WEATHER HISTORY FOR 11TH - 20TH
http://www.examiner.com/weather-in-wilmington/charlie-wilson
Charlie Wilson Wilmington Weather ExaminerSubscribeSponsor an Examiner A member of the American Meteorological Society, 
Charlie Wilson has combined his knowledge of Meteorology & Weather History with his Education background in Communications.
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December 11th:

People tend to think that pure liquid water cannot exist at temperatures below freezing. In actuality, inside of clouds tiny water droplets can remain as liquid, sometimes to temperatures as low as 40 degrees below zero. 
These water droplets are known as supercooled water drops and will freeze instantaneously to a solid surface such as dust, or a plane. So, the 32 degree freezing point is more appropriately called the melting point.

1862
As the Battle of Fredericksburg commenced, the Union troops were aided by fog in building of pontoon bridges and moving troops into position.

1905
The highest temperature ever recorded in South America was recorded at Rivadavia, Argentina hit 120°.

1932
Very cold weather prevailed from the Plains to the West Coast. San Francisco, CA received 0.8 inches of snow. The cold wave dealt severe damage to crops and orange groves in the Sacramento Valley.

Many locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Havre, MT: -30°, Great Falls, MT: -26°, Winnemucca, NV: -24°, Lander, WY: -24°, Scottsbluff, NE: -22°, Elko, NV: -22°, Colorado Springs, CO: -21°, Pueblo, CO: -21°, Valentine, NE: -20°, Cheyenne, WY: -20°, Kalispell, MT: -15°, Goodland, KS: -14°, Denver, CO: -13°, Huron, SD: -13°, Lincoln, NE: -10°, Pendleton, OR: -10°, Dodge City, KS: -9°, Concordia, KS: -6°, Boise, ID: -4°, Lewiston, ID: -4°, Omaha, NE: -4°, Wichita, KS: -3°, Clayton, NM: -1°: Tied, Amarillo, TX: 1°, Medford, OR: 3°, Eugene, OR: 5°, Salem, OR: 5°, Abilene, TX: 18°, Astoria, OR: 19°, Midland-Odessa, TX: 20°, Eureka, CA: 24° and Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 39°.

1944
A major winter storm dumped 18.9 inches of snow on downtown Toronto, Ontario Canada and gale-force winds piled it into huge drifts. A total of 22.5 inches fell over two days.

1949
A tornado causing F2 damage moved through Marion County, Missouri. Damage totaled $200,000 in a 20-block area of Hannibal with a few homes completely unroofed. 12 people were injured along the tornado's path.

In central Missouri, one of the worst ice storms of the century struck leaving over 2 inches of ice in some locations.

1958
An upper level ridge extending across the southwestern U.S. brought record high temperatures to parts of the West. Bishop, CA tied their record high temperature for December with 78°.

Other locations that set daily record high temperatures for the date included: Riverside, CA: 90°, Santa Ana, CA: 88°, Palm Springs, CA: 87°, Santa Maria, CA: 87°, Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 85°, San Diego, CA: 84°, Long Beach, CA: 84°, Los Angeles (LAX), CA: 84°, Bishop, CA: 78°, Idyllwild, CA: 75°, San Francisco Airport, CA: 74°, Stockton, CA: 71°, Sacramento, CA: 67°, Winnemucca, NV: 64°, Reno, NV: 63°, Olympia, WA: 58° and Burns, OR: 57°.

1972
A strong upper level trough remained in pace from the Rockies to the West Coast that brought extreme record low temperatures for the date including: Winnemucca, NV: -33°, Elko, NV: -28°, Pocatello, ID: -26° (broke previous record by 16 degrees), Lander, WY: -26°, Ely, NV: -24°, Boise, ID: -22° (broke previous record by 18 degrees), Sheridan, WY: -20°, Burns, OR: -19°, Moline, IL: -18°, Rockford, IL: -18°, Green Bay, WI: -17°, Madison, WI: -17°, Reno, NV: -15°, Minneapolis, MN: -14°, Dubuque, IA: -13°, Rapid City, SD: -13°, Salt Lake City, UT: -11°, Milwaukee, WI: -10°, Alpena, MI: -8°, Chicago, IL: -5°, Eugene, OR: -5° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Medford, OR: -3°, Salem, OR: -3°, Yakima, WA: -2°, Olympia, WA: 11°, Portland, OR: 16°, Palomar Mountain, CA: 18°, Sacramento, CA: 20°, Las Vegas, NV: 21°, Stockton, CA: 24°, Fresno, CA: 25°-Tied, San Francisco Airport, CA: 26°, Santa Maria, CA: 26°-Tied, Long Beach, CA: 34°-Tied and Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 35°.

The high temperature at Victorville, CA was 32°, tying their lowest high temperature on record with 1/30/1957 and 12/15/1957.

Upper level high pressure off the southeast coast brought record highs to a few locations including: Charleston, SC: 83°, Macon, GA: 82° and Columbus, GA: 78°.

1985
A deep upper level low with trough dug across the West. Phoenix, AZ had their first measurable snow of 0.1 inch since 2/2/1939. A few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Wheatland, WY: -27°, Laramie, WY: -24°, Douglas, WY: -24°, Scottsbluff, NE: -22°: Tied, Casper, WY: -19°, Rawlins, WY: -19°, Missoula, MT: -15°: Tied and Quillayute, WA: 20°.

A weak upper level ridge across the southeast brought record highs to a few locations including: Wilmington, NC: 77°, Mobile, AL: 77°, Pensacola, FL: 77°-Tied and Atlanta, GA: 73°.

1987
Low pressure over southwestern Ontario, Canada, brought snow and gusty winds to the North Central U.S. Winds gusted to 62 mph at Riverton, WY. Snow and high winds in eastern North Dakota reduced visibilities to less than one hundred feet at times.  

Warm weather prevailed across the Southern Plains. Many cities reported record high temperatures for the date, including: Corpus Christi, TX: 89°, Del Rio, TX: 89°, San Antonio, TX: 88°, Austin (Bergstrom), TX: 87°-Tied, Victoria, TX: 85°-Tied, Midland-Odessa, TX: 84°, Roswell, NM: 79°, El Paso, TX: 76° and Albuquerque, NM: 67°. 

Laredo and Kingsville, TX tied for honors as the hot spot in the nation with 92°.

1988
Arctic cold invaded the central and eastern U.S. Temperatures remained below zero all day over parts of eastern Upper Michigan and northern New England. Many locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Caribou, ME: -16°, Ste, St. Marie, MI: -14°, Marquette, MI: -11°, Albany, NY: -8°, Binghamton, NY: -6°, Worcester, MA: -2°, Milton, MA: -1°, Providence, RI: 4°-Tied, Islip, NY: 11°, New York (Kennedy Airport), NY: 13°-Tied, New York (LaGuardia), NY: 14°-Tied and Jackson, KY: 16°.

International Falls, MNwas the cold spot in the nation with a low of -25°.

Out west, Redding, CA set a record high with 70°.

A tornado damaged the roofs of 15 homes with 7 receiving major damage at Treasure Island in Pinellas County, Florida during the mid-afternoon. At St. Petersburg, FL, high winds caused minor structural damage.

1989
Strong Santa Ana winds developed across southern California and parts of central California. Winds in Kern County of central California gusted to 100 mph near Grapevine. The high winds reduced visibilities to near zero in the desert areas, closing major interstate highways east of Ontario, CA.

Arctic high pressure built in across the Plains behind a cold front bringing record low temperatures to a few locations including: Norfolk, NE: -13°, Sioux City, IA: -10°, Omaha, NE: -5°, Kansas City, MO: 0° and Midland-Odessa, TX: 15°.

1990
Dense fog formed along the Hiwassee River near Calhoun, TN, dropping the visibility along a 3-mile stretch of I-75 to zero at times. 12 people were killed in a massive 83 vehicle pile-up.

1997
Fog caused a major traffic accident in Sacramento, CA involving 8 big rigs and 12 cars on Interstate 5. Five people were killed and 20 were injured.

A southwesterly flow across the sunshine state brought record high temperatures to a few locations including: West Palm Beach, FL: 86°, Vero Beach, FL: 86°-Tied and Miami, FL: 85°.

1998
Snow finally fell at Syracuse, NY, the latest this location recorded its first measurable snow of the season. It was 4 days after Las Vegas, NV and Phoenix, AZ saw snow.

Midland, TX recorded 9.8 inches of snow on this date for its greatest snowstorm on record.

2000
A blizzard struck areas of the Midwest, Missouri Valley into Michigan. Strong winds sustained at 20 to 40 mph with gusts up to 50 mph created blizzard and near whiteout conditions, thunder and lightning and dangerous wind chills as low as -40°. Snowfall totals generally ranged from 6 to 16 inches with drifts several feet high in some areas. 10 to 15 inches occurred in Cook and DuPage Counties of the Chicago area, with 6 to 10 inches as far south as central Illinois. Freezing rain and sleet mixed in further south keeping accumulations down. 8 to 11 inches of snow fell across southwestern Missouri with amounts 12 to 14 inches reported from Joplin through Springfield to Joplin, MO.  Areas near West Plains, MO received a mixture of snow and sleet keeping accumulations down to 4 to 8 inches.

Some snowfall totals included: Cassopolis, IN: 16 inches, Elkhart, Goshen, IN: 14 inches, Niles, St. Joseph & South Bend, IN: 12 inches, O’Hare Airport in Chicago, IL: 9.5 inches, Rockford, IL: 8.3 inches, Oelwein, IA: 8 inches, Muscoda, WI: 7.5 inches, Cuba City, WI: 7 inches and Mt. Sterling, WI: 7 inches

The 14.5 inches of snow that fell at Lansing, MI is the heaviest on record for any December day. The 14.2 at Grand Rapids, MI is also a record for any day in December and contributed to December 2000 being the snowiest month ever recorded at those locations.  19 people in the Chicago area died while shoveling snow, from heart failure or hypothermia.

Behind the storm, a strong arctic cold front moved across central and eastern portions of Oklahoma. Freezing rain and drizzle made driving very difficult from Bartlesville to Tulsa, down to Broken Bow. Wind chills dropped as low as -45° across parts of Kansas.  A few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including Rapid City, SD: -19°, Grand Island, NE: -10° and Kansas City, MO: 0°.

In contrast, Galveston, TX set a record high with 77°.

2004
An upper level ridge extending from the Rockies to the west brought some record warm temperatures for the date including: Pueblo, CO: 79°, Billings, MT: 67°, Sheridan, WY: 66°, Roundup, MT: 65°, Glasgow, MT: 62°, Miles City, MT: 61°, Ely, NV: 61°, Livingston, MT: 60°, Helena, MT: 59° and Yakima, WA: 59°.

2007
Tropical Storm Olga dumped heavy rain across the Dominican Republic. The rapid accumulation of water in the Tavera Dam forced officials fearing a dam collapse would flood Santiago the nation's second-largest city, to make the drastic decision to release the water from the dam into the Yaque del Norte River and thus inundating seven towns. The flooding affected more than 34,000 people, killed 20 people and damaged nearly 7,000 homes.

An unseasonably strong upper level ridge along the southeast coast brought record high temperatures from parts of the Ohio Valley, Appalachians to the South including: Houston, TX: 83°, Baton Rouge, LA: 83°, Lake Charles, LA: 81°, Shreveport, LA: 79°-Tied, Galveston, TX: 78°, Chattanooga, TN: 77°, Memphis, TN: 77°-Tied, Nashville, TN: 76°, Knoxville, TN: 75°, Oak Ridge, TN: 75°, Jackson, KY: 74°, Louisville, KY: 74°, Charleston, WV: 73°, Huntington, WV: 73°, Bristol, TN: 72°, Lexington, KY: 70°, Beckley, WV: 68°, Elkins, WV: 68°, Akron, OH: 67°-Tied, Pittsburgh, PA: 66°, Columbus, OH: 66°-Tied and Mansfield, OH: 61°-Tied.

2008
A rainstorm deluged Rome, Italy with nearly 4 inches in an eight-hour period. Flash floods caused by the downpours inundated streets, homes, and businesses, forcing the city to declare a state of emergency.
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December 12th:
1882
Portland, ORwas drenched with 7.66 inches of rain, a record 24 hour total for that location.

