PHOTO BY MINDY FINZEN/RURAL TRAER

IOWA – After counting their blessings as part of the Thanksgiving holiday, folks across the Upper Midwest were also counting inches upon inches of snow as a prolonged winter storm moved through beginning Friday. When all was said and done, well over a foot of snow was deposited in the Tama-Grundy area.

Snow in the counties of Tama and Grundy began falling late Friday evening and persisted for nearly 24 hours. The snow was light to moderate with cold winds initially coming out of the east before reversing later in the weekend. Local air temperatures around noon Saturday were in the low 30s but, due to the winds, felt more like 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

By 8 a.m. Saturday morning, nearly half a foot of snow had already fallen in the Traer-Clutier areas, according to local reports. The northern half of Tama County and all of Grundy County received some of the highest concentrations of snowfall in the Midwest during the storm with totals ranging from 12 to 15 inches. The official snowfall total for the Nov. 28-29, 2025, storm at the Waterloo Airport stands at 14 1/2 inches. The newspaper’s weather correspondent, Randy Cooper, reported 13 1/2 inches in the Toledo area. Jesup in Buchanan County topped the snowfall list in Iowa with a reported 14.8 inches.

By Sunday morning, roads across Iowa were partially or completely covered with snow or ice. According to the Iowa State Patrol (ISP), during the bulk of the storm (noon on Friday, Nov. 28, to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 29), ISP received 670 calls for service, including 182 total crashes (covered) that resulted in 164 with property damage and 18 with personal injury (no fatalities).

In Tama County, deputies with the Sheriff’s Office responded to a total of 47 motorist assist calls (motorists who ended up stuck or went into the ditch) between Nov. 28 and Nov. 30. The bulk of the calls were received beginning around noon on Saturday (Nov. 29) through the early morning hours of Sunday (Nov. 30).

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE TAMA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE/FACEBOOK

The storm led to countless cancellations over the weekend, including Saturday’s Belle Plaine Girls Wrestling Tournament where North Tama had been scheduled to compete. Most banks, churches, and businesses closed across the area, including Harper’s Public House in downtown Dysart which wrote on social media Saturday, “Well, now that we have been out a little more…we have decided that we will now close at 3 p.m. today. Between people getting stuck in the streets and us having to gun it to get through drifts IN TOWN, we want to get everyone home and in their houses before it gets dark! Thank you to everyone who has come in the last few days, the numbers were small, but you are appreciated!”

Up the street from Harper’s, KE Black Mercantile was also able to open for Small Business Saturday before later electing to close, posting to social media: “It’s still coming down out there so we are closing up shop! Thank you to all that braved the weather today! We appreciate everyone for their continued support of our little shop!”

Marshall County Emergency Management Coordinator Kim Elder told the Times-Republican newspaper that those who must travel during inclement weather should “tell someone your plan and your route,” check in again upon arrival, and carry a winter car kit. She recommended people use the American Red Cross list to put a car kit together, including: food and water; cell phone adapter and charger; first-aid kit; blanket; winter wear including gloves, hat and extra layers of clothing; hand warmers; booster cables; windshield brush and scraper; sand or cat litter to help provide traction for tires; flashlight with extra batteries; and multi-purpose tool.

As pretty as the snowfall was, it proved irksome to some (many?), including those trying to fly out of Des Moines Sunday morning but were faced with a closed airport due to a plane sliding off the runway late Saturday night.

For those who track the weather, the post-Thanksgiving storm behaved much as predicted – bountiful and widespread, like a traditional turkey day feast – and, per the National Weather Service, will likely go down as one of the highest snowfall events for any year for the month of November in Iowa.

PHOTO BY MINDY FINZEN/RURAL TRAER

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE TAMA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE/FACEBOOK

PHOTO BY BEN AND HOLLY ROBERTSON/RURAL REINBECK

PHOTO BY MINDY FINZEN/RURAL TRAER