Pennsylvania, 1997

Heat in Pennsylvania, January 3 to 5, 1997

January 3 to 5, 1997 · NWS PHI · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

A persistent west to southwest flow throughout the start of 1997 led to unseasonably warm weather from the 3rd through the 5th across Southeast Pennsylvania. The warmest days were the 3rd and the 5th.

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
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
8

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.

A persistent west to southwest flow throughout the start of 1997 led to unseasonably warm weather from the 3rd through the 5th across Southeast Pennsylvania. The warmest days were the 3rd and the 5th. A weak backdoor cold front brought mostly cloudy skies and slightly cooler temperatures on the 4th. A record breaking high of 63 degrees was set at the Lehigh Valley International Airport on the 3rd and a record breaking high temperature of 66 degrees was set at the Philadelphia International Airport on the 5th. Other high temperatures through this period included 66 degrees at Neshaminy Falls, 65 degrees at Reading and 64 degrees at the Willow Grove NAS (All occurred on the 3rd.).

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 heat. Local standard time, as filed.

Heat, Berks

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Berks forecast zone
Coordinates
40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heat, Bucks

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Bucks forecast zone

Heat, Chester

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Chester forecast zone

Heat, Delaware

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Delaware forecast zone
Coordinates
39.917, -75.399 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heat, Lehigh

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Lehigh forecast zone
Coordinates
40.613, -75.592 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heat, Montgomery

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Montgomery forecast zone

Heat, Northampton

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Northampton forecast zone
Coordinates
40.754, -75.307 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heat, Philadelphia

When
January 3, 10:00 AM EST to January 5, 11:00 PM EST
Where
Philadelphia forecast zone
Coordinates
40.008, -75.134 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heat
Heat below excessive heat criteria that still caused deaths, injuries or significant impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, 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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5596055, 5596056, 5596057, 5596058, 5596222, 5596223, 5596224, 5596225.