb 14).  Snow accumulations ranged from 2 to 4 inches.  The highest amounts of 3-4 inches were focused along a 50 mile wide band which stretched from Galesburg to Lincoln and Springfield to Paris and Terre Haute.  

February 14 Snowfall

• February 24^th: An intense low pressure area tracking through the lower Ohio Valley produced blizzard conditions in parts of central, eastern and northeast IL. Snowfall amounts ranged from 3 to 7 inches east of I-55 and north of I-70. Wind gusts of 40 to 55 mph produced whiteout conditions along portions of I-74, I-72 and I-57 as well as most east-west state highways and rural roads. Numerous traffic accidents occurred due to the snow and wind, and more than 40,000 utility customers were without power. The same storm produced heavy rainfall and minor flooding in parts of southern Illinois with 1.50 to 2.50 inch rain totals reported along and south of I-70.
   

Precipitation

Snowfall

Temperatures

Climate Data

The table below summarizes January liquid equivalent precipitation, snowfall, and temperature, and departure from normal for selected cities across central and southeast Illinois.  Data from Peoria and Springfield are from ASOS sites, while others are from NWS Cooperative Observers.
 

Links below are the monthly climate summaries for area cities. Only the summaries for Peoria, Springfield and Lincoln are considered "official", meaning they are the station of record for their respective locations. The other summaries are "supplemental", meaning another location in the area is the official climate station for that city.

• Peoria -- Peoria International Airport
• Springfield -- Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport
• Lincoln -- Lincoln NWS office
• Champaign -- University of Illinois - Willard Airport
• Decatur -- Decatur Airport
• Lawrenceville -- Lawrenceville-Vincennes International Airport
• Mattoon -- Coles County Airport

Climate data for other area cities is available at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=ilx