Pennsylvania, 1999

Drought in Pennsylvania, February 1 to 28, 1999

February 1 to 28, 1999 · NWS PHI · 10 events in 10 counties and zones

The combination of an extremely wet January and melting snow and ice in the headwater region permitted the Delaware River Basin Commission to lift its drought warning on February 2nd. More precipitation though was needed to overcome the long-term shortages especially with respect to ground water supplies.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
10

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.

The combination of an extremely wet January and melting snow and ice in the headwater region permitted the Delaware River Basin Commission to lift its drought warning on February 2nd. More precipitation though was needed to overcome the long-term shortages especially with respect to ground water supplies. Thus the Pennsylvania State Department of Environmental Protection's drought warning remained in effect through February. On a county weighted average, February 1999 monthly precipitation across Eastern Pennsylvania was a few tenths of an inch below normal (around 90% of normal). The only exception was Carbon County where the county average monthly precipitation total of 1.9 inches was 68 percent (or .9 of an inch below) of normal.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

10 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Berks

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Berks forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Bucks

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Bucks forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

Drought, Carbon

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Carbon forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
40.918, -75.709 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Chester

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Chester forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

Drought, Delaware

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Delaware forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
39.917, -75.399 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Lehigh

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Lehigh forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
40.613, -75.592 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Monroe

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Monroe forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
41.058, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Montgomery

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Montgomery forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

Drought, Northampton

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Northampton forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
40.754, -75.307 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Philadelphia

When
February 1, 12:00 AM EST to February 28, 11:59 PM EST
Where
Philadelphia forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates
40.008, -75.134 (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

More

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, February 1999

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: 5683261, 5683262, 5683263, 5683264, 5683265, 5683266, 5683267, 5683268, 5683269, 5683270.