Cold/Wind Chill, Northern Oneida
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Northern Oneida forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.242, -75.436 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold in New York, January 17 to 18, 1997
A bitterly cold arctic air mass invaded central New York and northeast Pennsylvania during the evening hours of the 16th and remained over the area through the 18th. Air temperatures dropped to near zero degrees over much of the region by early morning of the 17th.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 18 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 18
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 BGM wrote it up.
A bitterly cold arctic air mass invaded central New York and northeast Pennsylvania during the evening hours of the 16th and remained over the area through the 18th. Air temperatures dropped to near zero degrees over much of the region by early morning of the 17th. During the day, readings only managed to reach the single digits and lower teens. That night, temperatures from 5 to 15 below zero were observed in many areas. In some of the remote colder valleys in Oneida county, 25 to 30 below zero temperatures were seen. Perhaps the biggest problem, though, was the strong winds accompanying this cold snap. Wind chills of 35 to 55 below zero were common over central New York and the northern tier of Pennsylvania on the morning of the 17th. This prompted many school districts to cancel classes that day.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
18 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.
Cold/Wind Chill, Yates
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Yates forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.633, -77.105 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Seneca
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Seneca forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.781, -76.824 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Cayuga
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Southern Cayuga forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.010, -76.574 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Onondaga
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Onondaga forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.006, -76.195 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Steuben
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Steuben forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.268, -77.384 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Schuyler
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Schuyler forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.394, -76.875 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Chemung
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Chemung forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.141, -76.760 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Tompkins
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Tompkins forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.452, -76.474 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Madison
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Madison forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.913, -75.670 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Oneida
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Southern Oneida forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.242, -75.436 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Cortland
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Cortland forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.595, -76.070 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Chenango
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Chenango forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.494, -75.612 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Otsego
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Otsego forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.634, -75.033 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Tioga
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Tioga forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.170, -76.306 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Broome
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Broome forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.160, -75.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Delaware
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Delaware forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.198, -74.966 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Cold/Wind Chill, Sullivan
- When
- January 17, 4:00 AM EST to January 18, 12:00 PM EST
- Where
- Sullivan forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 41.716, -74.768 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Cold/Wind Chill
- Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Cold in Pennsylvania, January 17 to 20, 1997
- Cold in Michigan, January 17 to 19, 1997
- Cold in Wisconsin, January 17, 1997
- Ice Storm in Oregon, January 17 to 19, 1997
- Cold in Iowa, January 17 to 19, 1997
- Cold in New Jersey, January 17 to 20, 1997
- Cold in Illinois, January 17 to 19, 1997
- Cold in Vermont, January 17, 1997
- Cold in New York, January 17, 1997
- Cold in Pennsylvania, January 17 to 18, 1997
- High Wind in Wyoming, January 17 to 18, 1997
- Cold in Maryland, January 17 to 20, 1997
More
Every storm in New York in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, January 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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5590434, 5590435, 5590436, 5590437, 5590438, 5590439, 5590440, 5590441, 5590442, 5590443, 5590444, 5590445, 5590638, 5590639, 5590640, 5590641, 5590642, 5590643.