Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, December 1 to 2, 2005

Name: Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, December 1 to 2, 2005
Start: 2005-12-01T20:00
End: 2005-12-02T22:00
Location: Pennsylvania

December 1 to 2, 2005 · NWS CLE · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $225,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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 CLE wrote it up.

Low pressure and an associated cold front moved east across the region on December 1st. Cold air filtered into Northwest Pennsylvania behind this front and caused lake effect snow showers to develop late in the afternoon of the 1st. The snow remained light through the evening hours with accumulations generally less than an inch through midnight. The snow intensfied during the morning hours of the 2nd. Visibilities at times were less than one half mile with snowfall rates in excess of an inch per. The snow tapered to flurries during the late evening hours of the 2nd and ended altogether early on the 3rd. Snowfall totals across Northwest Pennsylvania were generally 8 to 16 inches inland from Lake Erie. Accumulations near the shoreline were generally 4 to 8 inches. A peak total of nearly 21 inches was reported at Corry (Erie County) with 20 inches reported near Meadville in Crawford County.

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 Cleveland, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 1, 6:50 PM EST, 1 hour 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 1, 6:50 PM EST, 1 hour 10 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 1, 6:26 AM EST, 13 hours 34 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
626 AM EST THU DEC 1 2005

OHZ003-006>010-017>023-027>033-036>038-047-021130-
LUCAS-WOOD-OTTAWA-SANDUSKY-ERIE-LORAIN-HANCOCK-SENECA-HURON-
MEDINA-SUMMIT-PORTAGE-TRUMBULL-WYANDOT-CRAWFORD-RICHLAND-ASHLAND-
WAYNE-STARK-MAHONING-MARION-MORROW-HOLMES-KNOX-
626 AM EST THU DEC 1 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL
OHIO...NORTHEAST OHIO AND NORTHWEST OHIO.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

OHZ011>014-089-PAZ001>003-021130-
CUYAHOGA-LAKE-GEAUGA-ASHTABULA INLAND-ASHTABULA LAKESHORE-
NORTHERN ERIE-SOUTHERN ERIE-CRAWFORD-
626 AM EST THU DEC 1 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST OHIO
AND NORTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP TONIGHT.
DEPENDING ON THE EXACT WIND DIRECTION...SIGNIFICANT LOCAL
ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE TRADITIONAL LAKE EFFECT AREAS OF
NORTHEAST OHIO AND NORTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED CONTINUE FRIDAY THROUGH
FRIDAY NIGHT. ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS ARE POSSIBLE IN THE
TRADITIONAL LAKE EFFECT AREAS OF NORTHEAST OHIO AND NORTHWEST
PENNSYLVANIA.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

LEZ142>149-162>169-021130-
MAUMEE BAY TO RENO BEACH OH-RENO BEACH TO THE ISLANDS OH-
THE ISLANDS TO VERMILION OH-VERMILION TO AVON POINT OH-
AVON POINT TO WILLOWICK OH-WILLOWICK TO GENEVA-ON-THE LAKE OH-
GENEVA-ON-THE-LAKE TO CONNEAUT OH-CONNEAUT OH TO RIPLEY NY-
MAUMEE BAY OH TO RENO BEACH OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
RENO BEACH TO THE ISLANDS OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
THE ISLANDS TO VERMILION OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
VERMILION TO AVON POINT OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
AVON POINT TO WILLOWICK OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
WILLOWICK TO GENEVA-ON-THE-LAKE OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-GENEVA-ON-
THE-LAKE TO CONNEAUT OH BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
CONNEAUT OH TO RIPLEY NY BEYOND 5 NM OF SHORE-
626 AM EST THU DEC 1 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF LAKE ERIE.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

WEST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 15 TO 25 KNOTS TONIGHT BUILDING WAVES
TO 5 TO 7 FEET. THIS WILL PRESENT A HAZARD TO SMALL CRAFT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

GALES ARE POSSIBLE ON LAKE ERIE FRIDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Crawford

When: December 1, 8:00 PM EST to December 2, 10:00 PM EST
Where: Crawford forecast zone
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.685, -80.106 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern Erie

When: December 1, 8:00 PM EST to December 2, 10:00 PM EST
Where: Northern Erie forecast zone
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.118, -80.098 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Southern Erie

When: December 1, 8:00 PM EST to December 2, 10:00 PM EST
Where: Southern Erie forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.118, -80.098 (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

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Pennsylvania, December 2005

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: 5483457, 5483458, 5483459.