Heavy Rain, Berks
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Berks County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain in Pennsylvania, September 11, 1997
Showers and thunderstorms with heavy rain caused some urban and poor drainage flooding from northern sections of Chester, Montgomery and Bucks Counties northward through Berks County, the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos. Storm totals averaged between 2 and 5 inches.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 7 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
- 7
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.
Showers and thunderstorms with heavy rain caused some urban and poor drainage flooding from northern sections of Chester, Montgomery and Bucks Counties northward through Berks County, the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos. Storm totals averaged between 2 and 5 inches. The heaviest rain fell in Monroe County and storm totals were progressively lighter toward Allentown and Philadelphia. The heavy rain fell in two bursts: during the morning commute hours and again during the mid afternoon. Storm totals included 5.07 inches in Saylorsburg (Monroe County), 4.94 inches in Stroudsburg (Monroe County), 4.26 inches in East Stroudsburg (Monroe County), 3.95 inches in Tobyhanna (Monroe County), 3.02 inches at the Lehigh Valley International Airport, 2.91 inches in Springtown (Bucks County), 2.47 inches in Reading (Berks County), 2.43 inches at the Easton Bridge (Northampton County), 2.25 inches in Green Lane (Montgomery County), 2.15 inches in Doylestown (Bucks County) and 2.04 inches in Glenmoore (Chester County). While the heavy rain swelled streams and creeks throughout the area, no major river related flooding was reported. But the heavy rain did cause some poor drainage flooding and forced officials to close some roadways in Northampton and Lehigh Counties. Within Northampton County, Tatamy, Forks and Palmer Townships were hit the hardest with several roads flooded. In Palmer Township, two cars had to be towed from a flooded roadway. Another from the Easton High School parking lot. Road flooding was also reported in Bethlehem and Lower Saucon Townships. Industrial Drive was closed due to flooding in Bethlehem. In Quakertown (Bucks County), an elderly couple's vehicle stalled on a flooded roadway and was towed. The heavy rain also loosened the ground and a couple of trees in the Lehigh Valley fell over. One tree damaged a porch in Easton, another fell across Church Lane in Forks Township. The frequent lightning from the thunderstorms also caused scattered power outages throughout the Lehigh Valley. About 14,000 homes and businesses lost power on the 11th.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
7 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Rain, Bucks
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Bucks County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 40.337, -75.107 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain, Chester
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Chester County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 39.973, -75.748 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain, Lehigh
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Lehigh County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 40.613, -75.592 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain, Monroe
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Monroe County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 41.058, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain, Montgomery
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Montgomery County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 40.211, -75.367 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Rain, Northampton
- When
- September 11, 3:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
- Where
- Northampton County, Countywide
- Coordinates
- 40.754, -75.307 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Heavy Rain
- Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Hail in North Carolina, September 11, 1997
- Tornado and Heavy Rain in New Jersey, September 11, 1997
- Hurricane in Guam, September 11 to 12, 1997
- Flash Flood in Idaho, September 11, 1997
- Flash Flood and Flood in Utah, September 11, 1997
- Heavy Rain in New Jersey, September 11, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Florida, September 11, 1997
- Flash Flooding and Damaging Winds in Texas, September 11 to 23, 1997
- Flash Flood and Hail in Arizona, September 11, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Wind in Virginia, September 11, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Wind in South Carolina, September 11, 1997
- Damaging Wind and Heavy Rain in New York, September 11, 1997
More
Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, September 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: 5620196, 5620197, 5620198, 5620199, 5620200, 5620201, 5620202.