Heavy Snow, Cumberland
- When
- December 30, 3:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Cumberland forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.328, -75.129 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in New Jersey, December 30, 2000
The first widespread major snowstorm of the season blanketed New Jersey, especially the northern half, with heavy snow. In the northern half of the state, it was the heaviest snow since the Blizzard of 1996.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 19 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
- 19
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 first widespread major snowstorm of the season blanketed New Jersey, especially the northern half, with heavy snow. In the northern half of the state, it was the heaviest snow since the Blizzard of 1996. The snow began between 3 and 5 a.m. EST across most of the state and fell heavy at times during the morning. As the low intensified during the afternoon, its heavy snow shield expanded and slowed. The low was too far north during the afternoon to drop heavy snow across the southern half of the state, but the snow fell even heavier across the northern half. Snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour were occurring across the Raritan Basin and this increased to 4 inches per hour during thunderstorms in Sussex and Morris Counties. Accumulations across the southern half of the state were mainly between 4 and 12 inches. But in the northern half, they ranged from about a foot to 30 inches in the Hamburg Mountains of Sussex County. The 15 inches of snow that accumulated in New Brunswick was the 10th heaviest snow on record. Amtrak canceled its Metroliner Service between Washington D.C. and New York City. New Jersey Transit canceled bus service in the northern half of the state. New Jersey Transit had about 20 minute rail delays on their line. Businesses and malls either closed early, or never opened, especially in the northern half of the state. The number of accidents were relatively low given this snow occurred on a Saturday morning. Most of the injuries occurred from heart attacks caused by shoveling the heavy snow, snow blower accidents and slip and fall accidents. The snow was powdery and nature. Thus few tree limbs and wires were pulled down. GPU Energy reported only 5,500 customers lost power in Northwest and Central New Jersey.In Sussex County, a countywide state of emergency was declared at 3 p.m. EST. Cars and even plows were sliding off the roads. In Morris County, a Parsippany Police Officer was struck and injured by a moving vehicle. A jackknifed tractor trailer caused lane closures on Interstate 80 in Denville. In Somerset County, the heavy snow forced the closure of a few roads. In Middlesex County, a Red Cross shelter was opened for residents of a Spotswood trailer park when the heavy snow blocked their exhaust pipes. The snow was so heavy in Perth Amboy, they were dumping it into Raritan Bay. A snow emergency was declared in Princeton (Mercer County). In Gloucester County, State Route 42 was closed after a vehicle struck a traffic light. Sussex County (11 to 30 inches), Morris County (14 to 25.5 inches) and Somerset County (12 to 25 inches) received the heaviest snow. Specific accumulations included 30 inches in Mountain Creek (Sussex County), 25.5 inches in Randolph Township (Morris County), 25 inches in Sussex and Highland Lakes (Sussex County) and Somerset (Somerset County), 24 inches in Marcella, Rockaway and Morris Townships (all Morris County), 22 inches in Barry Lake (Sussex County) and Basking Ridge (Somerset County), 19.8 inches in Whitehouse Station (Hunterdon County), 18.1 inches in Belle Mead (Somerset County), 17.5 inches in Milltown (Middlesex County), 15 inches in East Windsor (Mercer County) and New Brunswick (Middlesex County), 14 inches in Neptune and Middletown (Monmouth County), 12.5 inches in Brick Township (Ocean Township), 12 inches in Stewartsville and Washington (Warren County), Yardville (Mercer County) and Jackson Township (Ocean County), 11 inches in Bordentown (Burlington County), 10 inches in Browns Mills (Burlington County), 9.5 inches in Tabernacle (Burlington County), 8 inches in Williamstown (Gloucester County), Haddonfield and Pennsauken (Camden County), 7 inches in Voorhees (Camden County) and at the Atlantic City International Airport, 6 inches in Bridgeton (Cumberland County) and Margate (Atlantic County), 5 inches in Upper Township (Cape May County) and 4 inches in Atlantic City (Atlantic County) and Salem and Pennsville (Salem County). The low pressure system responsible for the heavy snow developed just east of Elizabeth City, North Carolina during the evening of the 29th. By 5 a.m. EST it was located about 75 miles east of Cape Charles, Virginia and by 9 a.m. EST it was located about 50 miles east of Delaware Bay Buoy. At this point, the low started to intensify more rapidly and by 5 p.m. EST on the 30th as it crossed the Twin Forks of Long Island, it had dropped to a 992 Mb low, a 10 millibar drop in an eight hour period.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
19 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Eastern Atlantic
- When
- December 30, 3:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Atlantic forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.469, -74.634 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Eastern Cape May
- When
- December 30, 3:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Cape May forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.085, -74.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Western Atlantic
- When
- December 30, 3:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Western Atlantic forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.469, -74.634 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Western Cape May
- When
- December 30, 3:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
- Where
- Western Cape May forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.085, -74.850 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Gloucester
- When
- December 30, 3:30 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Gloucester forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.717, -75.142 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Burlington
- When
- December 30, 4:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Burlington forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.878, -74.668 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Camden
- When
- December 30, 4:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Camden forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.804, -74.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Mercer
- When
- December 30, 4:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Mercer forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.283, -74.702 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Western Monmouth
- When
- December 30, 4:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Western Monmouth forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Hunterdon
- When
- December 30, 4:30 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Hunterdon forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.567, -74.912 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Sussex
- When
- December 30, 4:30 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Sussex forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.140, -74.690 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Warren
- When
- December 30, 4:30 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Warren forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.857, -74.997 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Eastern Monmouth
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Monmouth forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.288, -74.158 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Eastern Ocean
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Eastern Ocean forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.866, -74.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Middlesex
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.440, -74.409 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Morris
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Morris forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.862, -74.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Somerset
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Somerset forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.564, -74.616 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Western Ocean
- When
- December 30, 5:00 AM EST to 9:00 PM EST
- Where
- Western Ocean forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.866, -74.250 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Frost and Freeze in Florida, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Winter Storm in New York, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Maine, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in New York, December 30, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New Hampshire, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Massachusetts, December 30, 2000
- Winter Storm in Maine, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New York, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, December 30 to 31, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, December 30, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New Jersey, December 30, 2000
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, December 30, 2000
More
Every storm in New Jersey in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, December 2000
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: 5168485, 5168486, 5168487, 5168498, 5168499, 5168490, 5168483, 5168484, 5168492, 5168500, 5168491, 5168496, 5168497, 5168488, 5168489, 5168493, 5168494, 5168495, 5168501.