Drought, Burlington
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Burlington forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.878, -74.668 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought in New Jersey, December 31, 1998
As dry as July through November were, for most of New Jersey, December was even drier. 4 inches), except in Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland Counties where precipitation reached around 60 percent of the monthly normal.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 20 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
- 20
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.
As dry as July through November were, for most of New Jersey, December was even drier. On a county weighted average, every county in New Jersey had less than 1.5 inches of precipitation (.9 to 1.4 inches), except in Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland Counties where precipitation reached around 60 percent of the monthly normal. For most of the state the precipitation was around 2.5 inches below normal. The two driest counties were Hunterdon and Mercer which only received about 24 percent of their normal monthly precipitation. July through December 1998 was also the second driest six month period ever in the state of New Jersey. The average statewide precipitation total of 12.04 inches was only 52 percent of normal. The only drier six month period was November 1984 through April 1985 when a statewide average of 11.92 inches fell. Statewide precipitation records have been kept in New Jersey since 1895. December 1998 was also an unseasonably warm month and averaged between 4 and 6 degrees above normal. The monthly mean temperature of 44.1 degrees at the Marina within Atlantic City was the 5th warmest December on record. It was also the 5th warmest December on record at the nearby Lehigh Valley (37.5 degrees) and Philadelphia (42.0 degrees) International Airports. The monthly mean temperature of 39.9 degrees at the Atlantic City International Airport was the 10th warmest December on record.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
20 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Drought, Camden
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Camden forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.804, -74.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Cumberland
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Cumberland forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.328, -75.129 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Eastern Atlantic
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Atlantic forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.469, -74.634 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Eastern Cape May
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Cape May forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.085, -74.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Eastern Monmouth
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Monmouth forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Eastern Ocean
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Ocean forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.866, -74.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Gloucester
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Gloucester forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.717, -75.142 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Hunterdon
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Hunterdon forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.567, -74.912 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Mercer
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Mercer forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.283, -74.702 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Middlesex
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.440, -74.409 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Morris
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Morris forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.862, -74.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Salem
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Salem forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.577, -75.358 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Somerset
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Somerset forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.564, -74.616 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Sussex
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Sussex forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 41.140, -74.690 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Warren
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Warren forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.857, -74.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Western Atlantic
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Western Atlantic forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.469, -74.634 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Western Cape May
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Western Cape May forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.085, -74.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Western Monmouth
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Western Monmouth forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Drought, Western Ocean
- When
- December 31, 11:58 PM EST
- Where
- Western Ocean forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- 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
- Rip Current in Puerto Rico, December 31, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, December 31, 1998
- Heavy Snow in New York, December 31, 1998
- Heat in New Jersey, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Pennsylvania, December 31, 1998
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 31, 1998
- Winter Storm in Utah, December 31, 1998
- High Surf in Hawaii, December 31, 1998
- Lake-Effect Snow in Michigan, December 31, 1998
- Heat in Pennsylvania, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Maryland, December 31, 1998
- Drought in Delaware, December 31, 1998
More
Every storm in New Jersey in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, December 1998
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: 5673769, 5673770, 5673771, 5673772, 5673773, 5673774, 5673775, 5673776, 5673777, 5673778, 5673779, 5673780, 5673781, 5673903, 5673904, 5673905, 5673906, 5673907, 5673908, 5673909.