Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, November 16, 1989

Name: Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, November 16, 1989
Start: 1989-11-16T04:45
End: 1989-11-16T10:30
Location: Pennsylvania

November 16, 1989 · NWS PHL · 35 events in 19 counties and zones

30 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 8
Property damage: $5.3 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 35

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

30 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Cumberland

When: November 16, 4:45 AM CST
Where: Cumberland County
Coordinates: 40.220, -77.050

Thunderstorm Wind, Dauphin

When: November 16, 5:00 AM CST
Where: Dauphin County
Coordinates: 40.500, -76.950

Thunderstorm Wind, Lebanon

When: November 16, 6:15 AM CST
Where: Lebanon County
Coordinates: 40.370, -76.550

Thunderstorm Wind, Lebanon

When: November 16, 6:15 AM CST
Where: Lebanon County
Coordinates: 40.320, -76.320

Thunderstorm Wind, Clearfield

When: November 16, 6:25 AM CST
Where: Clearfield County
Coordinates: 40.900, -78.450

Thunderstorm Wind, Adams

When: November 16, 7:40 AM CST
Where: Adams County
Measured: 54 kt (62 mph)
Coordinates: 39.830, -77.430

Tornado, Chester

When: November 16, 9:24 AM EST
Where: Chester County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Coordinates: 39.950, -75.730

Thunderstorm Wind, York

When: November 16, 8:30 AM CST
Where: York County
Coordinates: 39.830, -76.620

Thunderstorm Wind, Lancaster

When: November 16, 8:45 AM CST
Where: Lancaster County
Measured: 66 kt (76 mph)
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.070, -76.300

Tornado, Montgomery

When: November 16, 9:45 AM EST
Where: Montgomery County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1.5 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Injuries: 3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 40.080, -75.380

Thunderstorm Wind, Lancaster

When: November 16, 8:50 AM CST
Where: Lancaster County
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.070, -76.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Lancaster

When: November 16, 8:50 AM CST
Where: Lancaster County
Coordinates: 39.920, -76.150

Thunderstorm Wind, Lancaster

When: November 16, 8:57 AM CST
Where: Lancaster County
Coordinates: 40.100, -76.080

Tornado, Bucks

When: November 16, 10:03 AM EST
Where: Bucks County
Rating: F0
Path length: 5 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 40.330, -75.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Berks

When: November 16, 9:15 AM CST
Where: Berks County
Coordinates: 40.450, -76.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Berks

When: November 16, 9:20 AM CST
Where: Berks County
Coordinates: 40.470, -75.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Chester

When: November 16, 9:25 AM CST
Where: Chester County
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph)
Coordinates: 40.070, -75.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Lancaster

When: November 16, 9:30 AM CST
Where: Lancaster County
Coordinates: 40.150, -75.970

Thunderstorm Wind, Lehigh

When: November 16, 9:43 AM CST
Where: Lehigh County
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph)
Coordinates: 40.620, -75.480

Thunderstorm Wind, Lackawanna

When: November 16, 9:45 AM CST
Where: Lackawanna County
Coordinates: 41.420, -75.670

Thunderstorm Wind, Northampton

When: November 16, 9:45 AM CST
Where: Northampton County
Coordinates: 40.700, -75.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Carbon

When: November 16, 9:50 AM CST
Where: Carbon County
Coordinates: 40.880, -75.530

Thunderstorm Wind, Lackawanna

When: November 16, 9:50 AM CST
Where: Lackawanna County
Coordinates: 41.370, -75.480

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: November 16, 9:50 AM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 40.900, -75.500

Thunderstorm Wind, Wayne

When: November 16, 9:50 AM CST
Where: Wayne County
Coordinates: 41.400, -75.400

Tornado, Montgomery

When: November 16, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Montgomery County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.2 mi
Path width: 50 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 40.320, -75.330

Thunderstorm Wind, Delaware

When: November 16, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Delaware County
Coordinates: 39.850, -75.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Monroe

When: November 16, 10:00 AM CST
Where: Monroe County
Coordinates: 40.980, -75.200

Thunderstorm Wind, Philadelphia

When: November 16, 10:10 AM CST
Where: Philadelphia County
Coordinates: 39.880, -75.250

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: November 16, 10:10 AM CST
Where: Montgomery County
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.250, -75.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: November 16, 10:10 AM CST
Where: Montgomery County
Coordinates: 40.120, -75.150

Tornado, Bucks

When: November 16, 10:15 AM CST
Where: Bucks County
Rating: F1
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $2.5 million
Coordinates: 40.250, -74.850

Thunderstorm Wind, Bucks

When: November 16, 10:15 AM CST
Where: Bucks County
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 40.250, -75.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Philadelphia

When: November 16, 10:20 AM CST
Where: Philadelphia County
Measured: 69 kt (79 mph)
Coordinates: 39.950, -75.170

Thunderstorm Wind, Bucks

When: November 16, 10:30 AM CST
Where: Bucks County
Coordinates: 40.120, -74.880

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1989 Every state in 1989 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Pennsylvania, 1989 Warnings in Pennsylvania, November 1989

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10116225, 10116226, 10116227, 10116228, 10116229, 10116230, 10116238, 10116231, 10116232, 10116242, 10116233, 10116234, 10116235, 10116252, 10116236, 10116237, 10116239, 10116240, 10116241, 10116243, 10116244, 10116245, 10116246, 10116247, 10116248, 10116249, 10116250, 10116251, 10116253, 10116254, 10116255, 10116256, 10116257, 10117105, 10117106.