1925
A rare tornado damaged buildings on the island of Bermuda.

1946
The latest tornado ever experienced in Ontario, Canada touched down in the southwestern community of Exeter.

1960
The first of three big snowstorms during the 1960-61 winter season struck the Mid-Atlantic in to New England bringing 10 to 20 inches of snow with strong gusty winds.  Newark, NJ reported 20 inches, 16 inches fells at Nantucket, MA. 14.6 inches at Philadelphia, PA and a foot fell at Baltimore, MD. This was the greatest snow in New Jersey for so early in the season. Winds gusted to 94 mph at Block Island, RI and 85 mph at Nantucket. MA. 108 people lost their lives with 52 in New Jersey and 14 in Pennsylvania.

1967
New Mexico was bombarded by 11 days of heavy snow beginning on this date. Food had to be airlifted in to some areas. The Reservations of the Native Americans were especially hard hit. Flagstaff, AZwas buried under 86 inches of snow.

1969
The worst tornado on record for western Washington State tracked south of Seattle, traveling 5 miles from Des Moines to Kent. The tornado, 50 to 200 yards wide, began as a waterspout over Puget Sound. One person was injured and the tornado caused half a million dollars damage.

1982
The New England Patriots defeated the Miami Dolphins in driving snow at Foxboro, MA. With snow covering the field and New England in position to kick a game winning field goal, New England Head Coach Ron Meyer ordered the path to be cleared for the field goal attempt. The move was against the rules, but no one stopped him. Place kicker John Smith made the kick and the Patriots won the game 3-0.

Ste. St. Marie, MI and Wilmington, DE set record low temperatures for the date with -17° and 10° respectively.

1987
While a developing winter storm began to spread snow across New Mexico into Colorado, high winds ushered unseasonably cold air into the southwestern states. Winds in California gusted to 60 mph in the Sacramento River Delta and in the San Bernardino Valley.

1988
Arctic high pressure brought widespread record lows across the East. Many cities reported record low temperatures for the date. The low of -12°at Albany, NY was their coldest reading on record for so early in the season. Saranac Lake, NY was the cold spot in the nation with a low of -28°. Other daily record lows for the date included: Houghton Lake, MI: -12°, Alpena, MI: -11°, Binghamton, NY: -11° (broke previous record by 11 degrees), Elkins, WV: -10°, Syracuse, NY: -10°, Buffalo, NY: -9° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Rochester, NY: -8°, Avoca, PA: -5°, Worcester, MA: -4°, Hartford, CT: -3°, Milton, MA: -3°, Detroit, MI: -2°, Allentown, PA: 2°, Providence, RI: 2°, Boston, MA: 2°, Bridgeport, CT: 3°, Atlantic City, NJ: 5°, New York (Central Park), NY: 5°, Newark, NJ: 6°, Harrisburg, PA: 6°, Islip, NY: 7°, New York (Kennedy Airport), NY: 7°, Wilmington, DE: 8°, Philadelphia, PA: 8°, New York (LaGuardia), NY: 8°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 9°, Jackson, KY: 10°, Baltimore, MD: 10°-Tied, Washington, D.C.: 13°-Tied and Wallops Island, VA: 14°.

1989
A winter storm produced snow from northern Mississippi to the Middle Atlantic Coast, with 10.5 inches reported at Powhatan, VA.  

Heavy snow whitened the Black Hills of South Dakota, with 36 inches reported at Deer Mountain.  

Several cities in the north central U.S., from Minnesota to Texas, reported record low temperatures for the date, including Yankton SD with morning lows of -22°. Other record lows included: Marquette, MI: -10°, Moline, IL: -9°, Kansas City, MO: -5°, El Paso, TX: 8°, Midland-Odessa, TX: 10°, Wichita Falls, TX: 10°, Abilene, TX: 12°, Dallas (DFW), TX: 18°-Tied, Waco, TX: 20°-Tied and Houston, TX: 25°-Tied.

1992
Super Typhoon Gay traveled across thousands of miles in the Pacific Ocean with wind gusts over 200 mph in late November. Its remnants then formed into a massive storm off the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. After reforming again in British Columbia and crossing California, it gave birth to another low in Texas. Then on this date, the storm traveled east and became one of the worst "nor'easters" this centuryalong the U.S. East Coast. A 985 millibar (29.09 inHg) low stalled over the Delmarva Peninsula. This combined with a 1035 millibar (30.56 inHg) high pressure over Quebec set up an enormous easterly pressure gradient which resulted in winds exceeding hurricane force in many locations and record high tides. Ambrose Light Station just southeast of New York City recorded sustained winds of 80 mph with gusts to 93 mph. The wind was sustained at over 60 mph for several hours at Boston, MA. Wildwood Crest, NJ reported gusts to 90 mph, Monmouth County, NJ gusts of 89 mph and New Holland, PA measured a gust to 82 mph. At Philadelphia, PA, the high winds broke a church steeple which fell onto and closed the Ben Franklin Bridge to New Jersey. Some of the worst coastal flooding ever occurred as tides were pushed 3 to 6 feet above normal, resulting in widespread damage and beach erosion. LaGuardia Airport was closed due to flooding. The East River flooded Manhattan's FDR Drive, stranding dozens of motorists. Flooding at a Con Edison station shut down New York City's entire subway system for more than three hours.  Tremendous snowfalls occurred at inland locations as the storm was a very slow mover. Worcester, MA received 32.1 inches, which at that time was a record for a single storm at that location.  Other snowfall totals: Piney Grove in Garrett County, MD: 42 inches, Stanford, NY: 37 inches, Ogletown, PA: 36 inches, Berne, NY: 34 inches, Otis, MA: 33 inches, Mount Storm, WV received 32 inches, Hopkinton, MA: 28 inches, Union, CT: 27 inches and 24 inches at Jerimoth Hill, RI. An enormous amount of precipitation (rain and melted snow) for a winter storm fell at some places. Woonsocket, RI checked in with 7.14 inches (20 inches of snow) from the 11th through the 13th. 

1995
An intense ocean storm at 952 millibars (28.11 inHg) battered the West Coast. In Oregon, wind gusts hit 119 mph at Florence, 112 mph at Cannon Beach and 107 mph at Newport.  Northern and central California was hit very hard. Wind gusts reached 103 mph at Angel Island, 85 mph at Redding and 74 mph at San Francisco. Three people were killed by falling trees. The San Francisco Conservatory sustained $10 million dollars in damages due to structural failure, broken windows and destroyed plants.  Three Peaks was deluged with 21.22 inches of rain. Other heavy totals included 12.27 inches at the Marin Civic Center, 10.64 inches at Blue Canyon and 5.01 inches at San Francisco. Oakland was soaked with 2.66 inches in just 45 minutes. Nearly 2 million people were without power at one time. Seattle, WA and Astoria, OR recorded their lowest pressures on record with 970.2 (28.65 inHg) and 966.1 millibars (28.53 inHg) respectively. This storm was the worst to strike the region in 16 years. Six people lost their lives.

A 5-day lake effect snowstorm came to an end at Sault Ste Marie, MI over which time 61.7 inches of snow fell, by far the city's biggest snowstorm on record. 27.8 inches fell in 24 hours on the 9th and 10th establishing their all-time 24 hour snowfall record. The snow depth reached 50 inches at one point, tying the record. The storm brought the monthly total to 82.5 inches, the city's greatest monthly snowfall ever.

International Falls, MN set a record low with -39°.

2001
Two major publicly traded ski companies reported larger than expected losses for the quarter as a result of lower bookings because of warm weather and the 9/11 attacks.  Eastern resorts were plagued by warm temperatures and no snow. Many Western resorts delayed their openings because temperatures were too warm to make snow. After Thanksgiving, western resorts enjoyed a bountiful snowfall, and operators were concerned that Western resorts would begin to take business away from Eastern resorts.

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December 13th:

1915
A heavy snowstorm kicked off the snowiest winter in modern records for western New England.

1932
A frigid storm hit the region beginning the previous day continuing on this day. These days were likely the coldest on record in Southern California. On this day the high temperature in Santa Ana was 45°, 46° at Palm Springs and 48° at Escondido, the lowest maximum temperature for those locations on record. Yuma, AZ managed an afternoon high of only 36°, setting their lowest high temperature for the date.

Record lows established for the date included: Elko, NV: -35° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Lander, WY: -23°: Tied, Winnemucca, NV: -14°, Salt Lake City, UT: -7° and Muskegon, MI: 4°-Tied.

1941
The temperature plummeted to -63.4° at Malgovik, Sweden, the country’s coldest night on record. 

1944
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories Canadarecorded their warmest December day when the daily high soared to 37°.

1962
One of the coldest December outbreaks in memory for the southeastern U.S. and Florida was courtesy of arctic high pressure that pushed a cold front through the central Bahamas into the northwest Caribbean Sea. A severe freeze occurred in Florida. Morning lows ranged from the single digits and teens in the northern part of the state, the 20s in the central, mid 30s across the mainland south to the upper 30s to mid 40s in the Keys. It was the coldest December weather of the 20th century and caused millions of dollars damage to crops and foliage. In Georgia, the morning low of -9°at Blairsville established a state record for the month of December. Millions of dollars damage to crops resulted.

Locations tying or setting December low temperature records included: Bristol, TN: -9° (broke previous daily record by 16 degrees), Columbus, GA: 4° (broke previous daily record by 12 degrees), Macon, GA: 5° (broke previous daily record by 17 degrees), Montgomery, AL: 5° (broke previous daily record by 15 degrees), Charleston, SC: 8°, Savannah, GA: 9°, Tallahassee, FL: 10° (broke previous daily record by 10 degrees), Pensacola, FL: 11°-Tied, Gainesville, FL: 13°, Apalachicola, FL: 13°, Tampa, FL: 18° and Orlando, FL: 20°-Tied.

Locations reporting daily record low temperatures for the date included: Beckley, WV: -13° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Elkins, WV: -11°, Nashville, TN: -7° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Asheville, NC: -6° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Lexington, KY: -6° (broke previous record by 11 degrees), Evansville, IN: -6°, Akron, OH: -5°, Youngstown, OH: -5°, Pittsburgh, PA: -5°, Indianapolis, IN: -4°: Tied, Oak Ridge, TN: -3° (broke previous record by 18 degrees), Paducah, KY: -3° (broke previous record by 15 degrees), Louisville, KY: -3° (broke previous record by 11 degrees), Cincinnati, OH: -3°, Cleveland, OH: -3°, Huntington, WV: -3°, Chattanooga, TN: -2° (broke previous record by 18 degrees), Knoxville, TN: -2° (broke previous record by 15 degrees), Hartford, CT: -1°, Erie, PA: -1°, Huntsville, AL: 0° (broke previous record by 17 degrees), Greensboro, NC: 0° (broke previous record by 11 degrees), Binghamton, NY: 0°, Charleston, WV: 0°,. Birmingham, AL: 1° (broke previous record by 19 degrees), Atlanta, GA: 1° (broke previous record by 18 degrees), Tupelo, MS: 1°, Detroit, MI: 1°-Tied, Syracuse, NY: 0°-Tied, Athens, GA: 2° (broke previous record by 15 degrees), Charlotte, NC: 2° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Lynchburg, VA: 3°, Meridian, MS: 4° (broke previous record by 15 degrees), Raleigh, NC: 4°, Memphis, TN: 5° (broke previous record by 20 degrees), DeFuniak Springs, FL: 5°, Augusta, GA: 6°, Columbia, SC: 6°, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 6° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Baltimore, MD: 7°, Jackson, MS: 8° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Little Rock, AR: 9°, Richmond, VA: 9°, Wilmington, NC: 10°, Baton Rouge, LA: 11°, Jacksonville, FL: 12°, Norfolk, VA: 14°, Brunswick, GA: 14°, Shreveport, LA: 16°, New Orleans, LA: 17°, Lake Charles, LA: 18°, Cape Hatteras, NC: 19°-Tied, Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX: 20°, Daytona Beach, FL: 21°, Melbourne, FL: 22°, St. Petersburg, FL: 29°, Vero Beach, FL: 25°, Fort Myers, FL: 26°, Naples, FL: 27°, Hollywood, FL: 29°, West Palm Beach, FL: 30°, Fort Lauderdale, FL: 30°, Tavernier, FL: 39° and Key West, FL: 46°.

1963
Behind a strong cold front, arctic high pressure moved down bringing record low temperatures to a few locations including: Chester, MT: -30°, Townsend, MT: -24°, Lewistown, MT: -22°, Stanford, MT: -22°, Billings, MT: -16°, Rapid City, SD: -10°, Goodland, KS: -9° and Sheridan, WY: -9°.

