Overview
A powerful cold front swept through the region, with wind chills dropping to 20 to 30 below zero. These were the coldest wind chills observed in over 25 years across the region. Paducah dropped down to a -21 wind chill which was the coldest since February 3, 1996. Meanwhile, Evansville plummeted to -30 which was the coldest since December 22, 1989. This was also only the 8th time dating back to 1950 that Evansville has recorded a wind chill dropping down to -30 or colder. On top of the extreme cold, a few inches of snow fell which snarled travel across the region. Peak wind gusts of 35 to 50 mph were observed during this event as well. A total of three fatalities were reported, including one hypothermia fatality, one vehicle accident fatality, and a fire fatality blamed on improper use of a heating device.Snow
Snow amounts were relatively light, peaking at around 4 inches. Drifts from strong winds made measuring difficult but here is a map of the best observations/measurements from the storm. This was the first December measurable snow in some towns across our area since 2014, including Paducah.
Extreme Cold
The extreme cold was the headliner of the event. High temperatures were in the single digits almost everywhere.
Overnight lows fell from 4 to 10 degrees below zero.
The cold temperatures and 25-35 mph winds dropped wind chills to extreme levels. Minimum wind chills ranged from 20 to 33 degrees below zero.​ 
Photos
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| Low Visibility and Ice Covered Streets Nancy Boyett, Henderson, KY |
Frosty Streets in Johnston City John Diebolt, Johnston City, IL |
Relatively warm river water condenses under the cold wind Chris Taylor, Metropolis, IL |
Visibility drops to around 1/4 mile in heavy blowing snow Aaron Cathart, Paducah, KY |
Storm Reports
Public Information Statement National Weather Service Paducah KY 329 AM CST Fri Dec 23 2022 ...SNOWFALL REPORTS... Location Amount Time/Date Lat/Lon 2 E Owensboro 4.0 in 1109 PM 12/22 37.76N/87.09W Marion 4.0 in 1006 PM 12/22 37.33N/88.08W Marion 4.0 in 1020 PM 12/22 37.33N/88.08W Carbondale 4.0 in 0925 PM 12/22 37.72N/89.22W 1 E Poplar Bluff 3.5 in 0755 PM 12/22 36.77N/90.39W 1 NNE Paducah 3.5 in 0828 PM 12/22 37.08N/88.63W 1 SE Paducah 3.5 in 0954 PM 12/22 37.06N/88.62W Newburgh 3.5 in 0955 PM 12/22 37.95N/87.40W Boonville 3.5 in 1145 PM 12/22 38.05N/87.27W Princeton 3.5 in 0200 AM 12/23 38.36N/87.57W Grandin 3.3 in 0445 PM 12/22 36.83N/90.82W Bernie 3.0 in 1045 PM 12/22 36.67N/89.97W Perryville 3.0 in 1100 PM 12/22 37.73N/89.87W East Prairie 3.0 in 0950 PM 12/22 36.78N/89.38W Canton 3.0 in 0949 PM 12/22 36.80N/87.96W 2 SE Heath 3.0 in 0950 PM 12/22 37.07N/88.77W 2 SE Heath 3.0 in 1200 AM 12/23 37.07N/88.77W 7 W Salem 3.0 in 1000 PM 12/22 37.28N/88.37W Madisonville 3.0 in 0942 PM 12/22 37.34N/87.51W 2 NW Lovelaceville 3.0 in 0934 PM 12/22 36.98N/88.86W Dudley 2.5 in 0820 PM 12/22 36.80N/90.09W 2 E Cape Girardeau 2.5 in 0823 PM 12/22 37.31N/89.52W 1 SSE Aurora 2.5 in 1200 AM 12/23 36.76N/88.14W Hopkinsville 2.5 in 1115 PM 12/22 36.85N/87.49W Murray 2.5 in 0925 PM 12/22 36.61N/88.32W Murray 2.5 in 1025 PM 12/22 36.61N/88.32W 3 E Mill Spring 2.0 in 1050 PM 12/22 37.06N/90.62W Fruitland 2.0 in 0840 PM 12/22 37.45N/89.64W Benton 2.0 in 0954 PM 12/22 36.85N/88.36W 4 NNE Dawson Springs 2.0 in 1000 PM 12/22 37.22N/87.67W Mortons Gap 2.0 in 1200 AM 12/23 37.24N/87.47W Henderson 2.0 in 0942 PM 12/22 37.84N/87.58W Murray 2.0 in 0827 PM 12/22 36.61N/88.32W Herrin 2.0 in 1000 AM 12/22 37.80N/89.03W Anna 2.0 in 1225 AM 12/23 37.46N/89.24W De Soto 2.0 in 0900 PM 12/22 37.81N/89.22W Grayville 2.0 in 0953 PM 12/22 38.26N/88.00W Hopkinsville 1.5 in 0939 PM 12/22 36.85N/87.49W 1 S Boonville 1.5 in 0938 PM 12/22 38.03N/87.27W Sikeston 1.0 in 0941 PM 12/22 36.88N/89.58W Friedheim 1.0 in 1000 PM 12/22 37.57N/89.82W Observations are collected from a variety of sources with varying equipment and exposures. We thank all volunteer weather observers for their dedication. Not all data listed are considered official.
