How Unusual Is This Ice Storm?

Trevor Alcott provided me with an analysis of hourly surface observations from the Salt Lake City International Airport that help illustrate the unusual nature of our ice storm:

• Since 1940, there have been only 9 measurable freezing rain events (0.01 inches or greater) at the Salt Lake City International Airport
• None of those events occurred with temperatures lower than 26ºF.  Today's began at 20ºF.  
• The latest accumulation (0.08 inches as of 11 am) is the largest freezing rain accumulation since 31 Dec 1983. 
• There are only three events that top this one in terms of freezing rain accumulation:
• 0.13 inches that fell at 32ºF on 9 Feb 1976
• 0.16 inches that fell at 29–32ºF from 26–27 Dec 1983
• 0.21 inches that fell at 30–32ºF from 30–31 Dec 1983 (.11" of this fell as heavy sleet)

So, it appears this is the coldest measurable freezing rain event in the period of record and it is the fourth largest (so far) in terms of accumulation.