1967
An area of lower pressure combined with a digging upper level trough brought snow and record cold to parts of the west. Snow fell in the lower elevations in southern California.  A heavy snow event in the mountains also began on this day and ended on the 19th. At lower elevations on this day, 6 inches fell at Temecula, 5 inches at Fallbrook, 4.5 inches at Anza Borrego State Park (their greatest snowfall on record), 3 inches in Borrego Springs, 2 inches in Carlsbad and a light covering was reported over many San Diego mesas. The only other measurable snowfall on record at Borrego Springs occurred two days later (2 inches on the 15th). The entire period of snow brought 50 inches to Mt. Laguna, 38 inches in Idyllwild, two feet to Palomar Mountain, and 12 to 18 inches to the higher elevations. Marble size hail hit Palomar Mountain from thunderstorms preceding the snow storm. One freezing death resulted, numerous schools and highways were closed, transportation was disrupted and there were power outages. There were two drowning deaths in San Diego County.

Locations reporting record low temperatures for the date included: Casper, WY: -16°, Bishop, CA: 8°, Olympia, WA: 12°, Portland, OR: 19°, Santa Maria, CA: 24°, Quillayute, WA: 25°, Borrego Springs, CA: 31°.  Las Vegas, NVrecorded a high temperature of 35°, setting a low maximum record for the day.

1972
Not nearly as pronounced as in days past, the upper level trough across the west brought record low temperatures for the date including: Ely, NV: -16°, Winnemucca, NV: -15°, Boise, ID: -14°, Yakima, WA: -8°, Burns, OR: -7°, Reno, NV: -2°, Astoria, OR: 11° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Palomar Mountain, CA: 12°, Portland, OR: 18°, Sacramento, CA: 20°, San Francisco Airport, CA: 30°-Tied and Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 41°-Tied.  Fresno and Borrego Springs, CA recorded record low maximum temperatures for the date with 32° and 52° degrees respectively.

1984
A winter storm beginning on the date through the 15th left a heavy ice coating across parts of northwest Oklahoma. One to two inches of ice accumulated on everything in the area. The weight of the ice brought down power lines, leaving about 6,000 people without electricity for a week. Ice also caused severe damage to trees, even uprooting some of them.

1987
A major winter storm produced high winds and heavy snow in the Southern Rockies and the Southern Plains. Snowfall totals in New Mexico ranged up to 25 inches at Cedar Crest, with up to 3 feet reported in the higher elevations. Winds of 75 mph, with gusts to 124 mph, were reported northeast of Albuquerque, NM. El Paso, TX was buried under 22.4 inches of snow, including a single storm record of 16.8 inches in 24 hours. The snowfall total surpassed their previous record for an entire winter season of 18.4 inches. Record cold was experienced the next 3 nights as readings dipped into the single digits.

Strong Santa Ana winds blew across southern California. Grapevine, CA reported a gust to 100 mph. In San Bernardino, gusts topped 60 mph with some gusts up to 80 mph around San Bernardino. Strong damaging winds also hit San Diego County and 38 mph was recorded at San Diego. 80 power poles were blown down within a half mile stretch in Fontana and Rancho Cucamonga. One was injured when a tree fell on a truck. Downed tree limbs damaged cars, homes and gardens. Power poles and freeway signs were damaged. A parked helicopter was blown down a hillside in Altadena. Trees were blown down on power lines causing power outages in San Diego County. One was killed by a Eucalyptus tree falling on a truck in Spring Valley.

Record low maximum: Big Bear Lake and Riverside, CA set record low maximums for the date with 27° & 52° respectively.

1988
Low pressure off the Atlantic coast produced up to a foot of snow in eastern Nassau and western Suffolk County of southeastern New York State with some record lows while mild weather prevailed across the western half of the country.  14 cities reported record high temperatures for the date, including: Goodland, KS: 74°, Redding, CA: 74°, Pueblo, CO: 73°, North Platte, NE: 70°, Colorado Springs, CO: 69°, Sacramento, CA: 67°, Rapid City, SD: 65°, Grand Island, NE: 63°, Big Bear Lake, CA: 61°, Sheridan, WY: 60°-Tied, Billings, MT: 59°, Casper, WY: 56°, Townsend, MT: 54°and Boulder, MT: 50°.

Some locations from the Mid-Atlantic to New England reported record low temperatures for the date including: Concord, NH: -8°, Albany, NY: -6°, Allentown, PA: 5°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 7°, Islip, NY: 14°and Wallops Island, VA: 14°.

1989
Strong northwesterly winds, ushering bitterly cold arctic air into the central U.S., produced squalls with heavy snow in the Great Lakes Region. Snowfall totals in Upper Michigan ranged up to 24 inches at Manistique. Several cities reported record low temperatures for the date, including Marquette, MI: -11°: Tied, Calico Rock, AR: 4°, El Paso, TX: 11°, Austin (Bergstrom), TX: 12°, Waco, TX: 18°, Houston, TX: 19°, Austin, TX: 22°, Corpus Christi, TX: 25°, Redding, CA: 25°, Victoria, TX: 25° and Brownsville, TX: 30°.

1992
Beginning the previous day, a winter storm brought heavy snow, ice, and cold temperatures to the Black Hills and west central sections of South Dakota. Icy and snow packed roads and blowing snow contributed to over 80 traffic accidents in the Black Hills alone. At least two large chain reaction pileups occurred on Interstate 90 west of Rapid City. Up to a foot of snow fell in Rapid City with other notable amounts including 22 inches at Lead, 18 inches at Deerfield, and 13 inches at Edgemont.

1993
On this date through the 14th, strong low pressure over Arkansas brought heavy snow to northwest Iowa and near blizzard conditions. During the rush hour, snow was falling at a rate of an inch per hour. Slippery roads resulted in numerous accidents. Drifting became a serious problem as north winds of 15 to 30 mph piled the snow into drifts. The heaviest snowfall totals were in Sioux City, Sheldon, Everly and Cherokee with 7 inches.

A high wind event developed across areas of Southwest Kansas shortly after midnight.  Wind gusts recorded were 90 mph in the vicinity of Johnson City, 70 mph at Elkhart and 64 mph at Garden City. Some power lines and tree limbs were knocked down in the Garden City area.

1997
A freak cold snap and snowstorm struck parts of northern Mexico left 12 people dead and the area paralyzed. It snowed in the city of Guadalajara for the first time since 1881, leaving amazed residents to gawk at the white stuff and make snowmen. The temperature plunged to 5° in Chihuahua.

2000
A powerful winter storm spread heavy snow through the eastern half of Missouri as well as central and southern Illinois. Final snowfall amounts ranged from 4 to 6 inches in northeast Missouri and west central Illinois, to 6 to 8 inches in central and east central Missouri and southwest Illinois and 8 to 10 inches in southeastern Missouri. Some schools in rural areas remained closed for several days as the weather stayed very cold and some minor snowfalls kept traveling conditions poor.

2001
Bitter cold griped parts of Central Europe. Some notable low temperatures were Salzburg, Austria with -4.4°, Churanov in the Czech Republic at -4.4° and Bialystok, Poland with -7.1°.

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December 14th:

1287
A mighty storm sent a high storm surge onto Holland, drowning a reported 50,000 people.  In East Anglia, England, 500 lives were lost.

1920
A rare frost was observed at the bay side in San Diego.

1924
The temperature at Helena, MT plunged an unbelievable 79 degrees in 24 hours and 88 degrees in 34 hours from 63° to -25°. At Fairfield, MT, the mercury plummeted 84° in just 12 hours, going from 63° at noon to -21° at midnight, establishing the U.S. record for a 12-hour temperature fall.

1945
Beginning on this date through the 17th, a relentless December snowstorm buried Buffalo, NY under 36.6 inches of snow, with unofficial totals south of the city ranging up to 70 inches.

Arctic high pressure built in across the west brining record lows to some locations from the Rockies to the West Coast including: Flagstaff, NV: -14°, Billings, MT: -13°, Casper, WY: -10°, Reno, NV: -5°, Victorville, CA: 7°, Las Vegas, NV: 16°, Portland, OR: 24°, Riverside, CA: 26°, Santa Ana, CA: 28°, Escondido, CA: 28°, San Francisco Airport, CA: 31° and Los Angeles (LAX), CA: 38°.

1952
Trace of snow or sleet at or near Pensacola, Crestview, DeFuniak Springs, Quincy, Carrabelle, Tallahassee, St. Marks, Monticello, Madison, Mayo, Live Oak, Lake City, Glen St. Mary, and Hilliard. Frozen precipitation occurred before noon at most points, but occurred in the afternoon at Mayo and Lake City and near Hilliard. Temperatures were above freezing and snow or sleet melted as it fell.

1959
Corona, NM received a record snowfall of 40 inches beginning on this date through the 16th.

1967
A state record 38 inches of snow fell in 24 hours in Heber Springs, AZ as the state was in the grips of a snowstorm. Actually, two different storms, they occurred so close together that they were perceived as one. 86 inches of snow fell during the 9 day period at Flagstaff, AZ. The Navajo nation was especially hard hit. Residents were instructed to write distress signals in the snow using ashes from their fireplaces. Snow even fell in the southern deserts of Arizona.

The cold air following the initial front produced one of the coldest days on record on this day. It was the coldest day on record in Big Bear Lake, where the high temperature was 15°. Locations reporting record low temperatures for the date included:

Pocatello, ID: -7°, Palomar Mountain, CA: 10°, Olympia, WA: 15°, Fresno, CA: 21°, Santa Maria, CA: 21°, Quillayute, WA: 23°, Palm Springs, CA: 25°, Borrego Springs, CA: 31°, Long Beach, CA: 33°, Los Angeles (LAX), CA: 38°-Tied and Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 39°.

1971
A tornado which began to the immediate south of Republic, MO cut a swath through the city of Republic and moved northeast to pass over the weather service office located at the Springfield airport. The entire terminal building received considerable damage. The wind gust recorder reached past the maximum of 115 mph and topped out at 120 mph.

1975
A southwesterly flow ahead of a cold front brought record high temperatures from the Missouri Valley to the Great Lakes and upper Ohio Valley including: St. Louis, MO: 75°, Louisville, KY: 73°, Columbia, MO: 70°, Springfield, MO: 69°, Evansville, IN: 69°, Cincinnati, OH: 69°, Springfield, IL: 68°, Indianapolis, IN: 67°, South Bend, IN: 67° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Chicago, IL: 66°, Peoria, IL: 66°, Fort Wayne, IN: 66°, Detroit, MI: 65°, Flint, MI: 63° (broke previous record by 14 degrees), Akron, OH: 63°, Youngstown, OH: 62°, Moline, IL: 61°, Alpena, MI: 61° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Milwaukee, WI: 60°, Lansing, MI: 60°, Madison, WI: 59°, Grand Rapids, MI: 59°, Rockford, IL: 58°, Muskegon, MI: 57°, Green Bay, WI: 55°, Houghton Lake, MI: 55° and Ste. St. Marie, MI: 53°.

A line of severe thunderstorms with a strong cold front rumbled through southwest Iowa producing damaging winds. Farms throughout the area received extensive damage to buildings, trees and machinery. Some livestock were killed or injured.

Behind the front Havre, MT and Sheridan, WY recorded record low temperatures for the date with -24° and -11° respectively.

1987
A powerful storm spread heavy snow from the Southern Plains to the Mid-Mississippi Valley, and produced severe thunderstorms in the Lower Mississippi Valley. An F3 tornado hit West Memphis, AR, killing 6 people and injuring 200. The tornado passed within 1200 feet of the Southland Dog Track which was packed with nearly 7,000 people.  The tornado left 1,500 people homeless, and left many residents without electricity. The twister crossed the Mississippi River into Shelby County, Tennessee. 

Kansas City, MO was blanketed with 10.8 inches of snow, a 24 hour record for December, and snowfall totals in the Oklahoma panhandle ranged up to 14 inches. 12 to 18 inches of snow fell from the Texas Panhandle, into northern Oklahoma, and to southern Kansas. Strong winds, gusting to 63 mph at Austin TX, ushered arctic cold into the Great Plains, and caused considerable blowing and drifting of snow.

Ahead of the storm, Jackson, MS tied a daily record high with 81°.

Strong Santa Ana winds prevailed along the base of the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains. In San Bernardino, winds gusted to 60 mph. Gusts up to 80 mph were reported around San Bernardino. One was injured when a tree fell on a truck. 80 power poles were blown down within a half mile stretch in Fontana and Rancho Cucamonga. Downed tree limbs damaged cars, homes and gardens. Power poles and freeway signs were damaged. A parked helicopter was blown down a hillside in Altadena. Avocado crop damage from winds hit Fallbrook. Over most of San Diego County the dry air led to low temperatures where the wind was calm. It was 13° in Mt. Laguna, 18° in

Campo, 23° in Valley Center, 28° in El Cajon, 31° in Del Mar and 33° in Chula Vista.  Other locations reporting record lows for the date included: Clayton, NM: -3°, El Paso, TX: 8° and Lubbock, TX: 8°.

