Heavy Snow, New Castle
- When
- March 8, 1:00 AM EST to 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- New Castle forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 39.578, -75.639 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Delaware, March 8, 1996
A cold front moved through the area on the 6th. A very large arctic high pressure system centered over the high plains slowly oozed cold air into Delmarva.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS PHI wrote it up.
A cold front moved through the area on the 6th. A very large arctic high pressure system centered over the high plains slowly oozed cold air into Delmarva. At the same time a series of low pressure systems developed along the frontal boundary and were located over the Southern Appalachians the morning of the 7th and well east of the Middle Atlantic Coast on the 8th. Precipitation from the first low pressure system fell mainly as rain. Enough cold air was in place by the time the second low pressure system moved along the Western Atlantic for precipitation to fall mainly as snow. Snow began just after midnight on the 8th and ended by noon. Accumulations averaged around four inches in New Castle County, three inches in Kent County and one to three inches in Sussex County.The snow caused numerous accidents, especially in New Castle County. Between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., 41 accidents were reported. Some "fender benders" also occurred in Kent County.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Cold in North Carolina, March 8, 1996
- Cold in South Carolina, March 8, 1996
- Cold in Alabama, March 8, 1996
- Cold in Virginia, March 8 to 12, 1996
- Cold in North Carolina, March 8 to 12, 1996
- Cold in Kentucky, March 8 to 9, 1996
- Cold in West Virginia, March 8 to 12, 1996
- Heavy Snow in New Jersey, March 8, 1996
- Cold in New York, March 8 to 10, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Maryland, March 8, 1996
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, March 8, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Virginia, March 8, 1996
More
Every storm in Delaware in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Delaware, March 1996
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: 5552531.