High Wind, Somerset
- When
- February 24, 10:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Somerset forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 40.564, -74.616 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Wind in New Jersey, February 24, 1996
The difference in surface pressure between an intensifying low pressure system over northern New England and a high pressure system over the Tennessee Valley produced high winds across parts of Central New Jersey on the 24th. What was unusual about this high wind event, the day featured considerable sunshine and unseasonably warm temperatures.
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
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.
The difference in surface pressure between an intensifying low pressure system over northern New England and a high pressure system over the Tennessee Valley produced high winds across parts of Central New Jersey on the 24th. What was unusual about this high wind event, the day featured considerable sunshine and unseasonably warm temperatures. Downed trees and power lines caused power outages to about 1,500 Public Service Electric and Gas Customers in Somerset and Middlesex Counties. Downed trees forced the closure of Mountainview Road in Warren Township (Somerset County) for most of the afternoon. Downed wires sparked a small brush fire in Bedminister. In Middlesex County, East Brunswick suffered the most tree damage.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, Middlesex
- When
- February 24, 10:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 40.440, -74.409 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Wildfire in Kansas, February 24, 1996
- High Wind in New York, February 24 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in New York, February 24 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in Maryland, February 24, 1996
- High Wind in Vermont, February 24 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in Massachusetts, February 24 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in Connecticut, February 24 to 25, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wyoming, February 24 to 25, 1996
- Winter Storm in Montana, February 24 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in Pennsylvania, February 24, 1996
- High Wind in Pennsylvania, February 24, 1996
- Heavy Snow in New York, February 24 to 25, 1996
More
Every storm in New Jersey in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, February 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: 5551836, 5551837.