Public Information Statement National Weather Service Paducah KY 502 AM CST Fri Dec 23 2022 ...12 HOUR MINIMUM WIND CHILL REPORTS AT 5 AM 12/23/2022... Location WC Temp. Lat/Lon Harrisburg IL -33 F 37.82N/88.55W Fairfield -32 F 38.38N/88.39W 0.9 W De Soto (UPR) -32 F 37.82N/89.24W 3.0 E Griffin (INDOT) -31 F 38.20N/87.86W Mt Vernon IL -31 F 38.32N/88.87W Perryville MO -31 F 37.87N/89.87W Rend Lake -30 F 38.14N/88.92W Henderson KY -30 F 37.82N/87.67W Owensboro KY -30 F 37.72N/87.17W 3.6 SE Grand Tower (UPR) -30 F 37.60N/89.46W Greenville KY 6 N -29 F 37.29N/87.16W Henderson -29 F 37.79N/87.51W Morganfield KY 4 E -29 F 37.69N/87.84W Henderson KY 5 E -29 F 37.82N/87.51W Carbondale -29 F 37.70N/89.24W 1.2 NE Melody Hill (INDOT) -29 F 38.06N/87.48W Princeton KY 2 SE -29 F 37.10N/87.86W Calhoun KY 5 NW -29 F 37.59N/87.32W Marion KY 4 NE -29 F 37.38N/88.04W 3.6 N Benton (UPR) -29 F 38.06N/88.90W Carmi IL -28 F 38.08N/88.12W Carbondale IL -28 F 37.78N/89.25W Hopkinsville KY 6 N -28 F 36.95N/87.52W 3.7 SE Owensboro -27 F 37.72N/87.08W Bardwell -27 F 36.84N/88.92W Dixon Springs -27 F 37.44N/88.67W Evansville IN -27 F 38.05N/87.52W Murray KY 1 W -27 F 36.61N/88.34W Mayfield KY 6 SW -27 F 36.70N/88.72W Elkton KY 5 SW -27 F 36.76N/87.21W Cadiz KY 4 SW -26 F 36.83N/87.86W Herrin -26 F 37.79N/89.01W Madisonville KY 4 S -26 F 37.27N/87.48W Madisonville KY -26 F 37.35N/87.40W Cape Girardeau MO -26 F 37.23N/89.58W Marion IL -26 F 37.77N/89.02W Sturgis Municipal Airport -26 F 37.54N/87.95W Benton KY 4 N -25 F 36.92N/88.34W Henderson -25 F 37.77N/87.48W Bardwell -25 F 36.87N/88.89W Philpot -25 F 37.70N/86.93W Hickman KY 2 E -25 F 36.57N/89.16W Murray KY -25 F 36.67N/88.37W Greenville KY -25 F 37.22N/87.15W Metropolis IL -25 F 37.18N/88.75W Poplar Bluff MO -25 F 36.77N/90.32W Charleston, MO South -25 F 36.85N/89.36W 1.4 W Ash Hill (UPR) -25 F 36.77N/90.26W 6.5 S Delta (UPR) -25 F 37.11N/89.77W Crab Orchard IL -24 F 37.68N/89.00W Carbondale -24 F 37.71N/89.20W Greenville KY -24 F 37.22N/87.15W 2.9 N Bonnie (UPR) -24 F 38.24N/88.90W Dixon Springs IL -23 F 37.44N/88.67W Cairo IL -23 F 37.07N/89.22W Fort Campbell KY -23 F 36.67N/87.50W Paducah KY -23 F 37.07N/88.77W Sikeston MO -22 F 36.90N/89.57W Doniphan MO -21 F 36.65N/90.78W Haubstadt -21 F 38.20N/87.52W Golden Pond KY -21 F 36.78N/88.06W Piedmont MO -21 F 37.24N/90.27W 1.6 E Dexter MO(SCAN) -20 F 36.78N/89.93W Dahlgren -20 F 38.17N/88.60W Observations are collected from a variety of sources with varying equipment and exposures. We thank all volunteer weather observers for their dedication. Not all data listed are considered official.
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