North Texas Cold Waves
1899-2007

 

February 1899

• Severe and widespread cold January 26 – February 14
• Record lows through much of central and southeast United States
• Heavy snow Atlantic coast (great Eastern Blizzard of '99)
• Flow of ice down Mississippi River past New Orleans (first since1784)
• Poultry and domestic animals suffered and froze to death
• Game birds perished in large numbers, fish killed by cold water (southern states)
• Cold attributed to deaths of 105 people nationwide, 15 in Texas
• Travel delayed, communications interrupted, schools closed
• Food and fuel famines threatened in larger cities

February 1905

• Severe cold wave February 11-14
• Snow afforded protection to growing crops

January 1912

• Destructive cold waves January 6 and 11
• Cold wave of January 11 moved very rapidly
• All unprotected vegetation killed

January 1918

• Destructive cold waves January 10-12 and January 21-22 with snow

January 1930

• Severe cold wave January 17-18 comparable to February 1899 except for rapid movement
• Sleet storms general over state 7th-10th; northeast and central 11th-13th; extensive 16th-18th; occasional east and central 21st-22nd.
• At Dallas, freezing rain and sleet the 7th-11th caused ice two inches thick of trees and utility lines; caused many traffic accidents, and killed barley and wheat
• At Fort Worth, ice seven inches thick at Lake Worth
• Freezing rain the 19th-21st caused more property damage.

February 1933

• Sharp cold wave 7th-10th
• Temperature dropped from 57 degrees at midnight to 30 degrees at 1A and 10 degrees at 8A
• Freezing rain on 10th; some injuries due to people slipping on ice

January 1949

• Severe ice storm west Texas 9th-13th
• In metropolis, up to one inch of ice made streets and sidewalks slippery and dangerous
• At Dallas on the 25th, five inches of rain caused a moderate flood on the Trinity
• At Fort Worth, 72 hours of below freezing temperatures coupled with freezing rain, sleet and snow made it one of the most damaging ice storms on record.
• January 28-February 1, three inches of snow and record cold caused many pipes to burst

January 1962

• Severe cold wave January 9-12
• At Fort Worth, storm struck suddenly with near blizzard conditions
• Cars stranded on icy roads; schools and businesses forced to close
• 3 ½ days of below freezing temperatures caused pipes to burst
• Freeze in lower Rio Grande Valley caused extensive damage to crops

December 1983

• Series of cold waves December 18-30; a record 295 consecutive hours below freezing
• Inconvenienced travel, strained power supplies
• Many water pipes burst, damaging residences and causing icy roads
• Damage $50-100 million statewide

December 1989

• Sharp cold wave December 20-24 spread over all of Texas and southeast U.S.
• Record demands for power; many pipes frozen; $25 million in damage at Dallas
• Considerable damage to citrus in Florida and south Texas

January - February 1996

• Five consecutive days (Jan 31-Feb 4) with temperatures below freezing at D/FW
• Lowest temperature was 8 degrees on the 4th of February

January 1997

• Four consecutive days (Jan 11 - Jan 14) with temperatures below freezing at DFW
• Lowest temperature was 18 degrees on the 12th

January 2007

• Four consecutive days (Jan 14 - Jan 17) with temperatures near  freezing at DFW
• Lowest temperature was 25 degrees on the 15th

Natural Disasters

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