Flood, Morris
- When
- December 24, 11:00 PM EST to December 28, 6:15 AM EST
- Where
- Morris forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.862, -74.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood in New Jersey, December 24 to 28, 2003
A slow moving cold front with weak waves of low pressure riding along it produced heavy rain during the first half of the day on the 24th. In addition to the poor drainage flooding, runoff from the heavy rain caused flooding in the Passaic River Basin from late in the day on the 24th through the 28th.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
- 1
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 slow moving cold front with weak waves of low pressure riding along it produced heavy rain during the first half of the day on the 24th. In addition to the poor drainage flooding, runoff from the heavy rain caused flooding in the Passaic River Basin from late in the day on the 24th through the 28th. The Woodlawn section of Lincoln Park Borough was in thigh high water from the Pompton River on the 24th. The Rockaway River below the Boonton Reservoir was above its 5 foot flood stage from 11 p.m. EST on the 24th through 700 a.m. EST on the 26th. It crested at 5.67 feet at 9 a.m. EST on the 25th. The Passaic River at Pine Brook was above its 19 foot flood stage from 730 a.m. through 1015 p.m. EST on the 26th. It crested at 19.01 feet at 9 a.m. EST. Farther downstream, the Passaic River at Two Bridges was above its 9 foot flood stage from 1249 a.m. EST on the 25th through 615 a.m. EST on the 28th. It crested at 9.85 feet at 1145 a.m. EST on the 26th.Storm totals included 1.83 inches in Chatham and 1.70 inches in Boonton. The frontal system responsible for the heavy rain moved from the central Ohio Valley during the afternoon of the 23rd to central Pennsylvania during the morning of the 24th to just east of the New Jersey coast during the early evening of the 24th. The heavy rain preceded and accompanied the cold frontal passage. December 2003 was unseasonably wet as was all of 2003. On a statewide average, 2003 was the fifth wettest year on record in New Jersey with a preliminary average of 57.45 inches, 10.26 inches wetter than normal. In New Jersey yearly precipitation totals included 43.13 inches in Trenton (Mercer County) and 48.36 inches at the Atlantic City International Airport.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 24, 7:08 PM EST, 3 hours 52 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 24, 7:08 PM EST, 3 hours 52 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ 708 PM EST WED DEC 24 2003 DISC: SENDING OUT A QUICK UPDATE TO DELETE PCPN FROM EVENING FCST(EXCEPT FOR POCONOS -S)AS FRONT HAS REACHED THE COAST. FLOOD WARNINGS REMAIN UP FOR BUCKS IN PA AND SEVERAL NJ COUNTIES CENTRAL AND NORTHERN AREAS. YRLY PCPN TO DATE AT PHL 47.93 INCHES IS EIGHT WETTEST SINCE 1973...MOST WAS 56.45 IN 1996. ABES 56.86 MISSED TYING WETTEST SINCE 1973 BY .01 OF AN INCH ALSO 1996. ACY AIRPORT 48.31 INCHES 5TH WETTEST WITH TOPS AT 55.34 IN 1997 AND ILGS 55.24 INCHES IS WETTEST SINCE 1973. AND...MT. POCONO TO DATE 70.51 INCHES(NORMAL 48.62)...TRENTON 54.10...GEORGETOWN 53.51 AND READING 51.37 INCHES. HAVE A GREAT HOLIDAY AND STAY SAFE EBERWINE ***** COLD FRONT CURRENTLY CROSSING FA. PCPN MOVING OFF TO THE NE. WILL CARRY A CHANCE OF SHOWERS INTO THE EVNG HOURS ALL BUT DELMARVA ZONES. FLRYS PSBL NRN ZNS LTR TNGT. XPCT SKIES TO REMAIN MSTLY CLDY N OVERNGT...PARTIAL CLRNG ELSEWHR. WILL CARRY A CHC OF SN SHWRS/FLRYS N TMRW IN CAA. MOISTURE WILL MOVE ACROSS SE PA/CENT AND SRN NJ TMRW AFTN AND EVNG SO WILL GO WITH PSBL FLRYS THERE. WILL CONT TO CARRY FLRYS IN OUR NRN MTN ZONES THURS NGT AND FRI...BUT PTLY CLDY ELSEWHR. FAIR WX WILL CONT THRU THE WEEKEND AS HIGH PRES MOVES IN FROM THE W. NEXT WX SYS WILL BE THE FRONTAL ZONE... NOW EXPECTED TO CROSS THE MID ATLC AREA TUE NGT. PLENTY OF MILD AIR AHEAD OF THE FRONT...SO SHWRS SHOULD BE IN THE FORM OF RAIN. MAY BE SOME SNOW SHOWERS OR FLRYS NRN ZNS WED AS COLD AIR MOVES IN BEHIND THE FRONT. CURRENT TIDAL FLOODING ON THE DELAWARE WILL BE ENDING DURING THE EVNG. MANY SMALL STREAMS AND CREEKS ARE NEAR OR SLIGHTLY ABOVE FLOOD STAGE...ESPECIALLY IN THE PASSAIC BASIN. WARNINGS AND STATEMENTS ARE ISSUED OR WBIS TO COVER. A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY REMAINS UP ON THE OCEAN AND LWR DEL BAY. .PHI WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... PA...NONE. NJ...NONE. DE...NONE. MD...NONE. MARINE/OCEAN...SCA. MARINE/DEL BAY...SCA LOWER BAY. RPW
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Flood
- Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Flood and Heavy Rain in California, December 24 to 25, 2003
- Flood in New York, December 24, 2003
- Flooding in Indiana, December 24 to 31, 2003
- Storm Surge in New Jersey, December 24, 2003
- Flooding in New York, December 24 to 25, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 24 to 25, 2003
- Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in California, December 24 to 26, 2003
- Storm Surge in New Jersey, December 24, 2003
- Flooding in Indiana, December 24 to 28, 2003
- Flooding in Connecticut, December 24 to 26, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Idaho, December 24 to 25, 2003
- Heavy Snow in Oregon, December 24 to 25, 2003
More
Every storm in New Jersey in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in New Jersey, December 2003
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: 5327551.