New Hampshire, 1997

Damaging Wind in New Hampshire, February 22, 1997

February 22, 1997 · NWS BOX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 thunderstorm wind, 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
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.

The radar

The Boston radar (KBOX), 116 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:57 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Hillsborough

When
February 22, 3:00 PM EST to 3:15 PM EST
Where
Hillsborough County, Lyndeborough to Pelham
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
42.900, -71.750

A rare outbreak of out-of-season thunderstorms occurred after temperatures reached the mid to upper 60s and approached record high readings for February. A line of thunderstorms, some severe, moved through the county. In Pelham, trees and wires were knocked down and a few roads were blocked by debris. Witnesses reported that the wind sounded like a "freight train." Trees also were reported blown down in other towns, including: Greenfield, Milford, Wilton, Amherst, Mount Vernon, and Lyndeborough. Up to 6,500 electric customers lost power statwide.

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New Hampshire in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in New Hampshire, February 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: 5592138.