1988
Blowing snow was reported in western Kansas, as snow and gusty winds plagued the Central Rockies and Central Plains. Colorado Springs, CO reported 13 inches of snow. Low pressure in Wisconsin brought heavy snow to the Lake Superior snowbelt area, with 22 inches reported at Marquette, MI.

Meanwhile, a few locations across the west reported record high temperatures for the date including: Borrego Springs, CA: 84°, Winslow, AZ: 64°-Tied and Redding, CA: 62°.

1989
High winds and heavy snow prevailed from Montana to Colorado. Snowfall totals in Wyoming ranged up to 20 inches at Burgess Junction with 50 inches reported from the 13th through the 16th. Sheridan, WY recorded their snowiest December day with 12.4 inches and 20.6 inches total from the 13th through this date. Other two day totals from the 13th through this day included: Clearmont, MT: 18 inches, Leiter, MT: 13 inches, Priro, MT: 9 inches and 4.4 inches at Billings, MT.  Wind gusts in Colorado reached 87 mph south of the town of Rollinsville.  

Strong northwesterly winds continued to produce heavy snow squalls in the Great Lakes Region. Totals in northeastern Lower Michigan ranged up to 29 inches at Hubbard Lake, with 28 inches reported at Posen. Two day totals in northeastern Wisconsin ranged up to 30 inches.

A few locations reported record lows for the date including: Concordia, KS: -10° and Redding, CA: 27° followed by a record high of 71°.

1990
High winds plagued the Colorado Rockies behind a strong Pacific cold front. Boulder, CO reported the highest reported wind gust of 120 mph. Trees were uprooted and structural damage occurred including one business losing their roof. Two tractor trailers were blown over south of Boulder while another rolled over southeast of Golden.  Several vehicles were trapped in a  blinding dust storm near Broomfield. Golden, CO reported a gust of 97 mph. Gusts were generally between 70 and 100 mph. Denver reported a 51 mph gust.

1996
0.05 of an inch of rain fell at Albany, NY bringing their total for the year to 47.20 inches, making it their wettest year ever.

Santa Ana winds produced a gust of 111 mph at Fremont Canyon and a gust of 92 mph at Rialto. Two were killed from flying debris.

1997
A surprise snowstorm dumped as much as 10 inches of snow on parts of the Deep South. The storm was Mississippi's biggest December snowstorm on record. 4 inches of snow fell across parts of Alabama.  

While parts of the south were shivering, portions of the often frigid and snowy Midwest basked in warmer weather. While it was 35° with sleet at Birmingham, AL, it was 66° at Rapid City, SD.

2001
A fierce wind storm blacked out 175,000 customers in Southwestern British Columbia, Canada; their worst power failure in years. Winds observed at Vancouver International Airport reach 50 mph and peaked at 89 mph on the northern tip of Vancouver Island.

The temperature reached 54° on Jan Mayen Island in the Norwegian Sea; a December record for this Arctic Island located near latitude 70 degrees north.

2002
The Norwegian car transporter ship Tricolor, carrying 2,862 Volvos, BMWs and SAABs collided with a ship off the coast of Dunkirk, France in thick fog. The car transporters cargo was worth an estimated $64.4 million dollars. The wreck remained submerged just below the surface. It was struck by another ship on the 16th and again reportedly by another vessel on the 31st.

2005
A line of severe thunderstorms dropped 7.28 inches of rain on downtown Houston, TX.

During morning rush hour, commuters in Montreal, Quebec Canada seen snow fall at the phenomenal rate of 3.1 inches an hour. Over 11 hours, the city received a record-breaking 16.1 inches of snow.

2008
A low pressure system moved out of the Rockies, curving through the southern Plains northeast into Upper Mississippi River Valley. Snow spread out ahead of the system, with heavy snows falling across central and northern Minnesota, and some portions of northern Wisconsin. Accumulations in excess of 10 inches occurred in some locations, with blizzard conditions also very prevalent. With the front's passage, temperatures dropped 20 degrees in 2 hours in parts of Wisconsin. A temperature change of over 40 degrees from the morning on this date to the next morning was common. The cold was made more significant as the winds increased to 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 mph behind the front. These strong winds, coupled with the plummeting temperatures, created dangerous wind chills of -20° to -35°.

Several locations behind the storm reported record low temperatures for the date including: Havre, MT: -33°, Great Falls, MT: -25°: Tied, Casper, WY: -19°, Billings, MT: -18°, Denver, CO: -18°, Sheridan, WY: -16° and Portland, OR: 23°-Tied.

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December 15th:

1839
The first of eight major storms to strike eastern Massachusetts during the month hit Massachusetts Bay and devastated the harbor at Gloucester. Winds estimated as "whole gales" dismantled, drove ashore or pushed out to sea at least 50 vessels resulting in a death toll estimated around 50 people. Interior New England reported up to 20 inches of snow. Loss of life was great at Gloucester, MA.

1847
The board of the Smithsonian Institution appropriated $1,000 for the purchase of weather instruments for Joseph Henry's proposed weather reporting network.

1897
On this date through the 16th, 31.8 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Nedunkem, Sri Lanka.

1901
An intense cold front swept across the eastern U.S first producing heavy rain in Louisiana then heavy snow in the northeastern U.S. Behind the front, many locations reported record low temperatures. Neillsville, WI recorded their coldest December temperature with -36°. Other daily record lows for the date included: Scottsbluff, NE: -32°, Bridgeport, NE: -32°, Valentine, NE: -31°, Alliance, NE: -30°, Fargo, ND: -29°, Norfolk, NE: -29°, St. Cloud, MN: -28°, North Platte, NE: -26°, Sioux Falls, SD: -24°, Aberdeen, SD: -23°, La Crosse, WI: -23°, Duluth, MN: -23°, Huron, SD: -22°,

Minneapolis, MN: -21°, Sioux City, IA: -20°, Green Bay, WI: -20°,

Des Moines, IA: -18°, Waterloo, IA: -18°, Lander, WY: -17°, Madison, WI: -16°, Columbia, MO: -15°, Milwaukee, WI: -14°, Chicago, IL: -12°, South Bend, IN: -12°, Springfield, IL: -10°, Indianapolis, IN: -10°, Dayton, OH: -10°, Lexington, KY: -8°, Concordia, KS: -7°, Cincinnati, OH: -7°, Louisville, KY: -7°, Evansville, IN: -6°, Nashville, TN: -2°, Wichita, KS: 1°, Memphis, TN: 2°, Oklahoma City, OK: 4°, Little Rock, AR: 6°, Knoxville, TN: 7°, Birmingham, AL: 8°, Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX: 9°, Abilene, TX: 10°, Atlanta, GA: 11°, Waco, TX: 13°, Athens, GA: 14°, San Antonio, TX: 15°, Jackson, MS: 15°, Austin, TX: 17°, Bakersfield, CA: 19°, Tucson, AZ: 20°, Corpus Christi, TX: 20°, Mobile, AL: 20°, Pensacola, FL: 20°, Houston, TX: 21°, Baton Rouge, LA: 21°, Galveston, TX: 25° and Phoenix, AZ: 26°.

1945
Beginning the previous day through the 17th, a record December snowstorm buried Buffalo, NY under 36.6 inches of snow, with unofficial totals south of the city ranging up to 70 inches. Travel was brought to a stand still.

1948
A strong southwesterly flow ahead of a cold front brought record high temperatures from the Southern Plains to the Missouri Valley and Southeast.  St. Louis, MO set a record high for December with 76°. Other daily record highs included: Brownsville, TX: 84°, New Orleans, LA: 81°, Baton Rouge, LA: 80°, Jackson, MS: 80°, Meridian, MS: 80°, Savannah, GA: 80°, Wichita Falls, TX: 79°, Fort Smith, AR: 79°, Columbia, SC: 79°, Tulsa, OK: 77°, Tupelo, MS: 76°-Tied, Oklahoma City, OK: 75°, Springfield, MO: 73°, Charlotte, NC: 73°, Little Rock, AR: 72°, Asheville, NC: 72°, Columbia, MO: 70°, Paducah, KY: 67° and Lexington, KY: 65°-Tied.

1964
The "Great Blizzard" lashed the southern Prairie Provinces in Canada with heavy snow, 55 mph winds and temperatures as low as -30°. Three people froze to death and thousands of animals perished.

1969
Dense fog in Orange County led to a freeway accident on Interstate 5 involving more than 100 vehicles.

1987
The major winter storm that had plagued the central Plains over the previous two days underwent rapid deepening over Illinois also known as going through “bombogenesis”.  The barometric pressure at Chicago, IL dropped three quarters of an inch in 6 hours to 28.96 inHg, a record low reading for December. Hurricane force wind gusts produced blizzard conditions, downed power lines, and drifted roads closed. O’Hare in Chicago reported a gust to 75 mph and 73 mph at LaFarge, WI. Snowfall totals of 4 to17 inches fell from the central Plains, parts of the Missouri Valley to the Midwest and lower Great Lakes. Some of the greater snowfall totals were: LaFarge, WI: 17 inches, Helena, OK: 16 inches, Columbia, MO: 12.7 inches, Rockford, IL: 11.4 inches, Moline, IL: 11.2 inches, O’Hare Airport in Chicago, IL: 9.1 inches, Peoria, IL: 8.9 inches, Platteville, WI: 8.7 inches and Waukon, IA: 8 inches.  Muskegon, MI set a daily record with 12.1 inches.  The storm system also produced thunderstorms which lasted from 2 to 4 hours, an unusual length of time for a winter storm. The thunderstorms also produced sleet and hail, with 3/4 inch hail reported in Joliet, IL. O'Hare Airport in Chicago was closed for several hours, for only the 4th time in 20 years. High winds derailed train cars at Avon, IN.  Light winds and partly sunny skies were reported in areas within the storm's center of circulation – a feature more typical of a storm of tropical nature.

Behind the storm, a few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Amarillo, TX: -5°, Roswell, NM: 0°, Lubbock, TX: 2°, El Paso, TX: 6°and Midland-Odessa, TX: 11°.

1988
High pressure in the Pacific Northwest and low pressure in the southwestern U.S. combined to produce high winds from Utah to California. Winds gusting to 70 mph in the San Francisco area left nearly 300,000 residents without electricity. Centerville, UT reported a wind gust of 105 mph.

1989
A couple of low pressure systems spread heavy snow across the northeastern U.S. Up to 2 feet of snow was reported along Lake Erie in northeastern Ohio, and up to 10 inches was reported in Connecticut. Heavy snow squalls developed over Michigan for the 3rd day in a row. Three Oaks, MI reported 25 inches of snow in 2 days.  

Many cities in the north central U.S. reported record low temperatures for the date; including a monthly record low of -10°at Wichita, KS (broke previous daily record by 10 degrees).  Locations setting daily record lows included: Rapid City, SD: -22°, Dubuque, IA: -19°, Grand Island, NE: -16°, Concordia, KS: -16°, Kansas City, MO: -16° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Moline, IL: -16°, Rockford, IL: -16°, Lincoln, NE: -15°, Omaha, NE: -15°, Peoria, IL: -14°, Dodge City, KS: -8°, Springfield, MO: -7°,

St. Louis, MO: -5°, Flint, MI: -3°, Tulsa, OK: -1°, Paducah, KY: 2°, Oklahoma City, OK: 3°, Jackson, KY: 3° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Wichita Falls, TX: :9°, Oak Ridge, TN: 12°-Tied, Dallas, TX: 13°, Tupelo, MS: 14°-Tied, Topeka, KS: 15° (broke previous record by 5 degrees), Gainesville, FL: 26°-Tied and Redding, CA: 28°.

1991
The Tug Hill plateau in New York off of Lake Ontario was targeted by heavy lake effect snow.  44 inches fell at Highmarket and 30 inches piled up at Boonville. Incredible snowfall rates of 6 to 8 inches per hour were reported at Boonville.

1995
An unusually intense storm struck the Pacific Northwest. Heavy rains of 5 to 20 inches accompanied the system, but the high winds and low barometric pressure readings were the main features. Record low sea level pressure readings were recorded at Astoria, OR of 28.53 inHg, Seattle, WA at 28.65 inHg and Medford, OR at 28.93 inHg. Wind gusts reached 119 mph at Sea Lion Caves, OR and 103 mph at Angel Island, CA. Six deaths and over 2 million power outages were attributed to the storm.

