Winter Storm and Damaging Winds in Virginia, March 3 to 4, 1999

A low pressure system moved from West Virginia to Pennsylvania on the evening of the 3rd. This system produced sustained winds of 25 to 40 mph from the afternoon of the 3rd through the morning of the 4th. A cold front associated with the system moved through during the early evening and produced a line of thunderstorms that brought heavy rain, small hail, and wind gusts in excess of 55 mph. In Shenandoah County, downed trees and power lines were reported across the county. 1,375 customers reported power outages. A roof was blown off an outbuilding in Fairview near Woodstock, and the top of an automated teller machine at the Strasburg Shopping Center was also blown off. Frederick County reported substantial damage to a large wall at the Rubbermaid Commercial Products Receiving Warehouse in Winchester. The wind also levelled several trees and signs. 6,000 customers reported power outages. The peak gust at the Winchester Airport was 42 mph. Greene County reported trees down across the county and downed electric poles near Eheart. Albemarle County reported power outages and small creeks and streams reaching bankful around 6:00 pm. Rappahannock County also reported trees down. Prince William County reported the windshield of a vehicle on Interstate 66 was blown out by high wind. In Dale City, several pine trees were also downed. After the cold front passed, temperatures dropped rapidly and rain turned to snow across Northern Virginia. Most locations received an inch or less of snow overnight, however Frederick County received 2 to 5 inches and a location on the Clark and Loudoun County line received 3 inches.