Thunderstorm Wind, Morris
- When
- May 6, 11:50 AM EST to 12:30 PM EST
- Where
- Morris County, Schooleys Mtn to East Hanover
- Coordinates
- 40.800, -74.800
Damaging Wind in New Jersey, May 6, 1997
Severe thunderstorms produced wind damage in a number of townships across Morris County, mainly across the southern two-thirds of the county. About 4,500 homes and businesses lost power, a quarter of them occurred in the Denville and Mountain Lakes areas.
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
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS PHI wrote it up.
Severe thunderstorms produced wind damage in a number of townships across Morris County, mainly across the southern two-thirds of the county. About 4,500 homes and businesses lost power, a quarter of them occurred in the Denville and Mountain Lakes areas. Nearly 2,000 GPU customers were still without power as of 10 p.m. EDT. Numerous trees and power lines were knocked down. Over 30 trees were knocked down in East Hanover Township in the Lincoln Street area alone. In Mountain Lakes, a woman narrowly escaped serious injury when a tree fell on her vehicle and it burst into flames. A tree fell through the roof of a house in Mount Olive Township. Another tree fell on a garage and damaged the corner of a Florham Park Borough house. Other hard hit municipalities included Boonton, Randolph, Rockaway, Washington and Wharton.
The radar
The Philadelphia radar (KDIX), 100 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 16:51 UTC.
Event by event
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Damaging Wind in New Jersey, May 6, 1997
- Tornado and Hail in New Mexico, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Pennsylvania, May 6, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Nebraska, May 6 to 27, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in New York, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in New York, May 6, 1997
- Tornado and Hail in Texas, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, May 6, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Pennsylvania, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Wind in New York, May 6, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, May 6, 1997
More
Every storm in New Jersey in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, May 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: 5608946.