Heavy Snow, Berks
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Berks forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, January 20, 2000
A pair of low pressure systems, one that moved from the Northern Plains into western Pennsylvania before dissipating and a second one that developed near Wilmington North Carolina the morning of the 20th produced a steady snow across Eastern Pennsylvania with the heaviest snow in the southeast part of the state. This was the first widespread accumulation of the winter season.
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
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.
A pair of low pressure systems, one that moved from the Northern Plains into western Pennsylvania before dissipating and a second one that developed near Wilmington North Carolina the morning of the 20th produced a steady snow across Eastern Pennsylvania with the heaviest snow in the southeast part of the state. This was the first widespread accumulation of the winter season. It was also the latest measurable inch in East Stroudsburg since the winter of 1965-66. Snow overspread the region during the predawn hours on the 20th and ended from west to east that evening. Most accumulations were between 2 and 5 inches. The snow led to numerous accidents, some of them serious. At 4 p.m. EST a Ford Explorer slid into a curb on the Park Avenue Bridge in Stroudsburg (Monroe County). The vehicle went into the air, struck a guardrail and knocked a large chunk of concrete onto Interstate 80. The driver and two children were injured, but no problems occurred on Interstate 80 itself. In Berks County, Pennsylvania State Route 501 was closed twice because of accidents in Bethel Township. The intersection of Pennsylvania State Routes 662 and 73 in Oley Township was closed because of numerous accidents. In Chester County, one man suffered a heart attack and died after being involved in an auto accident. U.S. Route 30 in East Whiteland Township and Pennsylvania State Route 100 in Upper Uwchlan Township were closed because of accidents and icy conditions. Thursday's (the 20th) rush hour traffic crawled on both Interstates 95 and 76 in and around Philadelphia with numerous fender benders. Most schools were closed in Berks, Chester and Delaware Counties. Many others had early dismissals. The Philadelphia International Airport had dozens of canceled flights, many involving other northeast destinations. Accumulations across the region (going southeast to northwest) included: in Philadelphia 2.5 inches at both the Franklin Institute and the Philadelphia International Airport; in Delaware County 5 inches in Springtown and 3.5 inches in Newtown Square; in Chester County 5 inches in Honey Brook and Valley Forge and 3.8 inches in Glenmoore; in Montgomery County 4 inches in Willow Grove and 3.5 inches in Palm; in Bucks County 4 inches in Perkasie, Springtown and Southampton and 3.5 inches in Doylestown; in Berks County 5.5 inches in Robesonia, 3 inches at the Blue Marsh Lake and 2.4 inches in Hamburg; in Lehigh County 4 inches in Breinigsville and 1.5 inches at the Lehigh Valley International Airport; in Northampton County 1.7 inches in Bath; in Carbon County 3.8 inches in Lehighton and in Monroe County 3 inches in Long Pond, 2 inches in Tobyhanna and 1.9 inches in East Stroudsburg.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
10 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Heavy Snow, Bucks
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Bucks forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
Heavy Snow, Carbon
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Carbon forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.918, -75.709 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Chester
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Chester forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
Heavy Snow, Lehigh
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Lehigh forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.613, -75.592 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Monroe
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Monroe forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.058, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Montgomery
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Montgomery forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
Heavy Snow, Northampton
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Northampton forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.754, -75.307 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Philadelphia
- When
- January 20, 4:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Philadelphia forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.008, -75.134 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Delaware
- When
- January 20, 5:00 AM EST to 11:00 PM EST
- Where
- Delaware forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 39.917, -75.399 (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
- Heavy Snow in Delaware, January 20, 2000
- Cold in South Carolina, January 20, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New York, January 20, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, January 20, 2000
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, January 20, 2000
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Maryland, January 20, 2000
- Winter Storm in North Carolina, January 20, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New Jersey, January 20 to 21, 2000
- Heavy Snow in New York, January 20 to 21, 2000
- Heavy Snow in North Carolina, January 20, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Ohio, January 20, 2000
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in West Virginia, January 20, 2000
More
Every storm in Pennsylvania in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, January 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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5130313, 5130314, 5130315, 5130316, 5130317, 5130318, 5130319, 5130320, 5130321, 5130312.