High Wind in New Hampshire, March 6, 1997

Name: High Wind in New Hampshire, March 6, 1997
Start: 1997-03-06T07:00
End: 1997-03-06T19:00
Location: New Hampshire

March 6, 1997 · NWS GYX · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Strong winds associated with a low pressure center that developed off the New England coast caused damage throughout much of southeastern New Hampshire. In Portsmouth, the wind tore a 30 by 50 ft.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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: 1
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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 GYX wrote it up.

Strong winds associated with a low pressure center that developed off the New England coast caused damage throughout much of southeastern New Hampshire. In Portsmouth, the wind tore a 30 by 50 ft. section off brick veneer of a building, causing about 1000 bricks to fall on the pavement below. In Dunbarton, an 18 inch diameter pine tree fell onto a police car, critically injuring the policeman inside. The officer was stopped guarding some wind-downed power lines across the roadway about 600 ft away. Statewide, about 18,000 customers lost electrical service during the event as trees and tree limbs fell onto power lines. At the Loon Mountain ski area near Lincoln, about 25 people had to be rescued from a ski lift, as the wind caused the lift to become derailed.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Merrimack

When: March 6, 7:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where: Merrimack forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 43.298, -71.680 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Belknap

When: March 6, 7:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where: Belknap forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 43.519, -71.423 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Strafford

When: March 6, 7:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where: Strafford forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 43.297, -71.029 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Interior Rockingham

When: March 6, 7:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where: Interior Rockingham forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 42.985, -71.089 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Coastal Rockingham

When: March 6, 7:00 AM EST to 7:00 PM EST
Where: Coastal Rockingham forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 42.985, -71.089 (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

Every storm in New Hampshire in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in New Hampshire, March 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: 5624668, 5624816, 5624817, 5624818, 5624819.