Missouri winter storms
Every recorded winter storm record since 1996 · 115 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 6,559 winter storm records in Missouri from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 221 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the February 1, 2011 blizzard in Newton County: 4 deaths, 1 injury and $33,000 in damage in 2025 dollars across 3 records. Missouri ranks 21st of 51 states and territories by count and 27th of 50 per square mile.
Winter storms in Missouri, 1996 to 2026
Winter storm records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 6,5591996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 221average
- Deaths
- 57535 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $1.2Bas filed
- Busiest year
- 2022444 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are winter storm records common in Missouri?
Missouri averages about 221 winter storm records a year since 2000, 21st of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2022 (444). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Missouri records 954 winter storm records since 1996, 27th of 50 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Missouri have the most winter storm records?
Per square mile, Scotland County leads Missouri: 113 days with a winter storm record since 1996, 258.9 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Cape Girardeau County has the most winter storm records (118 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is winter storm season in Missouri?
64% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in January and February. The busiest month is January (2,302 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 2,302 · Feb 1,890 · Mar 519 · Apr 68 · May 20 · Jun 0 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 5 · Nov 364 · Dec 1,391 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest winter storm records in Missouri?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-02-01 | BlizzardNewton County · forecast zone Newton One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. A major winter storm brought heavy wintry precipitation to the Missouri Ozarks and southeast Kansas on February 1, 2011. This impressive winter storm brought heavy snow and blizzard conditions from Oklahoma through eastern Kansas and the northwest half of Missouri and into the western Great Lakes region. Snowfall ... | 4 | 1 | $33K | |
| 2009-01-26 | Winter StormNew Madrid County · forecast zone New Madrid One storm episode: 10 records in 10 places; the totals are the episode's. This prolonged, major winter storm was termed the worst in decades for southeast Missouri. The storm dumped 6 to 10 inches of sleet and snow along and north of a line from Van Buren through Greenville to Cape Girardeau. This resulted in very difficult driving conditions along with at least two dozen roof collapses. ... | 3 | 0 | $109M | |
| 2007-01-12 | Winter StormJackson County · forecast zone Jackson One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A prolonged winter storm event occurred from January 12th through January 14th. An upper level storm system moved slowly across the region at this time. Shallow arctic air in place at the surface, was overrun by moist southerly winds. Sleet and freezing rain were widespread across the area, with depths reaching 1 inch ... | 3 | 0 | – | |
| 2019-01-11 | Winter StormHenry County · forecast zone Henry One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. Light rain changed over to light snow by the mid afternoon on Friday January 11. After several hours of not accumulating due to warm surface temperatures snow began to pile up shortly after sunset. While the atmosphere was certainly cold enough to produce plenty of snow it was warm enough to keep the snow to liquid ... | 3 | 0 | – | |
| 2006-11-30 | Winter StormSt. Francois County · forecast zone St. Francois One storm episode: 10 records in 10 places; the totals are the episode's. A major winter storm hit Central, Northeast, East Central and parts of Southeast Missouri from November 30 through Dcember 1. Over a foot of snow fell across parts of Central Missouri while a major ice storm hit parts of East Central and Southeast Missouri, including the St. Louis area. Ice accumulations of 1 inch or ... | 2 | 129 | $164M | |
| 2018-02-04 | Winter WeatherWebster County · forecast zone Webster One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A band of snow dropped southward across southern Missouri. A brief period of moderate snow within the band dropped visbilities to near 1/2 mile at times. This band of snow was accompanied by a surge of colder air which dropped temperatures. | 2 | 23 | – | |
| 2018-11-12 | Winter WeatherCass County · forecast zone Cass One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. Light snow began falling early in the morning on November 12. While the snow was generally light - moderate at times - 1 to 3 inches of snow fell across the area which caused area roads to become icy, and numerous vehicle accidents ensued. Up to 10 injuries had been reported, and 2 fatalities occurred as a result of ... | 2 | 8 | $294K | |
| 2016-12-16 | Winter WeatherLaclede County · forecast zone Laclede One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. Freezing drizzle caused major travel impacts and numerous accidents around the Missouri Ozarks. There were a few fatalities associated with car accidents which were indirectly caused by the icy road conditions. | 2 | 8 | $615K | |
