A very intense storm system tracked from the Oklahoma Panhandle to western Illinois and then to Lake Huron. This had the lowest barometric pressure (975 mb or 28.79 inches) in the Midwest since the November 10, 1998 storm that also moved through the upper Midwest. This powerful winter storm produced very heavy snowfall, blizzard conditions and bitterly cold temperatures on December 8-9, 2009. Snow amounts of at least 10 to 15 inches were common north of a Fairfield, Iowa to Sterling, Illinois line. The largest amount was an incredible 17.7 inches at Orangeville, Illinois in Stephenson county. Other amounts included 15 inches at Brighton, Iowa (Washington county), Mt. Vernon, Iowa (Linn county) and at Freeport, Illinois (Stephenson county). Snowfall was much lighter in southeast Iowa, extreme northeast Missouri and west central Illinois. Here snow accumulations were 1 to 4 inches as rain and sleet mixed with the snow. A band of freezing rain from Burlington, Iowa to Sterling, Illinois coated trees and power lines with up to 3 tenths of an inch of ice. A few locations also reported thundersnows with snowfall rates of nearly 2 inches per hour. There were scattered power outages and some tree branches down. Numerous accidents and vehicles sliding into ditches were reported across the region. Many schools and businesses were also closed. In addition, winds gusting over 50 mph produced widespread blizzard conditions across much of eastern Iowa and extreme northeast Missouri, reducing visibilities to near zero on December 9.

Winter Storm in CARROLL, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 02:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 21:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

A trained spotter at Chadwick reported 10.8 inches of snow.

Winter Storm in HANCOCK, ILLINOIS
From 07-DEC-09 22:30:00 to 09-DEC-09 18:30:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in MERCER, ILLINOIS
From 07-DEC-09 23:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 20:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in PUTNAM, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 02:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 21:15:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in MCDONOUGH, ILLINOIS
From 07-DEC-09 23:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 19:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in JO DAVIESS, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 02:30:00 to 09-DEC-09 20:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: COOP Observer

A COOP observer 3 miles north of Stockton reported a total of 13.0 inches of snow for this event.

Winter Storm in HENDERSON, ILLINOIS
From 07-DEC-09 22:45:00 to 09-DEC-09 18:30:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in HENRY, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 01:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 21:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 00:30:00 to 09-DEC-09 20:55:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

The official NWS observer near the Quad City International Airport received 8.4 inches of snow and 0.3 inch of ice accumulation.

Winter Storm in BUREAU, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 01:30:00 to 09-DEC-09 21:15:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in WARREN, ILLINOIS
From 07-DEC-09 23:00:00 to 09-DEC-09 20:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in WHITESIDE, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 01:50:00 to 09-DEC-09 21:15:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

A trained spotter at Sterling reported 8.5 inches of snow along with 0.3 inch of ice accumulation.

Winter Storm in STEPHENSON, ILLINOIS
From 08-DEC-09 03:15:00 to 09-DEC-09 20:30:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

A trained spotter reported thundersnow at Ridott at 1033 pm cst on December 8. A total of 17.7 inches of snow fell at Orangeville, while Freeport had 15.0 inches.