National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Widespread Thunderstorms and Showers in the Southeast and Northwest

Widespread showers and thunderstorms may produce isolate instances of flash flooding across the Ozarks and Southeast through Friday. Scattered severe storms and heavy rain is expected across the Northwest U.S.. Gusty winds and low relative humidity will contribute to elevated fire weather over a portion of the northern Plains with a secondary threat in the Great Basin. Read More >

Overview

A strong storm system moved into the region on January 19th. As colder air quickly pushed southward, rain changed to snow as early as late morning in the Missouri Ozark Foothills. The changeover then worked eastward through the afternoon and early evening hours. Travel impacts were high, due to the combination of high snowfall rates (1-2" per hour), strong winds of 35-45+ mph, and rapidly falling temperatures below freezing. Roads quickly became snow and ice covered, and visibility was very low. Near-blizzard like conditions were experienced briefly in many areas. There were numerous accidents reported and some roads were closed for a while during the heart of the event. I-57 in southern Illinois was among the worst hit, which caused the Illinois State Police to close the interstate from Mount Vernon to Marion for a period of time on the evening of the 19th.
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