| 2025-12-01 | Winter WeatherCole County · forecast zone Cole One storm episode: 7 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. Snow began during the mid morning hours on Monday, December 1, just 2 days after a much heavier snow fell on November 29. Although total snowfall amount were only a couple of inches, snowfall rates were briefly heavy and the temperature was very cold leading to a quick accumulation on roadways. The snow arrived ... | 2 | 7 | – | |
| 2008-02-21 | SleetReynolds County · forecast zone Reynolds One storm episode: 6 records in 6 places; the totals are the episode's. Another winter storm dropped freezing rain, sleet and some light snow across Central, Southeast, and East Central Missouri starting during the early morning hours on the 21st and finally ending shortly after midnight on the 22nd. Enough freezing rain fell across Madison, St. Francois, and Ste. Genevieve counties to ... | 2 | 7 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest winter storm records in Missouri
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-01-12 | Ice StormGreene County · forecast zone Greene One storm episode: 18 records in 18 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $488M | |
| 2006-11-30 | Winter StormCamden County · forecast zone Camden One storm episode: 7 records in 7 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $295M | |
| 2006-11-30 | Winter StormSt. Francois County · forecast zone St. Francois One storm episode: 10 records in 10 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2 | 129 | $164M | |
| 2009-01-26 | Winter StormNew Madrid County · forecast zone New Madrid One storm episode: 10 records in 10 places; the totals are the episode's. | 3 | 0 | $109M | |
| 2002-01-30 | Ice StormJackson County · forecast zone Jackson One storm episode: 17 records in 17 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $51M | |
| 2009-01-26 | Ice StormDunklin County · forecast zone Dunklin One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $34M | |
| 1997-04-10 | Heavy SnowGrundy County · forecast zone Grundy One storm episode: 9 records in 9 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 2 | $17M | |
| 2007-12-09 | Ice StormDallas County · forecast zone Dallas One storm episode: 8 records in 7 places, 2007-12-09 to 2007-12-10; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $12M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are winter storm records becoming more frequent in Missouri?
Missouri's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Missouri | United States | Missouri's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 751 | 32,893 | 2.3% |
| 2000s | 2,333 | 88,805 | 2.6% |
| 2010s | 2,049 | 103,626 | 2.0% |
| 2020-26 | 1,426 | 62,015 | 2.3% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent winter storm records in Missouri
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-15 | Winter WeatherClark County · forecast zone Clark | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-03-15 | Winter WeatherScotland County · forecast zone Scotland | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowSullivan County · forecast zone Sullivan | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowSaline County · forecast zone Saline | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowRay County · forecast zone Ray | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowRandolph County · forecast zone Randolph | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowPlatte County · forecast zone Platte | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowPettis County · forecast zone Pettis | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowMacon County · forecast zone Macon | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowLivingston County · forecast zone Livingston | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowLinn County · forecast zone Linn | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-01-24 | Heavy SnowJohnson County · forecast zone Johnson | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for winter storm records in Missouri
FEMA has declared 10 disasters in Missouri for winter storm, counting its incident type and declarations that name snow or winter storm or ice storm or blizzard in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 7 were major disasters, the latest on March 23, 2011.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-03-23 | DR-1961 | Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm | 62 |
| 2011-02-03 | EM-3317 | Severe Winter Storm | 115 |
| 2009-02-17 | DR-1822 | Severe Winter Storm | 21 |
| 2009-01-30 | EM-3303 | Severe Winter Storm | 115 |
| 2008-03-12 | DR-1748 | Severe Winter Storms and Flooding | 18 |
| 2007-12-27 | DR-1736 | Severe Winter Storms | 42 |
| 2007-12-12 | EM-3281 | Severe Winter Storms | 116 |
| 2007-01-15 | DR-1676 | Severe Winter Storms and Flooding | 39 |
| 2006-12-29 | DR-1673 | Severe Winter Storms | 14 |
| 2002-02-06 | DR-1403 | Severe Winter Ice Storm | 43 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Scotland County: the county's whole recordThe Missouri county with the most winter storm records per square mile
- Winter storms across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in MissouriTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
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