Nebraska extreme cold

Every recorded extreme cold record since 1996 · 93 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 2,212 extreme cold records in Nebraska from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 73 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the January 7, 2010 cold/wind chill in Douglas County and Washington County: 1 death. Nebraska ranks 8th of 51 states and territories by count and 17th of 50 per square mile.

Extreme cold in Nebraska, 1996 to 2026

Cold 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: 2,2121996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000: 73average
Deaths: 615 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars: $3.5Mas filed
Busiest year: 1997202 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 extreme cold records common in Nebraska?

Nebraska averages about 73 extreme cold records a year since 2000, 8th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 1997 (202). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Nebraska records 288 extreme cold records since 1996, 17th 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 Nebraska have the most extreme cold records?

Per square mile, Sarpy County leads Nebraska: 36 days with a extreme cold record since 1996, 151.3 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Washington County has the most cold records (72 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).

Sarpy County 151.3 (36)
Thurston County 142.3 (58)
Wayne County 135.5 (60)
Douglas County 128.6 (42)
Stanton County 126.3 (54)
Colfax County 116.7 (48)
Washington County 115.4 (72)
Burt County 99.7 (49)
Pierce County 97.7 (56)
Madison County 94.3 (54)
Cuming County 92.9 (53)
Dodge County 87.0 (46)

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 the cold season in Nebraska?

66% of its extreme cold records since 1996 fell in December and January. The busiest month is January (852 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 852 · Feb 556 · Mar 62 · Apr 27 · May 49 · Jun 11 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 0 · Oct 53 · Nov 0 · Dec 602 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

What were the deadliest extreme cold records in Nebraska?

Nebraska: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
Date	Record	Killed	Damage
2010-01-07	Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County and Washington County · forecast zone Douglas Arctic air spilled into the region dropping temperatures to 5 below to 10 below zero. Although winds had decreased into the 15 to 25 mph range, they still produced wind chill values of 20 below to 30 below zero during much of this time period. Temperatures moderated slightly by midday on the 8th as winds continued to ...	1	–
2025-02-16	Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas Temperatures in the single digits and northwest winds of 20 mph led to wind chills in the -5 to -15 range in Douglas County. A 40 year old woman was found deceased in a tent in a homeless encampment in Omaha. An autopsy confirmed that she died from hypothermia.	1	–
2025-02-19	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas One storm episode: 30 records in 30 places; the totals are the episode's. On the evening on February 19, extreme cold pushed into all of eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa. Wind chills fell into the 30 to 45 below 0 range. One fatality occurred in Omaha, where an 86 year old woman was found dead in a garage due to suspected cold exposure.	1	–
2024-01-13	Cold/Wind ChillDundy County · forecast zone Dundy This event was based on nearby observations in Yuma, CO, Imperial, NE, and McCook, NE. The AWOS at the airport in Yuma, CO report reported -25F wind chills starting at 1215 AM with Imperial starting at 1245 AM on the 13th. There were brief times during the day time hours that wind chills warmed above -25F, generally ...	1	–
2004-01-05	Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County and Washington County · forecast zone Douglas Bitterly cold temperatures followed a winter storm that struck parts of southeast Nebraska and southwest Iowa a few days prior. Temperatures fell to zero or a little colder by 700 pm on the 5th and bottomed out between 5 below and 10 below zero over much of the region during the early morning hours on the 6th. When ...	1	–
2003-01-22	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDodge County · forecast zone Dodge Bitter cold wind chills spread over eastern Nebraska and southwest Iowa during late Wednesday afternoon 1/22/03 continuing into late Thursday morning the 23rd. Temperatures fell into the single digits below zero by Wednesday evening as north winds of 10 to 20 mph prevailed over the area. This combination resulted in ...	1	–

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 extreme cold records in Nebraska

Nebraska: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
Date	Record	Character	Killed	Injured	Damage
1996-01-31	Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County and Washington County · forecast zone Douglas		0	0	$1.4M

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are extreme cold records becoming more frequent in Nebraska?

Nebraska'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.

Extreme cold: Nebraska and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
Decade	Nebraska	United States	Nebraska's share
1996-99	439	5,539	7.9%
2000s	533	14,792	3.6%
2010s	700	18,162	3.9%
2020-26	540	15,329	3.5%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent extreme cold records in Nebraska

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
Date	Record	Damage
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillSioux County · forecast zone South Sioux	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillCheyenne County · forecast zone Cheyenne	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillKimball County · forecast zone Kimball	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillScotts Bluff County · forecast zone Scotts Bluff	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillSioux County · forecast zone North Sioux	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDawes County · forecast zone Dawes	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillBox Butte County · forecast zone Box Butte	–
2026-01-25	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillBanner County · forecast zone Banner	–
2026-01-23	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDouglas County · forecast zone Douglas	–
2026-01-23	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillWashington County · forecast zone Washington	–
2026-01-23	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDodge County · forecast zone Dodge	–
2026-01-23	Extreme Cold/Wind ChillColfax County · forecast zone Colfax	–

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.