1999
20,000 to 50,000 people died when torrential rains triggered raging floods that washed away homes, trees, and complete mountainsides across Venezuela.

Cyclone John hit the sparsely populated northwest coast of Australia with winds gusting to 185 mph. John was the strongest cyclone to hit Australia in over 100 years.

High winds developed in and near the foothills outside of Denver, CO as a strong upper level jet stream moved over the area.  Generally winds gusted 70 to 80 mph. A weather spotter located one mile south of Fritz Peak near Rollinsville measured a peak gust to 124 mph. Other wind gusts included: 77 mph at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, CO and atop Blue Mountain and 70 mph at the National Wind Technology Center on Rocky Flats south of Boulder. Denver International Airport reported a top gust of only 32 mph.

2003
On this date through the 23rd, cold, snowy weather prevailed across parts of the United Kingdom deemed responsible for as many as 2,500 deaths.

2006
An unusual storm producing thunder and lightning passed over Montreal, Quebec Canada as temperatures rise to a balmy record high of 53°.

2008
A powerful snowstorm, a magnitude that hasn't occurred since 1979, descended on the mountains and high deserts of southern California from this date through the 18th. Impressive snow totals included 54 inches at Big Bear, 36 inches at Wrightwood, 20 inches at Pinon Hills, and 16 inches at Hesperia, Idyllwild and Julian. At times, snow levels were as low as 2,000 feet. In Nevada, Las Vegas reported 0.28 inches of rain with a trace of snow. Areas outside of Las Vegas, received snow totals of 1 to 5 inches. Mt. Charleston, NV received between 15 and 20 inches of snow.

Behind the storm and front a 1040 millibar arctic area of high pressure brought record lows to parts of the Plains to the West Coast including: Fort Assinniboine, MT: -31°, Havre, MT: -30°, White Sulphur Springs, MT: -29°, Dillon, MT: -27°, Fort Benton, MT: -27°, Valentine, MT: -25°, Virginia City, MT: -25°, Ennis, MT: -21°, Casper, WY: -20°, Denver, CO: -19° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Cheyenne, WY: -13°, Goodland, KS: -10°, Yakima, WA: 2° and Portland, OR: 22°.  Out ahead of the storm, Augusta, GA set a record high with 79°.

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December 16th:

1811
The area around New Madrid, MO was rocked by a powerful earthquake estimated at a magnitude 8.0 or greater on the Richter Scale. It was the first in a series of tremors during the winter of 1811-1812 that would become known as the worst series of earthquakes in U.S. history. For a time the Mississippi River actually ran backwards. Church bells as far away as Charleston, S.C. and Washington, D.C. were rung by the tremors, which were felt over a land area of almost one million square miles.

1835
New Englandexperienced one of their coldest days on record. At noon the temperature at Boston, MA was -4°, -15°at Norfolk, CT and -17°at Hanover, NH. The temperature at Boston was -12°by sunset. Gale force winds accompanied the severe cold, and that night a great New York City fire destroyed much of the financial district.

1890
A big snowstorm began over Pittsburgh, PA on this day and continued into the 17th.  23.9 inches of snow fell in 24 hours, their greatest 24 hour snowfall on record for the city.

1917
An ice jam closed the Ohio River between Warsaw, KY and Rising Sun, IN. The 30 foot high ice jam held for 58 days, and backed up the river a distance of 100 miles.

1933
A violent Pacific storm blew gale-force winds across the British Columbia coast in Canada. Accompanied by rain and snow, the storm knocked out electrical and telephone service to much of the region. In Vancouver, the storm tore down the trolley lines, temporarily disrupting service.

1941
The U.S. Weather Bureau suspended nationwide weather reports as a result of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

1945
Lake effect snow squalls buried Buffalo, NY under 24.3 inches of snow in 24 hours.

1973
Central Connecticut was crippled by a major ice storm, which knocked out power for days and downed more trees than the New England Hurricane of 1938. Boston, MA had their latest seasonal recorded trace of snow.

1984
A southwesterly flow ahead of a cold front brought record high temperatures for the date from the Great Lakes south to the Tennessee Valley including: Nashville, TN: 74°, Lexington, KY: 70°, Paducah, KY: 70°, Louisville, KY: 70°-Tied, Evansville, IN: 69°, Cincinnati, OH: 67°, Beckley, WV: 67°, Huntington, WV: 67°, Oak Ridge, TN: 67°, Jackson, KY: 66°, South Bend, IN: 65°, Detroit, MI: 65° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Elkins, WV: 65°, Indianapolis, IN: 65°-Tied, Cleveland, OH: 64°, Columbus, OH: 64°-Tied, Fort Wayne, IN: 63°, Peoria, IL: 62°, Flint, MI: 62°, Akron, OH 62°, Mansfield, OH: 62°, Toledo, OH: 62°, Grand Rapids, MI: 61°, Lansing, MI: 61°, Youngstown, OH: 61°, Chicago, IL: 60°, Rockford, IL: 58°, Milwaukee, WI: 58°, Muskegon, MI: 58°, Alpena, MI: 57°, Houghton Lake, MI: 55°, Green Bay, WI: 54°, Kodiak, AK: 50-Tied, Ste. St. Marie, MI: 49°, Marquette, MI: 47 and Barrow, AK: 24.

1987
A Pacific storm battered the coast of California with rain and high winds, and dumped heavy snow on the mountains of California. Winds along the coast gusted to 70 mph at Point Arguello, and winds in the Tehachapi Mountains of southern California gusted to 100 mph at Wheeler Ridge. Snowfall totals ranged up to 24 inches at Mammoth Mountain.  Snow fell for 2 minutes at Malibu Beach, and Disneyland was closed due to the weather for only the 2nd time in 24 years. Other theme parks were closed. I-5 and I-15 were closed on stretches through the mountains stranding motorists in the Southland. Numerous accidents killed a few people. Heavy rain hit San Diego County on this day through the 17th. 2.01 inches fell at Oceanside, 2 inches at El Cajon and La Mesa, 1.97 inches at National City, 1.85 inches at Poway, and 1.73 inches at Montgomery Field. Across the higher elevations, 24 inches of snow fell in Julian from the 16th through this day and 9 inches of snow fell at Mt. Laguna. All schools were cancelled in the mountains of San Diego County. It was described as the worst storm to hit Kern County since December 1977. Up to 3 feet of snow fell at Tehachapi and 28 inches fell at Frazier Park. Even the deserts were not spared from the snow as up to 1.5 feet fell at Mojave and 11 inches was measured at Randsburg. 60 people were stranded in vehicles in the Tehachapis. Wheeler Ridge had a gust of 100 mph from the southeast. Waves 5 to 6 feet were reported on Lake Isabella. One person was killed by a fallen tree knocked down by gusty winds. Crops were damaged due to wind stripping. Over 45,000 customers lost power in Bakersfield.

A winter storm which began in the Southern Rockies four days earlier finished its course producing snow and high winds in New England. Snowfall totals ranged up to 19 inches at Blanchard, ME.

1988
Fairbanks, AKreported freezing rain and record warm temperatures. The afternoon high of 41°was 43 degrees above normal. Other locations in Alaska reporting record high temperatures for the date included: Gulkana, AK: 37°-Tied, Kotzebue, AK: 34°-Tied and Bettles, AK: 32°.

Snow and high winds continued to plague the mountains of southern California. Mount Wilson, CA reported 2 inches of rain in 6 hours during the early morning and a storm total of more than 3.50 inches of rain.

1989
Squalls in the Great Lakes Region produced 30 inches of snow at New Carlisle, IN and 18 inches at Syracuse, NY. Low pressure brought heavy snow to northern New England, with 18 inches reported at Derby and Saint Johnsbury, VT. Thunderstorms with heavy snow were reported at Portland, ME.

Many locations from the Southern and Central Plains to the Appalachians reported record low temperatures for the date, including: Lincoln, NE: -16°, Topeka, KS: -15°, Sioux City, IA: -15°, Kansas City, MO: -14°, Grand Island, NE: -12°: Tied, Omaha, NE: -11°, Columbia, MO: -11°, Concordia, KS: -10°, Springfield, MO: -9° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), St. Louis, MO: -8°, Cincinnati, OH: -7°, Wichita, KS: -6°, Evansville, IN: -6°, Lexington, KY: -6°, Jackson, KY: -4° (broke previous record by 23 degrees), Louisville, KY: -4°, Paducah, KY: -4° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Dodge City, KS: -1°, Nashville, TN: 2°, Tulsa, OK: 3°, Bristol, TN: 3°, Oak Ridge, TN: 3°, Fort Smith, AR: 5°, Huntsville, AL: 6°, Oklahoma City, OK: 7°, Little Rock, AR: 7°, Chattanooga, TN: 8°, Abilene, TX: 9°, Waco, TX: 11°, Wichita Falls, TX: 11°, Dallas (DFW), TX: 12°, Midland-Odessa, TX: 12°, Dallas, TX: 13°, Shreveport, LA: 15°, Meridian, MS: 15°, Austin, TX: 16°, San Antonio, TX: 17°, Austin (Bergstrom), TX: 18°, Houston, TX: 19°, Victoria, TX: 20°, Corpus Christi, TX: 24°, Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX: 24°-Tied, Galveston, TX: 29° and Brownsville, TX: 30°.

A record tying low of -2° was recorded at Grand Rapids, MI while another 5 inches of snow piles up at Muskegon, MI contributed to a monthly total of 77 inches there.

1997
Super-Typhoon Paka deluged Guam with nearly 21 inches of rain at Tiyan before instruments failed two hours before Paka's eye passed to the south. Unofficial sources at Andersen Air Force Base believe that wind gusts may have reached 237 mph during the height of the storm.

1998
Detroit, MI finally picked up a trace of snow, smashing the previous record for latest measurable snowfall, which formerly was November 30th.

2000
The television audience of ABC affiliate 3340 from Birmingham, AL watched in amazement as a camera mounted on the station's broadcast tower clearly showed an F4 tornado passing between the JVC plant and the Hampton Inn at the Cottondale Exit off I-59 near Tuscaloosa, AL. The station's storm chase team took cover in the Hampton Inn as the twister struck, spinning the van several times and blowing out the windows. The unit measured a wind speed of 170 mph on its van-mounted wind equipment. At least 400 homes and businesses were heavily damaged or destroyed by the tornado.

2001
3.68 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Little Rock, AR, the wettest 24 hour period there since 8/18/1997.

2002
A winter storm brought severe weather, gusty winds, heavy rains and higher elevation snow as it impacted central California. Two separate tornadoes touched down near Merced. One had a path of one and a quarter miles and was rated a F1. In the southern San Joaquin Valley, strong gusty winds of up to 105 mph blew three trucks off the Grapevine near Lebec. Power was lost in nearly all of Taft.  In the higher elevations, heavy snow occurred as Aspendell, CA picked up 13 inches.
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December 17th:

1844
A 3-week blockade of snow began at Portland, OR as the city received a record December total of 34 inches.

1903
Conditions were not ideal for spectators at Kill Devil Hills on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, but they were ideal for the participants in a grand experiment. Winds of 27 mph with gusts to 35 caused the Wright brothers to ignore the brisk 39° temperature and grey, overcast skies as they took to the air in their gas engine powered aircraft.  

1924
A severe ice storm struck central Illinois, coating the ground with nearly two inches of glaze at Springfield. The storm caused $21 million dollars damage along with much hardship. Ice was on the trees until the 4th of January, and electricity was not restored until January 10th.

Calgary, Alberta Canada experienced their coldest December temperature at -45°.

1929
On this date through the 18th, an ice storm in western New York State resulted in extensive damage and hardship. A news report from Buffalo stated, "one was kept awake by the breaking limbs, which snapped off much louder than a rifle shot."

1930
Greensboro, NC experienced its greatest 24-hour snowfall when 14.3 inches fell.

1944
The powerful U.S. Third Fleet was battered by powerful Typhoon Cobra east of the Philippines. There was mass confusion as the ships rolled on monstrous waves as high as 60 feet and dealt with intense wind gusts of nearly 200 mph in the Philippine Sea. The central pressure in the storm was estimated to be 891 millibars or 26.31 inHg. Three destroyers and numerous other ships were sunk by the storm. 778 sailors and marines died and 146 aircraft were destroyed.

1963
Lake effect snow buried Muskegon, MI with a three day total of 34 inches of snow from the 16th to the 18th. This will be the snowiest December in Muskegon history with a grand total of 82.6 inches.

