Winter Weather in Pennsylvania, December 31, 2005

Name: Winter Weather in Pennsylvania, December 31, 2005
Start: 2005-12-31T08:00
End: 2005-12-31T16:00
Location: Pennsylvania

December 31, 2005 · NWS PHI · 5 events in 5 counties and zones

Light snow fell through the morning in the Poconos. Farther to the south in Berks County and the Lehigh Valley rain and snow began falling in the early afternoon.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 5

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.

Light snow fell through the morning in the Poconos. Farther to the south in Berks County and the Lehigh Valley rain and snow began falling in the early afternoon. The air mass though was so unstable that heavier snow showers and even thundersnows occurred. This caused a quick burst of heavy snow around 3 p.m. EST. Even though air temperatures were above freezing, the heavy snow dropped temperatures to around 32 degrees and permitted the snow to accumulate on roadways. The snow ended by 5 p.m. EST in most places. A second batch of lighter snow fell later that evening. Accumulations averaged 1 to 3 inches with the highest amounts in the Poconos. In Berks County, there were dozens of accidents between 130 p.m. EST and 430 p.m. EST. Vehicles slid down embankments and off roadways. In Perry Township,off of Pennsylvania State Route 61, a vehicle spun out of control into gas pumps. The driver was not seriously injured. In both Northampton and Monroe Counties driving conditions were described as horrible with numerous accidents. There were about 50 reported accidents in Northampton County, many of them occurred in the northern part of the county. Westbound U.S. Route 22 was snarled because of a serious single vehicle accident near Pennsylvania State Route 191. For the second time this month, a vehicle bearly skidded into the Lehigh River in Easton. A pair of head-on collisions with injuries occurred in Moore Township and Lower Mount Bethel Township. Specific accumulations included 3.0 inches in Tannersville (Monroe County), 2.5 inches in Tobyhanna (Monroe County), 2.4 inches in Lehighton (Carbon County), 2.2 inches in Macungie (Lehigh County), 1.5 inches in Nazareth (Northampton County), 1.3 inches at the Lehigh Valley International Airport and Hellertown (Northampton County), 1.0 inch in Vinemont and Oley (Berks County) and 0.5 inches in Reading (Berks County). The heavier snow showers and thunder were triggered by the combination of a vigorous upper air disturbance and cold front that moved through the region.

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 30, 5:15 PM EST, 14 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 30, 5:15 PM EST, 14 hours 45 minutes before

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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Carbon

When: December 31, 8:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where: Carbon forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.918, -75.709 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Monroe

When: December 31, 8:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where: Monroe forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 41.058, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Berks

When: December 31, 1:30 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where: Berks forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Lehigh

When: December 31, 2:00 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where: Lehigh forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.613, -75.592 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Northampton

When: December 31, 2:00 PM EST to 4:00 PM EST
Where: Northampton forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 40.754, -75.307 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5482276, 5482278, 5482275, 5482277, 5482279.