Eastern Cornbelt:
A band of lake-effect snow led to a winter weather advisory for parts of northeast Illinois on Feb. 11, with forecasts warning of 2-4 inches of snow and gusty winds. Much colder temperatures moved in after the precipitation, with weekend wind chills expected to drop to the negative 20s and highs staying in the single digits.
The cold front was also impacting central Illinois, with wind chill forecasts calling for lows down to -14 on Feb. 12.
A storm at midweek brought up to two inches of snow to central Indiana and freezing rain to southern areas of the state, while snowfall ranged from 1-3 inches in parts of central and southern Ohio to three or more inches in northern Ohio. Temperatures were expected to drop sharply in both states over the weekend.
Western Cornbelt:
Wind chill advisories were in effect across Iowa and Nebraska at midweek, with weekend lows expected to drop to -35 in Des Moines. More snow was also in the forecast, with parts of northern and northwestern Nebraska looking at an additional 3-6 inches of accumulation on Feb. 12.
Ice storm warnings were issued for parts of southern Missouri during the week, while central and northern areas of the state were bracing for subzero lows by the weekend. More winter precipitation was on tap for parts of Missouri through the weekend and into next week.
Northern Plains:
Frigid temperatures enveloped the Northern Plains during the second week of February, with wind chill warnings in effect for all three states at midweek.
Lows dropped to -14 in eastern South Dakota during the week, with wind chills falling to a negative 30-40. The cold front has some staying power, as well. The high in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Feb. 14 is expected to top out at -6 degrees, with weekend lows across South Dakota dropping to the negative 20s in many locations.
Wind chills in northern Minnesota and North Dakota also dropped to the negative 40s as the week progressed, with actual temperatures on Feb. 14 expected to fall to -30 in northern areas of both states.
Northeast:
Winter weather conditions moved through the Northeast during the second week of February, with 2-6 inches of snow reported across southern and central New England at midweek. New England temperatures also struggled to climb out of the 20s as the week advanced, with lows dropping to zero in northern New England.
Snow, sleet, and rain was also reported across much of New York, Pennsylvania, and the Mid-Atlantic region during the week, with 1-3 inches of snow accumulation reported in central Pennsylvania at midweek. Forecasts warned of 2-4 inches of snowfall in the Baltimore area by the end of the week.
Eastern Canada:
Cold, snowy weather was reported across Eastern Canada during the second week of February. In Western Canada, actual temperatures dropped to -40 C at midweek on the central Prairies, with wind chills falling even lower.
Environment Canada on Feb. 7 issued an Extreme Cold Warning for parts of Ontario, with wind chills falling to -40 C in some locations and up to 20 cm of lake-effect snow expected near the west end of Lake Ontario.
While Quebec escaped the worst of the cold weather and heavy snowfall, a powerful winter storm on Feb. 7-8 brought heavy snow to the Maritimes, with up to 40-50 cm of accumulation reported near Halifax and across some sections of Newfoundland.
“Winter has graced us with her presence, but it is late enough in the winter and with little significant snowfall, our expectations are another early spring,” said one regional contact. “Perhaps not as early as last year, but it certainly will be earlier if current trends continue.”