1964
An arctic outbreak made its way from the northwestern U.S. to the Plains with a blizzard in Idaho, Washington and Oregon. Heavy snow also fell in coastal sections. Walla Walla, WA had a temperature of -20° for a new December record low. Other daily record lows for the date included: Medicine Bow, WY: -44°, Helena, MT: -38° (broke previous record by 13 degrees), Casper, WY: -31°, Missoula, MT: -30° (broke previous record by 14 degrees), Sheridan, WY: -29°, Scottsbluff, NE: -25°, Billings, MT: -24°, Kalispell, MT: -24°, Cheyenne, WY: -24° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Huron, SD: -23°, Rapid City, SD: -23°, Spokane, WA: -20° (broke previous record by 14 degrees), Valentine, NE: -19°, Yakima, WA: -17°, Pocatello, ID: -15°, Norfolk, NE: -14°, Pendleton, OR: -12° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Grand Island, NE: -11°, Goodland, KS: -10°, Burns, OR: -10°, Lincoln, NE: -9°, Concordia, KS: -5°, Topeka, KS: -1°, Amarillo, TX: 2°, Portland, OR: 7°, Oklahoma City, OH: 8°-Tied, Salem, OR: 9°, Eugene, OR: 10°-Tied, Seattle, WA: 11° and Wichita Falls, TX: 14°-Tied.

1967
A four-day snow and ice storm, described as the worst major ice storm in Oklahoma in more than a decade, ended during the morning hours. The storm affected all but the southeast part of the state, with ice accumulations of a half to 1 inch. Local ice accumulations of 4 inches were reported at Cordell. More than 225 people were treated for injuries, after slipping on the ice. At least 170 of these injuries were in the Oklahoma City area.

1973
A snowstorm along the Mid-Atlantic gave Washington, D.C. 10.2 inches of pre-Christmas snow

1983
A major cold wave engulfed the Central U.S. The temperature at Oklahoma City, OK dropped below freezing during the evening and did not rise above 32° again until New Years Eve, a record setting period of two weeks.

Billings, MT had a high temperature was -8°; this was the first of 8 consecutive days with a high temp below zero, a December record.

One of the most severe Arctic outbreaks to affect the Great Plains gripped Oklahoma for more than two weeks in late December. The prolonged cold wave, lasting from the 17th through the 31st, lowered Oklahoma City's average temperature for the month to a cold 25.8°, their coldest on record. Locations that reported record low temperatures for the date included: International Falls, MT: -35°, Great Falls, MN: -27°: Tied, St. Cloud, MN: -24°, Valentine, NE: -23°, Duluth, MN: -21°: Tied, La Crosse, WI: -18°, Minneapolis, MN: -17°, Marquette, MI: -9°, Omaha, NE: -9°: Tied and Clayton, NM: 2°.

1985
A severe mid-Missouri ice storm knocked out power for up to 26 hours in some locations. Threes and telephone lines were covered with up to an inch of ice.

1987
A storm in the southwestern U.S. brought heavy rain and snow to parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. Charleston, NV was blanketed with 12 inches of snow while Lake Havasu City, AZ was drenched with 2.26 inches of rain.

On the coast of Washington, Quillayute set a record low with 21°.

1988
Squalls brought locally heavy snow to the southeastern shores of Lake Michigan.  Snowfall totals ranged up to 16 inches at Chadron, OH and 14 inches at Harvey, MI.

Across the east a few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Islip, NY: 15°, Wallops Island, VA: 20° and Cape Hatteras, NC: 25°-Tied.

1989
Heavy snow continued across the Colorado Rockies. Steamboat Springs was buried under 74 inches and reported a total of 108 inches of snow between the 10th and the 18th of the month. Vail received 65 inches of snow between the 14th and the 18th.

Many cities from Kentucky to Pennsylvania reported record low temperatures for the date, including: Columbus, OH: -12°, Fort Wayne, IN: -11°, Mansfield, OH: -11°, Indianapolis, IN: -10°, Youngstown, OH: -10°, Cincinnati, OH: -9°, Elkins, WV: -8°, Detroit, MI: -7°, Cleveland, OH: -7°, Dayton, OH: -7°, Lexington, KY: -6°, Pittsburgh, PA: -6°, Springfield, IL: -5°, Columbia, MO: -5°, Evansville, IN: -3°, Beckley, WV: -2°, Charleston, WV: -2°, Louisville, KY: 1°, Lynchburg, VA: 3°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 3°, Jackson, KY: 4°, Bristol, TN: 6°, Paducah, KY: 6°-Tied, Wallops Island, VA: 18° and Redding, CA: 27°.

2001
Snow, gale-force winds and heavy rain swept across Greece and Turkey. Two days of heavy snowfall and temperatures as low as 14° forced the closure of all northern Greek airports and all schools in northwestern Greece. 120 people were trapped on a train in Northern Greece halted by 6.6 feet of snow.

2008
Light rain began falling on the southern portions of the Las Vegas valley in Nevada just after sunrise, but changed to snow by mid day as cold air was being drawn in from the northeast. By late afternoon snow began accumulating on most surfaces including roads. The heaviest snow occurred during the late afternoon/early evening hours before finally ending as a change to rain during the late evening. Officially 3.6 inches of snow was recorded at the National Weather Service office in the south part of the valley. Areas around the Las Vegas Strip and McCarran International Airport received between 2 and 3 inches of snow. The hardest hit area was around Henderson where 5 to 10 inches of snow was reported. Amazingly areas to the west and north such as Summerlin and North Las Vegas received very light amounts or none at all. This was also the most snow ever recorded in December. Yucca Valley, CA recorded between 12 and 15 inches of snow which is one of the biggest snowstorms to ever hit that area.

Along with the storm a few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Burns, OR: -22° (broke previous record by 12 degrees), Sioux City, IA: -14°, Winnemucca, NV: -12°, Eugene, OR: 10°-Tied and Eureka, CA: 27°.

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December 18th:

1620
The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, MA in a severe windstorm.

1779
The first big snowstorm of the "hard winter" dumped 17 inches on New Haven, CT.

1919
A cold air mass brought record cold along the east coast. New York City's Central Park recorded its earliest sub-zero temperature reading on record when the mercury fell to -1°.  Other daily record lows for the date included: Burlington, VT: -13°, Syracuse, NY: -13°, Worcester, MA: -11°, Milton, MA: -11°, Portland, ME: -10°, Providence, RI: -7°, Rochester, NY: -7°, Avoca, PA: -6°, Boston, MA: -6°, Hartford, CT: -6°, Elkins, WV: -5°, New York (Central Park), NY: -1°, Buffalo, NY: -1°, Erie, PA: 0°, Wilmington, DE: 0°, Harrisburg, PA: 2°, Muskegon, MI: 2°, Philadelphia, PA: 4°, Baltimore, MD: 7° and Washington, D.C.: 10°.

1944
The powerful U.S. Third Fleet was in the grips of powerful Typhoon Cobra. Monstrous seas and wind gusts up to 185 mph sank three destroyers and numerous other smaller ships. Nearly 800 men were dead or missing. The encounter with the typhoon was more damaging to the Fleet than many battles with the Japanese.  

1957
An F4 tornado followed part of the path carved by the famed Tri-State Tornado through Jackson, Williamson, and Franklin counties in Illinois, killing 11 people. The storm was notable because it occurred so far north so late in the year. 10 people died at Murphysboro, IL. Further south, five separate tornadoes that cause F2 and F3 damage in St. Francois County in Missouri and Randolph and Madison Counties in Illinois.

1981
A heavy lake-effect snow blanketed the southern and southeast shores of Lake Michigan.   Valparaiso, IN reported 22 inches.

1983
The December cold wave was underway with record cold from the Plains to the upper Midwest. The temperature at Dodge City did not rise above 4° until Christmas day when the temperature rose to 12°. This was the coldest December of record by far for Dodge City since records were begun in 1874. 

Hillsboro, WI set their record December low with -33°. Other daily record lows included: International Falls, MN: -36°, Rochester, MN: -31°, St, Cloud, MN: -30°, Valentine, NE: -28°, Sioux Falls, SD: -26°, La Crosse, WI: -26°, Scottsbluff, NE: -25°, Sheridan, WY: -24°, Minneapolis, MN: -24°, Waterloo, IA: -23°, Rapid City, SD: -20°, North Platte, NE: -19°, Norfolk, NE: -19°, Marquette, MI: -19°, Sioux City, IA: -19°, Dubuque, IA: -19°, Casper, WY: -18°, Green Bay, WI: -18°, Omaha, NE: -18°, Rockford, IL: -17°, Des Moines, IA: -16°, Kansas City, MO: -15°, Moline, IL: -12°, Topeka, KS: -11°, Springfield, IL: -11°, Chicago, IL: -11°, Peoria, IL: -11°: Tied, Concordia, KS: -9°, Columbia, MO: -8°: Tied, Wichita, KS: -4°, St. Louis, MO: -4°: Tied, Lubbock, TX: 7°, Abilene, TX: 12°-Tied, San Antonio, TX: 14°, Dallas, TX: 15°-Tied, Waco, TX: 21°-Tied and Austin, TX: 22°.

1984
On this date through the 19th, a storm over southern California left up to 16 inches of snow in the mountains and upper deserts, with 13 inches reported at Lancaster. Edwards Air Force Base was closed, and Interstate 5 was closed from Castaic to the Tehachapi Mountains.

Surface high pressure across the southeastern U.S. brought record high temperatures from the Tennessee Valley to southern New England. Record highs for the date included: Augusta, GA: 81°, Columbia, SC: 80°, Montgomery, AL: 79°, Athens, GA: 79°, Macon, GA: 79°, Meridian, MS: 79°, Wilmington, NC: 79°-Tied, Columbus, GA: 78°, Raleigh, NC: 77°, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 76°, Birmingham, AL: 76°-Tied, Norfolk, VA: 75°, Richmond, VA: 75°, Charlotte, NC: 75°-Tied, Atlanta, GA: 74°, Tupelo, MS: 74°, Wallops Island, VA: 73°, Washington, D.C.: 72°, Oak Ridge, TN: 72°, Cape Hatteras, NC: 72°-Tied, Chattanooga, TN: 71°, Atlantic City, NJ: 70°, Baltimore, MD: 69°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 69°, Wilmington, DE: 64°, New York (Kennedy Airport), NY: 64°, New York (Central Park), NY: 63°-Tied, Jackson, KY: 62°, Bridgeport, CT: 61°, Providence, RI: 60°, Islip, NY: 59°, New York (LaGuardia), NY: 59° and Allentown, PA: 59°.

1986
A strong winter storm, which developed off the coast of New Jersey and moved out to sea, lashed the northeastern U.S. with high winds, heavy rain, and heavy snow. The storm left snowfall amounts of up to 30 inches in parts of Vermont, 24 inches in parts of Massachusetts, and 20 inches in parts of New Hampshire. The highest rainfall amounts approached 4 inches in southern New England, where winds gusted to 70 mph.

1988
Warm weather prevailed in the central U.S. while cool weather prevailed across the eastern states. Sheridan, WY, with a record warm afternoon high of 68°, was 7 degreeswarmer than Key West, FL high of 61°. 

Clayton, NM and North Platte, NE both tied their record highs for the date with 72°and 66°respectively. 

Locations from the southeast into New England that reported record low temperatures for the date included: Bridgeport, CT: 13°-Tied, Islip, NY: 16°, Tallahassee, FL: 18°and Jacksonville, FL: 25°.

1989
A winter storm moving out of the Great Plains Region spread freezing rain, sleet and snow across parts of the southeastern U.S. Freezing rain resulted in 170 auto accidents in the Memphis, TN area during the evening hours. Following a record low of 24°, Redding, CA set an afternoon high of 65°.

Many locations generally from the Ohio Valley to the Northeast set record low temperatures for the date included: Redding, CA: 24°, Elkins, WV: -10°, Youngstown, OH: -8°, Pittsburgh, PA: -7°, Columbus, OH: -7°, Cleveland, OH: -5°, Fort Wayne, IN: -5°, Akron, OH: -4°, Cincinnati, OH: -3°, Detroit, MI: -3°, Dayton, OH: -3°: Tied, Binghamton, NY: -1°, Lexington, KY: -1°, Charleston, WV: 2°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 3°, Wallops Island, VA: 16° and Islip, NY: 16°-Tied.

A southwesterly flow ahead of an arctic front combined with upper level high pressure over Cuba brought a few record highs in Florida.  Miami and West Palm Beach tied record highs with 87°and 86°respectively.

1997
A winter storm struck Calgary, Alberta Canada producing thunder with snow. The start of storm brought traffic chaos to morning rush hour with over 200 accidents. By noon, 6 inches of snow had fallen. 

