Heavy Snow, Crawford
- When
- December 5, 2:00 AM EST to December 7, 7:00 PM EST
- Where
- Crawford forecast zone
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Coordinates
- 41.685, -80.106 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, December 5 to 7, 1997
A prolonged period of lake effect snow began during the early morning hours on the 5th and continued through the early morning hours on the 7th. A predominantly west wind brought persistent squalls across northwest Pennsylvania.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 3 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
- $225,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 3
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 CLE wrote it up.
A prolonged period of lake effect snow began during the early morning hours on the 5th and continued through the early morning hours on the 7th. A predominantly west wind brought persistent squalls across northwest Pennsylvania. Some total storm amounts were 40 inches at Franklin Center, 36 inches in Amity Township and as much as 32 inches near the city of Erie (all in Erie County). In Crawford County, there were 15 inches in Spartansburg and 21 inches at Cambridge Springs.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Northern Erie
- When
- December 5, 2:00 AM EST to December 7, 7:00 PM EST
- Where
- Northern Erie forecast zone
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Coordinates
- 42.118, -80.098 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Southern Erie
- When
- December 5, 2:00 AM EST to December 7, 7:00 PM EST
- Where
- Southern Erie forecast zone
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Coordinates
- 42.118, -80.098 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Winter Weather in California, December 5 to 7, 1997
- Flood in Florida, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Heavy Snow in New York, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Winter Weather in Vermont, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Vermont, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in North Carolina, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Winter Weather in New York, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Winter Storm in Maine, December 5 to 7, 1997
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, December 5 to 7, 1997
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, December 5 to 6, 1997
- Winter Weather in West Virginia, December 5 to 6, 1997
More
Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, December 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: 5626530, 5626531, 5626532.