Connecticut, 1997

Heavy Snow in Connecticut, December 23, 1997

December 23, 1997 · NWS BOX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A low pressure system developing off the Delaware coast moved to the northeast and rapidly intensified as it passed just southeast of Cape Cod. This storm brought a surprise snowfall to northern Connecticut.

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

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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 BOX wrote it up.

A low pressure system developing off the Delaware coast moved to the northeast and rapidly intensified as it passed just southeast of Cape Cod. This storm brought a surprise snowfall to northern Connecticut. Two people died in plowing accidents. In South Windsor, a woman was struck and killed by a plow in a parking lot. In Enfield, a man was killed while operating a snowplow on a tractor after being struck by a pickup truck. Several places in northern Tolland and Windham Counties had over 6 inches, while most of Hartford, Tolland, and Windham Counties had 2 to 5 inches of snow. The maximum totals reported included: Union, 7.0 inches and West Thompson, 6.2 inches.

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, Tolland

When
December 23, 9:00 AM EST to 3:00 PM EST
Where
Tolland forecast zone

Heavy Snow, Windham

When
December 23, 9:00 AM EST to 3:00 PM EST
Where
Windham forecast zone
Coordinates
41.827, -71.977 (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 Connecticut in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Connecticut, December 1997

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: 5625580, 5625581.