Winter Weather, Inland Sussex
- When
- January 22, 9:00 PM EST to January 23, 9:00 AM EST
- Where
- Inland Sussex forecast zone
- Injuries
- 0 direct, 15 indirect
- Reported by
- Newspaper
- Coordinates
- 38.683, -75.339 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Weather in Delaware, January 22 to 23, 2008
Skies cleared quickly after light rain fell during the afternoon and early evening on the 22nd. Because winds were also light, black ice formed on area roadways overnight.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
- 17
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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.
Skies cleared quickly after light rain fell during the afternoon and early evening on the 22nd. Because winds were also light, black ice formed on area roadways overnight. Accidents were reported in Sussex and New Castle Counties. In Sussex County, between 6 a.m. EST and 9 a.m. EST on the 23rd, fifty-three accidents occurred. There were fifteen non life-threatening injuries. So many accidents occurred that the Delaware State Police Communications Storm Plan was implemented. Its normally intended to be used during major storms, national disasters and catastrophic incidents. In New Castle County, two people were taken to Christina Hosipital after separate severe accidents in the Middletown area. A few roads in the county were closed because of the slick roadways.
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 Jan 22, 4:04 PM EST, 4 hours 56 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 22, 4:04 PM EST, 4 hours 56 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ 404 PM EST TUE JAN 22 2008 .SYNOPSIS... A COLD FRONT WILL WORK ITS WAY THROUGH OUR AREA TONIGHT. HIGH PRESSURE WILL MOVE IN BEHIND THE FRONTAL PASSAGE. A MILD COLD FRONT WILL PASS QUICKLY WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY WITH LITTLE SIGNIFICANCE OTHER THAN AN INCREASE IN WINDS. THOSE WINDS WILL BE DUE IN PART TO A DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WELL OFF THE COAST. HIGH PRESSURE WILL FOLLOW AND DOMINATE INTO THE WEEKEND. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING/... WEAK SHORT WAVE AND ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT MAKING PROGRESS TOWARD THE REGION THIS AFTERNOON. WEVE HAD A COUPLE REPORTS OF SLEET, BUT MOST PRECIP HAS BEEN EITHER RAIN OR SNOW AND ALL OF IT HAS BEEN LIGHT. GFS SHOWS SOME LOWER LEVEL FRONTOGENESIS FOR A TIME EARLY THIS EVENING AS THE FRONT APPROACHES, BUT RADAR SEEMS TO BE INDICATING CHANCES OF PRECIP ARE DWINDLING OVER THE NORTHWESTERN PART OF THE FORECAST AREA. WEVE BACKED OFF SOME, BUT NOT COMPLETELY, ON THE EVENING POPS ALL PLACES EXCEPT FAR SOUTHEAST. WE DONT THINK ENOUGH PRECIP HAS FALLEN TO WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING OTHER THAN VERY SPOTTY FREEZING ON ROAD SURFACES OVERNIGHT. GIVEN THE PROGGED H925 TEMPERATURES AND THE STAT GUIDANCE, WEVE ALSO COME UP SOME ON OVERNIGHT MINS. && .SHORT TERM /6 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH THURSDAY/... WEDNESDAY SHOULD FEATURE A GOOD DEAL OF SUNSHINE AS WEAK, TRANSIENT HIGH PRESSURE MOVES INTO THE AREA. H925 TEMPERATURES AND STAT GUIDANCE AGAIN INDICATE WE SHOULD BUMP UP THE MAX TEMPERATURES A BIT. THE WINDS LOOK TO BE BENIGN. THE NEXT APPROACHING MID LEVEL SHORT WAVE LOOKS TO INDUCE A COLD FRONT THAT SHOULD APPROACH WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND PASS ACROSS THE REGION ON THURSDAY. THE SUPPORT FOR THIS FRONT, HOWEVER, LOOKS TO BE TRANSFERRED OFF THE COAST. THE CANADIAN SEF, THE ECMWF AND THE GFS ALL DEVELOP A COASTAL LOW ON THURSDAY. BY 00Z FRIDAY, IT HAS A CENTRAL PRESSURE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 1002 AND 1006 MB, AND IT IS LOCATED SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 400 AND 650 MILES EAST OF THE DELMARVA. THE TRANSFERENCE OF ENERGY SEEMS TO BE RESULTING IN A RATHER WEAK FROPA IN TERMS OF