A period of Santa Ana winds started on this day and ended on the 21st. Wind gusts of 67 mph were reported at Idyllwild and below Cajon Pass, CA and 60 mph gusts were clocked at Rialto. The winds downed trees, caused widespread wind damage and contributed to a fire.  One was killed.

1998
A winter storm brought heavy snow to far southeast Wyoming. 12 to 18 inches of snow fell over the south Laramie range before the storm began to ease the next day with 8 to 10 inches over the adjacent plains. The storm closed both Interstates 25 and 80 along with most other roads in far southeast Wyoming.

Atlanta, GA recorded its latest first freeze on record while across the southwest desert, Palm Springs, CA set a record high with 86°.

2006
High pressure off the Carolina coast, combined with strong upper level high pressure over the Yucatan Peninsula and a strong trough out west produced a warm southwest flow resulting in record high temperatures from the Mississippi Valley to New York State including: San Antonio, TX: 81°-Tied, Mobile, AL: 77°-Tied, Charleston, SC: 77°-Tied, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 76°, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 76°-Tied, Richmond, VA: 75°-Tied, Washington, D.C.: 74°, Tupelo, MS: 74°-Tied, Chattanooga, TN: 73°, Baltimore, MD: 72°, Nashville, TN: 72°, Wilmington, DE: 71°, Atlantic City, NJ: 71°, Philadelphia, PA: 70°, Jackson, KY: 66°, Harrisburg, PA: 64°, New York (LaGuardia), NY: 62°, Allentown, PA: 62° and Binghamton, NY: 50°.

2008
A storm system moving inland from the Pacific tracked across southern California spreading abundant moisture over low-level cold air resulting in a widespread accumulating snow in the Mojave Desert and in the Kern County mountains. Snowfall totals on the desert floor included 10 inches in the Kern County Mountains at Frazier Park, 6 inches at California City, 5 inches at Randsburg and 2 inches at Rosamond.

A few locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Reno, NV: 3°-Tied, Quillayute, WA: 20° and Redding, CA: 23°.

A powerful winter storm brought a quarter to three-quarters of an inch of ice accumulation to central Illinois. Areas along and north of I-72 were most impacted, with widespread tree damage and power lines down. Increasingwinds over the next couple days brought down additional power lines, due to the weight of the ice. Approximately $2 million dollars damage was reported.

Ahead of a cold front, upper level high pressure in the south-central Gulf of Mexico brought a few record highs across the south including: Augusta, GA: 82°, Charleston, SC: 80°, New Orleans, LA: 79°, Macon, GA: 79°-Tied and Lake Charles, LA: 78°-Tied.

2009
Heavy rainfall in the Peruvian Andes produced flooding and landslides in the city of Ayacucho. At least 9 people died as a torrent of mud swept through the city destroying dozens of homes and businesses.
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December 19th:
1777
The Continental Army moved into encampment at Valley Forge amidst stormy winds and piercing cold. A relatively moderate winter followed.

1911
The 24 hour snowfall record was broke in Oklahoma with 22 inches falling at Beaver.

1924
An arctic air mass brought record cold from the Plains to the West Coast while parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast enjoyed record highs.  The Riverside Ranger Station at Yellowstone Park, WY reported a low of -59°, a December record for the U.S.

December record: Glasgow, MT tied their record low for December with -47°while Lander, WY broke their record for December with -40°.

Other record lows for the date included: International Falls, MN: -31°, Helena, MT: -30°, Havre, MT: -29°, Elko, NV: -28°(broke previous record by 16 degrees), Duluth, MN: -26°: Tied, Winnemucca, NV: -25°, Kalispell, MT: -25°, North Platte, NE: -22°, Valentine, NE: -21°, Missoula, MT: -19°, Pueblo, CO: -19°, Colorado Springs, CO: -19°, Cheyenne, WY: -16°, Goodland, KS: -14°, Flagstaff, AZ: -14°, Grand Island, NE: -14°: Tied, Green Bay, WI: -12°, Dodge City, KS: -10°, Denver, CO: -9°, Clayton, NM: -8°, Concordia, KS: -8°, Pendleton, OR: -6°, Spokane, WI: -7°, Lewiston, ID: -7°, Wichita, KS: -6°, Topeka, KS: -6°, Oklahoma City, OK: -2°, Tulsa, OK: -1°, Eugene, OR: 4°(broke previous record by 11 degrees), Medford, OR: 9°, Fort Smith, AR: 9°, Salem, OR: 11°, Seattle, WA: 15°, Astoria, OR: 17°, Bakersfield, CA: 23°-Tied, Eureka, CA: 29°and Downtown Los Angeles, CA: 39°-Tied.

Washington, D.C. recorded a high temperature of 74° on this date but fell to 19° the next day.  Other record highs for the date included: Roanoke, VA: 78°, Lynchburg, VA: 77°, Greensboro, NC: 77°, Richmond, VA: 76°, Norfolk, VA: 75°, Huntington, WV: 70°, Asheville, NC: 70°, Charleston, WV: 68°, Elkins, WV: 67°and Baltimore, MD: 66°.

1957
For the second day in a row, unusually strong F4 tornadoes for December struck the central part of the U.S.  A tornado, 200 yards in width, killed two people along its 15-mile path from near Waldo to near Buena Vista in southwestern Arkansas.  People from one house were carried 250 yards, and cars were said to have been carried 600 yards.

1967
Northern sections of Arizona were amidst of their second heavy snowstorm in a week.  These two storms combined, dumped some of the heaviest snowfall on record for the state.  A record 83 inches of snow covered the ground at Flagstaff, AZ after a total of 86 inches of snow fell from the two storms, inflicting great hardship on Indian reservations.  Many homes, farm buildings, and business structures collapsed from the weight of the snow.

1973
A big pre-Christmas snowstorm began from Oklahoma to Indiana and continued through the next day.  Near blizzard conditions occurred across northern Oklahoma. Snow depths of up to 6 inches were whipped by 30 to 50 mph winds, causing numerous road closures. Many traffic accidents resulted, and several motorists became stranded in the drifts. Several schools were also closed.  Snowfall totals included 18 inches at Covington, IN, 17 inches at Lafayette and Peru, IN 14 inches at Fort Wayne, IN, 12.5 inches at Indianapolis, IN and 12 inches at St. Louis, MO.

1983
A massive area of arctic high pressure dominates the weather across much of North America during an historic cold wave. Jump River, WI plunged to -47°, not only setting a record low for December but also tied for their all-time record low (1/2/1979).  Hatfield, WI fell to -39°, setting their all-time record low.

The following locations set their all-time record low for December: St. Cloud, MN: -41°, Blair, WI: -39°, Theilman, MN: -38°, Dodge, WI: -38°, Mondovi, WI: -38°, Viroqua, WI: -36°, Preston, MN: -35°, Rochester, MN: -33°, Owen, WI: -33°, Cresco, IA: -30°, La Crosse, WI: -30°, Mauston, WI: -30°, Mather, WI: -29°, Winona, MN: -28°, Lancaster, WI: -27°, Platteville, WI: -26° and Grand Rapids, MI: -18° (broke previous daily record by 12 degrees).

Across the border, Coronation, Alberta Canadarecorded their coldest day in 99 years as the thermometer fell to -42°.

Locations reporting daily record lows for the date included: Williston, ND: -40°, Bismarck, ND: -36°, Duluth, MN: -30°, Minneapolis, MN: -29°, Green Bay, WI: -27°(broke previous record by 15 degrees), Madison, WI: -25°, Waterloo, IA: -23°, Marquette, MI: -21°, Rockford, IL: -21°, Dubuque, IA: -21°, Ste. St. Marie, MI: -20°, Sioux City, IA: -19°, Kansas City, MO: -18°, Omaha, NE: -16°, Moline, IL: -16°, Grand Island, NE: -15°, Topeka, KS: -15°, Peoria, IL: -15°, Chicago, IL: -14°, Concordia, KS: -12°, Alpena, MI: -12°: Tied, Dodge City, KS: -10°: Tied, South Bend, IN: -9°, Wichita, KS: -8°, Spokane, WI: -7°: Tied, St. Louis, MO: -7°: Tied and Muskegon, MI: -4°.

1984
An area of upper level low pressure brought up to 18 inches of snow fell at Tehachapi Pass and up to a foot to Lake Isabella, CA. Heavy, wet snow fell of up to a foot was measured in the Antelope Valley portion of the Kern County deserts prompting the closure of Edwards Air Force Base due to snow for the first time ever.

Also, locations across the west reported record low temperatures for the date including: Burns, OR: -20°, Yakima, WA: -9°, Pendleton, OR: -7°, Bishop, CA: 8°-Tied, Olympia, WA: 15° and Quillayute, WA: 18°.

A ridge of high pressure extending from the Gulf of Mexico to Florida brought record high temperatures ahead of cold front across parts of the south including: Athens, GA: 78°, Savannah, GA: 78°-Tied, Norfolk, VA: 77°, Charlotte, NC: 76°, Jackson, MS: 76°, Raleigh, NC: 76°-Tied, Columbus, GA: 76°-Tied, Birmingham, AL: 75°, Atlanta, GA: 74°, Chattanooga, TN: 71°, Wallops Island, VA: 70° and Asheville, NC: 70°-Tied.

1987
Thunderstorms produced large hail and damaging winds in eastern Texas and the Lower Mississippi Valley.  Thunderstorms produced wind gusts to 90 mph at Venus, TX and Providence, LA.  Rain prevailed from the Southern Plains to the Mid-Mississippi Valley. Small stream flooding was reported around Columbia, MO.

1988
Low pressure and a trailing cold front in the central U.S. brought snow and high winds to parts of the Rocky Mountain Region.  Winds in Colorado gusted to 67 mph at La Junta. Thunderstorms along the same cold front produced wind gusts to 65 mph at Kansas City, MO.

Tallahasseeand Fort Myers, FL reported record low temperatures for the date with 19°and 35°respectively.

1989
High winds and heavy snow plagued the northern and central Rockies.  Snowfall totals in Montana ranged up to 12 inches at Lincoln, and wind gusts in Colorado reached 97 mph at Squaw Mountain.  

13 cities mostly from the north central U.S. to the Mid-Atlantic reported record low temperatures for the date, including:  Dickinson, ND: -26°, Valentine, NE: -26°, Norfolk, NE: -24°, Lincoln, NE: -20°, Grand Island, NE: -19°, Denver, CO: -10°, Elkins, WV: -6°, Youngstown, OH: -3°, Harrisburg, PA: 5°, Baltimore, MD: 6°, Islip, NY: 9°, Bridgeport, CT: 10° and Redding, CA: 29°.  Bismarck, NDwas the cold spot in the nation with a morning low of -35°.

West Palm Beach and Miami, FL tied record highs for the date with 86° and 85° respectively.   

1990
A deep upper level low with trough brought record low temperatures to parts of the Rockies including: Great Falls, MT: -25°, Casper, WY: -24°, Sheridan, WY: -21°, Cheyenne, WY: -20°, Billings, MT: -20°and Redding, CA: 29°-Tied.

Upper level and surface high pressure off the Florida coast brought record highs from parts of Florida to North Carolina ahead of a cold front including: Fort Myers, FL: 88°, Daytona Beach, FL: 87°, Vero Beach, FL: 85°-Tied, Orlando, FL: 84°-Tied and Cape Hatteras, NC: 72°-Tied.

1991
The state of Iowa was gripped in an ice storm from through the next day. Amounts of a quarter to three-quarters of an inch of freezing rain were common with some areas receiving nearly an inch. Accidents were quite numerous. One piece of good news, the winds were light during this storm so tree and power line damage was not as severe as could have been. Still, many trees and power lines were lost.

1995
Another major snowstorm occurred in the northeast from the lower Great Lakes to New England.  New York City picked up 7 to 12 inches of snow. 

Out west, the low temperature of 32° at Las Vegas, NV ended a record streak of 367 consecutive days with temperatures not reaching the freezing mark.

1998
A severe freeze began its grips on the valleys across central California.  Freezing temperatures were recorded on each day from this date through the 30th. Both Fresno and Bakersfield recorded up to 8 consecutive mornings with lows of 28° or lower during this freeze event. Nearly $600 million in damages occurred, with the most catastrophic losses in citrus.

2001
A new world's record high sea-level pressure was set in the northwest Mongolia city of Tosontsengel, about 420 miles west of the Mongolian capital of Ulanbataar.  At 2am local time, the sea-level pressure registered 1085.6 millibars or 32.06 inHg.  

