Winter Storm in Pennsylvania, January 8, 1999

This winter storm was very similar to the preceding storm of the 2nd, producing a progressive mixture of snow, sleet, and freezing rain. Although the weather system that produced this storm was not as powerful as the one on the 2nd that covered the entire upper midwest, large amounts of moisture were available from the deep south as low pressure moved northeast up the Tennessee Valley into Ohio. Water equivalents of melted precipitation were in excess of one inch in many locations. Snowfall was the greatest across the southern tier counties from Somerset east through Chambersburg to York and Lancaster. Heaviest amounts included 7 inches on Mt. Davis and Laurel Summit, and 6 inches in Meyersdale, Mercersburg, and Shippensburg. Up to 5 inches fell in Huntingdon and Gettysburg, with 4 inches in Hershey, Lancaster, and New Holland. Further north, snowfall was a bit less as precipitation turned to sleet and freezing rain. Freezing rain formed a glaze across the central and northern mountains late on the evening of the 8th or early morning of the 9th, forming a hard crust on the snow pack and making walking or driving treacherous. Road crews spread huge amounts of road salt to control ice buildup, but the ice caused little damage to trees or powerlines. In the Harrisburg area alone, police estimated they had handled 40 to 50 accidents on or near the Capital Beltway on I-81, I-83, and Route 581. Many schools closed or released students early in the afternoon of the 8th and many events were canceled that Friday evening.