Maryland, 1996

Heavy Snow in Maryland, March 8, 1996

March 8, 1996 · NWS PHI · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

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; 2 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 fell mainly as rain. Enough cold air was in place by the time the second low moved along the Western Atlantic for precipitation to fall as snow. Snow began just after midnight on the 8th and ended by noon. Accumulations averaged four to five inches in Cecil County, four inches in Kent County and two to three inches across the rest of the Eastern Shore.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Cecil

When
March 8, 1:00 AM EST to 11:00 AM EST
Where
Cecil forecast zone
Coordinates
39.562, -75.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Kent

When
March 8, 1:00 AM EST to 11:00 AM EST
Where
Kent forecast zone
Coordinates
39.236, -76.096 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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

More

Every storm in Maryland in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Maryland, 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5552529, 5552530.