New Jersey, 1997

Drought in New Jersey, October 31, 1997

October 31, 1997 · NWS PHI · 13 events in 13 counties and zones

Unseasonably dry weather with below normal rainfall, which became worse during the summer months, forced the Delaware River Basin Commission to declare a drought warning on October 27th. The commission urged the 7 million residents within the basin's 13,539 square mile area to voluntarily conserve water.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 13 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
13

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.

Unseasonably dry weather with below normal rainfall, which became worse during the summer months, forced the Delaware River Basin Commission to declare a drought warning on October 27th. The commission urged the 7 million residents within the basin's 13,539 square mile area to voluntarily conserve water. Water levels in the New York City Reservoirs, which are in the headwaters of the Delaware River, fell below 40 percent of capacity in late October. Also, the salt line in the Delaware River, was located near Bridgeport in Gloucester County, approximately four miles farther north than it should have been for late October. The yearly precipitation totals on a county weighted average were below normal in all of New Jersey except for Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland Counties. Precipitation deficits through October 31st averaged around 5 inches in the other counties. The greatest deficits were in Salem (-7.2 inches), Morris (-7.1 inches) and Somerset (-6.0 inches) Counties. In the latter three counties, this was about 80 percent of the normal precipitation. Because a large number of New Jersey farms have irrigation capabilities, agricultural losses from the drought were not as severe as they were in Maryland and Pennsylvania.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

13 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Burlington

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Burlington forecast zone
Coordinates
39.878, -74.668 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Camden

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Camden forecast zone
Coordinates
39.804, -74.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Gloucester

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Gloucester forecast zone
Coordinates
39.717, -75.142 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Hunterdon

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Hunterdon forecast zone
Coordinates
40.567, -74.912 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Mercer

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Mercer forecast zone
Coordinates
40.283, -74.702 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Middlesex

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Middlesex forecast zone
Coordinates
40.440, -74.409 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Morris

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Morris forecast zone
Coordinates
40.862, -74.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Salem

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Salem forecast zone
Coordinates
39.577, -75.358 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Somerset

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Somerset forecast zone
Coordinates
40.564, -74.616 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Sussex

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Sussex forecast zone
Coordinates
41.140, -74.690 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Warren

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Warren forecast zone
Coordinates
40.857, -74.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Western Monmouth

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Western Monmouth forecast zone
Coordinates
40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Western Ocean

When
October 31, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Western Ocean forecast zone
Coordinates
39.866, -74.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought
A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in New Jersey in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, October 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5619755, 5619756, 5619757, 5619758, 5619759, 5619760, 5619761, 5619762, 5619763, 5619764, 5619765, 5619766, 5620870.