2002
On this date through the 23rd, Beijing, China experienced its longest string of snow days in 53 years at five.

2004
Lake effect snow squalls buried sections of northwestern Indiana with 26 inches falling at Michigan City and 20 inches at Westville.

2006
Vancouver, British Columbia's famous Stanley Park lost more than 1,000 trees, after a series of storms battered the West Coast with near-hurricane force winds. One fallen hemlock tree was estimated to be more than 200 years old.

2008
A strong winter storm moved northeast into the Great Plains spreading precipitation across Iowa and Northern Illinois with widespread freezing rain, sleet, and snow. Heavy snow moved into northeast Iowa and southwest Wisconsin around midnight and spread northeast through Minnesota and Wisconsin the remainder of the overnight. Snowfall totals from the storm were generally in the 6 to 10 inch range across northeast Iowa and southwest Wisconsin from the storm. 11 to 13 inches was observed in extreme southwest Wisconsin. Further north, a band of 3 to 5 inches was found along a broad corridor paralleling I-90. Little if any snow fell north of Highway 29 from Minneapolis, MN to Eau Claire WI, to Wausau. A record 10.2 inches of snow fell at Grand Rapids, MI

Surface high pressure off the Florida coast brought record high temperatures ahead of a cold front across parts of the south including: Montgomery, AL: 79°-Tied, Savannah, GA: 78°-Tied, Meridian, MS: 77°, Nashville, TN: 73°-Tied, Louisville, KY: 69°, Jackson, KY: 68° and Bristol, TN: 65°-Tied.
 

2009
The first of four snowstorms of the '09-'10 season blasted the Mid-Atlantic states. On the cusp of the winter solstice, a major winter storm dropped 22.5 inches at Philadelphia, PA, 17 inches at Wilmington, DE, 17 inches at Baltimore-Washington International Airport, 16 inches at Dulles Airport, 15 inches at Reagan National Airport outside Washington and 11.4 inches at Atlantic City, NJ, the greatest single-day snowfall ever recorded in all these locations for December. A snowball fight in Washington prompts a DC police officer to pull out his gun, according to the Washington Post. A group of people throwing snowballs, aimed one at a passing Hummer driven by an off-duty police detective.

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December 20th:

1836
A cold wave accompanied by 70 mph winds dropped temperatures from the 40's to near 0° in matter of hours on the Illinois frontier. Many settlers froze to death. Folklore tells of chickens frozen in their tracks and men frozen to saddles, while the streams reportedly froze with ice from six inches to a foot in a few hours.

1942
An early cold wave struck areas from the Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic to New England.   Syracuse, NY set a December record low with -26°. 

Locations reporting daily record lows included: Burlington, VT: -23°, Albany, NY: -17°, Milton, MA: -16°, Concord, NH: -16°, Rochester, NY: -16°, Worcester, MA: -15°, Portland, ME: -15°, Alpena, MI: -15°, Ste. St. Marie, MI: -14°, Mt. Pocono, PA: -12°, Boston, MA: -11°: Tied, Hartford, CT: -10°, Providence, RI: -10°, Avoca, PA: -10° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Elkins, WV: -8°, Buffalo, NY: -7°, New York (Central Park), NY: -4°, Nantucket, MA: -3°, Grand Rapids, MI: -2°, Allentown, PA: -2°, Charleston, WV: -2°, Newark, NJ: -1°, Trenton, NJ: -1°, Reading, PA: 0°, Detroit, MI: 0°-Tied, Philadelphia, PA: 1°-Tied, Wilmington, DE: 2°, Richmond, VA: 2° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Harrisburg, PA: 3°, Erie, PA: 4°, Baltimore, MD: 6° and Norfolk, VA: 16°.

1977
A “Once in a Lifetime” wind and dust storm struck the south end of the San Joaquin Valley in California. Winds reached 88 mph at Arvin before the anemometer broke and gusts were estimated at 192 mph at Arvin by a U.S. Geological Survey. Meadows Field in Bakersfield recorded sustained 46 mph winds with a gust of 63 mph. The strong winds generated a wall of dust resembling a tidal wave that was 5,000 feet high over Arvin. Blowing sand stripped painted surfaces to bare metal and trapped people in vehicles for several hours. 70% of homes received structural damage in Arvin, Edison and East Bakersfield. 120,000 Kern County customers lost power. Agriculture was impacted as 25 million tons of soil was loosened from grazing lands. Five people died and damages totaled $34 million dollars.

Very strong Santa Ana winds gusted to 90 mph in the mountains of San Diego County. Some brush fires were fanned. Widespread crop damage was suffered in northern San Diego County to avocados, strawberries and others. Numerous trees and power poles were knocked down. In Ramona entire barns were destroyed. Two people lost their lives.

1978
The temperature in Sioux Falls, SD never made it up to 32°. While that in itself is not unusual, the fact that Sioux Falls didn't reach 32° again until 2/21/1979 is unusual, a period of 60 straight days.

1983
An extreme bitterly cold air mass continued across much of the U.S. The temperature remained below zero at Denver, CO for 115 consecutive hours; their longest sub-zero period on record. 

Locations reporting record low temperatures for the date included: International Falls, MN: -40°, Bozeman, MT: -36°, St. Cloud, MN: -35°, Duluth, MN: -34°, Casper, WY: -32°, Marquette, MI: -28°, Rochester, MN: -26°, Great Falls, MT: -25°, Cheyenne, WY: -25°, La Crosse, WI: -24°, Scottsbluff, NE: -23°: Tied, Waterloo, IA: -20°, Rapid City, SD: -20°, Omaha, NE: -18°, Kansas City, MO: -17° (broke previous record by 10 degrees), Denver, CO: -16°, Topeka, KS: -16°, Dubuque, IA: -14°: Tied, Colorado Springs, CO: -13°, Pocatello, ID: -12°, Concordia, KS: -12°, Muskegon, MI: -8°, Wichita, KS: -7°, Buffalo, NY: -7°: Tied, Boise, ID: -6°, Spokane, WA: -6°, Grand Rapids, MI: -3°, Lewiston, ID: 0°, New York (Kennedy Airport), NY: 16°-Tied and Astoria, OR: 22°-Tied.

1984
Lili, a rare December hurricane, was officially declared a tropical system in the central Atlantic as a well-defined eye type feature was apparent on satellite imagery. The hurricane peaked at sustained 80 mph winds and a pressure of 980 millibars or 28.94 inHg, very respectable for a December hurricane.

1986
An "Alberta Clipper" developed explosively just south of New England and blasted the region with high winds, torrential rain, and heavy snow. Up to 4 inches of rain fell across southern New England and winds frequently gusted to 60 and 70 mph. 30 inches of snow fell in southern Vermont, 24 inches in the higher elevations of western Massachusetts, and 20 inches in parts of New Hampshire.

1988
Strong southerly winds ahead of a cold front in the central U.S. gusted to 70 mph at Indianapolis, IN. The high winds toppled a masonry wall killing a construction worker.

Low pressure and a trailing cold front brought rain and snow and high winds to the western U.S. Winds gusted to 90 mph at the Callahan Ranch south of Reno, NV. Soda Springs, in the Sierra Nevada Range of California, received 17 inches of snow in less than 24 hours.

1989
Brutal northwest winds ushered bitter cold arctic air into the north central U.S. International Falls and Warroad, MN tied for the cold spot in the nation with morning lows of -34°. Minot, ND reported a wind chill reading of -81°. Locations reporting record low temperatures for the date included: Green Bay, WI: -15°: Tied, Springfield, IL: -14°, Peoria, IL: -12°, Paducah, KY: 4°-Tied, Wallops Island, VA: 7°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 9°, San Angelo, TX: 17°and Redding, CA: 29°.

Squalls produced more heavy snow in the Great Lakes Region. Erie, PA received 21 inches of snow, including 4 inches in one hour, to bring their total snow cover to 39 inches, an all-time record for that location.

1990
Areas from the Plains to the West Coast were under the influence of a dangerously cold arctic air mass. Strong northern winds produced wind chill temperatures of -45° to -55°.  Locations reporting record low temperatures for the date included: Wisdom, MT: -39°, Casper, WY: -36°, Chinook, MT: -31°, Boulder, MT: -30°, White Sulphur Springs, MT: -30°, Cut Bank, MT: -29°, Fort Assiniboine, MT: -29°, Lewistown, MT: -28°, Great Falls, MT: -28°, Stanford, MT: -27°, Conrad, MT: -26°, Helena, MT: -25°, Sheridan, WY: -25°, Virginia City, MT: -25°, Livingston, MT: -24°, Billings, MT: -22°, Valentine, MT: -21°, Ely, NV: -20°, Winnemucca, NV: -19°, Denver, CO: -16°: Tied, Pocatello, ID: -13°, Pendleton, OR: -12°, Boise, ID: -8°, Salt Lake City, UT: -7°, Olympia, WA: 4°, Medford, OR: 8°, Astoria, OR: 9° (broke record by 13 degrees), Salem, OR: 9°, Seattle, WA: 14°, Quillayute, WA: 18°, Redding, CA: 22°and Sacramento, CA: 23°.

Snow fell at Santa Maria, CA for the first time since records were kept.

1996
Many locations reported record low temperatures for the date including: Greensboro, NC: 13°-Tied, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 13°-Tied, Shreveport, LA: 16°, Baton Rouge, LA: 18°, Lake Charles, LA: 21°, Houston, TX: 21°, Del Rio, TX: 23°-Tied and New Orleans, LA: 25°.

During the day, record cold afternoon highs occurred across the state of Florida. No reporting stations made it to 60, an unusual occurrence. Locations reporting record low maximums for the date included: Gainesville: 40°, Jacksonville: 40°, Tampa: 44°, Daytona Beach: 45°, Orlando: 46°, West Palm Beach: 55° and Key West: 58°.

1997
Waco, TX recorded 7.98 inches of rain in 24 hours, the city's all-time 24 hour rainfall record.

1998
Snow showers fall on the central San Joaquin Valley during the late evening, whitening lawns in the Fresno-Clovis metropolitan area. This is the last time on record that measurable snow has fallen in Fresno with a half inch measured at Fresno Yosemite International Airport by the Air National Guard.

Locations from the Rockies to the West Coast reporting record low temperatures for the date included: Butte, MT: -36°, Del Bonita, MT: -29°, Missoula, MT: -20°, Quillayute, WA: 18°-Tied, Eureka, CA: 27° and Santa Maria, CA: 27°-Tied.

2005
Heavy snowfall in December reached near record levels in parts of Japan. In the western prefecture of Fukui, more than 78 inches accumulated. Snow-related power outages hit 650,000 homes and businesses in the northern prefecture of Niigata. On the 25th, an express train derails in northern Japan due to the snow. Six fatalities are blamed on the severe winter weather.

2006
A powerful low pressure system over southeast Colorado produced a major blizzard across much of the region. Snowfall totals generally ranged from one to two and a half feet. Heavy snow combined with winds gusting from 40 to 55 mph produced whiteout conditions and drifts from 5 to 12 feet. Denver International Airport was closed for 45 consecutive hours. This was the longest closure in the hubs 12 year history.  Nearly 2,000 flights were canceled and 5,000 travelers stranded. Cheyenne, WY recorded their all-time greatest daily snowfall for December with 12.5 inches while a report of 23 inches was received from near Chugwater. Colorado snowfall totals included: Conifer: 42 inches, Evergreen: 40 inches, Aspen Springs: 39 inches, 10 miles southeast of Buckley Air Force Base: 34 inches, Nederland: 33 inches, Littleton: 32 inches, Intercanyon: 31 inches, Atop Buckhorn Mountain: 30.5 inches, Thornton & Castle Rock: 30 inches, Parker: 29.5 inches, Rollinsville: 29 inches, Wheat Ridge: 28 inches, Centennial Airport: 25.5 inches, Niwot: 25 inches, Aurora: 24 inches, Greenwood Village: 22.5 inches, Atop Crow Hill: 22.4 inches, Arvada: 22 inches, Lakewood: 21.5 inches, Denver International Airport: 20.7 inches, Longmont & Georgetown: 20 inches,  and 15.7 inches at Boulder.  Essentially all roads were closed over the area and more than 20 tractor-trailer trucks were stranded along Interstate 80 in the Nebraska panhandle. Sadly, one life was lost due to the storm. In Denver, snow cover of an inch or more from this and subsequent storms persisted for 61 consecutive days through 2/19/2007, the second longest period of snow cover on record for the city.

Severe Cyclone Bondo, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, approached the northern Madagascar coast with sustained winds of 160 mph.

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