FORCING AND PRECIP. NEITHER THE ECMWF NOR THE GFS PAINTS ANYTHING OTHER THAN VERY LIGHT PRECIPITATION OVER OUR AREA WITH THIS FEATURE WEDNESDAY NIGHT OR THURSDAY, AND WE HAVE BACKED OFF ON THE POPS AS A RESULT. REGARDING THE WINDS AS THE SYSTEM OFF THE COAST WINDS UP, THEY SHOULD PICK UP, AND WE COMPROMISED BETWEEN THE GFS AND THE ECMWF. GUIDANCE TEMPERATURES GENERALLY WERE ACCEPTED WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY, WITH A NOD TOWARD THE MAV WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND A COMPROMISE BETWEEN WHAT THE GFS H925 TEMPERATURES INDICATED AND WHAT THE MAV CARRIED ON THURSDAY. && .LONG TERM /THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/... A LONG WAVE TROUGH SHOULD BE IN PLACE OVER THE EASTERN PART OF THE COUNTRY FOR THURSDAY NIGHT. THE TROUGH WILL WORK ITS WAY TO THE EAST, ALLOWING A RIDGE TO BUILD IN FROM THE WEST. THE RIDGE IS EXPECTED TO FLATTEN DURING THE WEEKEND, AND WELL END UP IN A MORE ZONAL TYPE PATTERN FOR THE EARLY PART OF NEXT WEEK. ON THURSDAY EVENING, A LARGE AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO BE CENTERED OVER ILLINOIS. THE SURFACE HIGH SHOULD BUILD TO THE EAST AND IT IS FORECAST TO PASS OFF THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC COAST ON FRIDAY EVENING. IT APPEARS AS THOUGH A CLIPPER TYPE SYSTEM MAY DROP DOWN FROM THE NORTHWEST AROUND SATURDAY NIGHT OR SUNDAY. FOR NOW, WE HAVE NOT MENTIONED ANY PRECIP WITH THE SYSTEM EXCEPT FOR SOME HIDDEN SLIGHT CHANCE POPS. A WARM FRONT IS ANTICIPATED TO APPROACH FROM THE SOUTHWEST AND IT SHOULD PASS THROUGH OUR REGION ON MONDAY. WEVE INCLUDED CHANCE POPS FOR THAT PERIOD, WITH MOST LOCATIONS EXPECTED TO GO FROM FROZEN TO LIQUID PRECIP. LOW PRESSURE IS FORECAST TO MOVE INTO THE GREAT LAKES REGION FROM THE WEST ON TUESDAY. && .AVIATION /21Z TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... RADAR SHOWS A BAND OF LIGHT PRECIP AFFECTING ALL OUR TAF SITES EXCEPT ABE AND RDG...WHERE THE PRECIP HAS ALREADY CLEARED OUT. THE PRECIP IS VERY LIGHT AND IS NOT CAUSING ANY LIMITS TO VSBY. CIGS LOWERED TO MVFR IN MANY AREAS THIS MORNING BUT HAVE SINCE RECOVERED ...EXCEPT FOR MIV AND ACY. THE 18Z TAFS HAVE ALREADY BEEN AMENDED TO BE MORE OPTOMISTIC...WITH RAIN ENDING BY 00Z EXCEPT FOR MIV AND ACY. ALTHO PRECIP SHOULD END BY THIS EVENING...THE ACTUAL WEAK COLD FRONT PASSAGE AND WIND SHIFT TO W WILL BE OVERNIGHT. HENCE CLOUDS AND MOISTURE WILL BE SLOW TO CLEAR AND MVFR CONDS MAY CONT UP CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT. MIV AND ACY WILL BE THE SLOWEST TO IMPROVE. BY EARLY MORNING ON WED CONDS SHOULD IMPROVE TO VFR AND REMAIN SO THRU THE DAY. BEYOND THE TAF PERIOD... A STRONGER COLD FRONT PASSAGE ON THU WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLY SOME LIGHT SNOW. COLD HIGH PRESSURE WILL DOMINATE AFTER THE FRONTAL PASSAGE. && .MARINE... SOME LIGHT RAIN OR SHOWERS WILL BE MOVING OVER THE MARINE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...BUT PRECIP IS LIGHT AND SHOULD NOT CAUSE ANY SGFNT VSBY PROBLEMS. WINDS OVER THE MARINE AREA ARE REMAINING MOSTLY IN THE 10 TO 15 KT RANGE WITH A FEW HIGHER GUSTS. THE KDIX RADAR IS ESTIMATING WINDS OF 50 KT AT 2 K-FT BUT MOST OF THIS IS NOT MIXING DOWN TO THE COLD WATER SURFACE. ALTHO A FEW GUSTS COULD REACH 25 KT THIS EVENING...IT APPEARS THAT WINDS AND SEAS WILL GENLY STAY BELOW SCA CRITERIA WITH A RELATIVELY WEAK COLD FRONT PASSAGE...SO THE CURRENT SCA IS BEING LOWERED WITH THE AFTN FCST. THE NEXT SGFNT EVENT FOR THE MARINE FCST IS A STRONGER COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE ON THURSDAY. LOW PRES IS FCST TO DEEPEN OFF THE MID-ATLANTIC COAST THU NIGHT AND THIS IN COMBO WITH STG HIGH PRESSURE TO THE WEST WILL PRODUCE STRONG NW FLOW. STRONG SCA OR POSSIBLY GALE CONDS ARE EXPECTED THU NIGHT INTO FRI. WINDS AND SEAS SHOULD SUBSIDE FRI NIGHT AS THE HIGH MOVES OVERHEAD AND THEN OFF SHORE FOR SAT. BEYOND THAT...JUST RATHER WEAK AND FAST MOVING WEATHER SYSTEMS WILL AFFECT THE AREA WITH NO SFGNT STORMS IN SIGHT AT THIS TIME. && .TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING... TIDES CONTINUE TO RUN 0.5 TO 1.0 FT BELOW NORMAL/ASTRONOMICAL. THE ASTRO LOW TIDES ARE SMWHT BELOW MLLW...SO WITH CONTINUING OFFSHORE WINDS THE RESULTING ACTUAL LOW TIDES ARE LIKELY TO BE 1.0 TO 1.5 FT BELOW MLLW. ALTHO NOT AT BLOW-OUT TIDE CRITERION...1.8 FT BELOW MLLW...THERE COULD BE A FEW NAVIGATION ISSUES AROUND INLETS AND SHALLOW SPOTS ETC, SO WE WILL ISSUE A MARINE WEATHER STATEMENT TO THAT EFFECT. && .PHI WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... PA...NONE. NJ...NONE. DE...NONE. MD...NONE. MARINE...NONE. && SYNOPSIS...RM/DELISI NEAR TERM...DELISI SHORT TERM...DELISI LONG TERM...IOVINO AVIATION...AMC MARINE...AMC TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING...AMC
Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 22, 3:55 PM EST, 5 hours 5 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ 355 PM EST TUE JAN 22 2008 DEZ001>004-MDZ008-012-015-019-020-NJZ001-007>010-012>027-PAZ054-055- 060>062-067>071-231100- NEW CASTLE-KENT DE-INLAND SUSSEX-DELAWARE BEACHES-CECIL-KENT MD- QUEEN ANNES-TALBOT-CAROLINE-SUSSEX-WARREN-MORRIS-HUNTERDON-SOMERSET- MIDDLESEX-WESTERN MONMOUTH-EASTERN MONMOUTH-MERCER-SALEM-GLOUCESTER- CAMDEN-NORTHWESTERN BURLINGTON-OCEAN-CUMBERLAND-ATLANTIC-CAPE MAY- ATLANTIC COASTAL CAPE MAY-COASTAL ATLANTIC-COASTAL OCEAN- SOUTHEASTERN BURLINGTON-CARBON-MONROE-BERKS-LEHIGH-NORTHAMPTON- CHESTER-MONTGOMERY-BUCKS-DELAWARE-PHILADELPHIA- 355 PM EST TUE JAN 22 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL DELAWARE...NORTHERN DELAWARE...SOUTHERN DELAWARE...EASTERN MARYLAND...NORTHEAST MARYLAND...CENTRAL NEW JERSEY...NORTHERN NEW JERSEY...SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY...EAST CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA...NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA AND SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. ANZ430-431-450>455-231100- DELAWARE BAY WATERS NORTH OF EAST POINT NJ TO SLAUGHTER BEACH DE- DELAWARE BAY WATERS SOUTH OF EAST POINT NJ TO SLAUGHTER BEACH DE- COASTAL WATERS FROM SANDY HOOK TO MANASQUAN INLET NJ OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM MANASQUAN INLET TO LITTLE EGG INLET NJ OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM LITTLE EGG INLET TO GREAT EGG INLET NJ OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM GREAT EGG INLET TO CAPE MAY NJ OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM CAPE MAY NJ TO CAPE HENLOPEN DE OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM CAPE HENLOPEN TO FENWICK ISLAND DE OUT 20 NM- 355 PM EST TUE JAN 22 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR ATLANTIC COASTAL WATERS AND DELAWARE BAY WATERS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
2 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Weather, New Castle
- When
- January 22, 9:00 PM EST to January 23, 6:00 AM EST
- Where
- New Castle forecast zone
- Injuries
- 0 direct, 2 indirect
- Reported by
- Newspaper
- Coordinates
- 39.578, -75.639 (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
- Extreme Cold in Illinois, January 22 to 25, 2008
- Winter Weather in New Jersey, January 22 to 23, 2008
- Rip Current in Guam, January 22, 2008
- Lake-Effect Snow in New York, January 22 to 24, 2008
- Flash Flood in Illinois, January 22, 2008
- Blizzard and Heavy Snow in Alaska, January 22 to 23, 2008
- Winter Storm and Flooding in California, January 22 to 24, 2008
- Winter Weather in Georgia, January 22, 2008
- Winter Weather in North Carolina, January 22, 2008
- Winter Weather in North Carolina, January 22, 2008
- Winter Weather in Texas, January 22, 2008
- Frost and Freeze in Oregon, January 22, 2008
More
Every storm in Delaware in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Delaware, January 2008
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: 70850, 71927.