Pennsylvania, 2008

Winter Weather in Pennsylvania, December 6, 2008

December 6, 2008 · NWS PHI · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Light snow that fell during the late afternoon and evening of the 6th caused many accidents across the Poconos, Lehigh Valley, Berks County and Upper Bucks County. Snowfall accumulations averaged around an inch.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
6
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

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 that fell during the late afternoon and evening of the 6th caused many accidents across the Poconos, Lehigh Valley, Berks County and Upper Bucks County. Snowfall accumulations averaged around an inch. But the snow initially melted as it fell on roadways and below freezing temperatures caused ice to then form.

In Berks County, dozens of accidents were reported. Two police officers were injured in separate accidents on Pennsylvania State Route 662 in Oley. In Hamburg, a 59-year-old woman was injured after her vehicle skidded off of Shoey Road and rolled over in a ditch. The Warren Street Bypass in Reading, the West Shore Bypass, Interstates 78 and 176 all had major traveling problems. Eastbound Interstate 78 was closed near the Lehigh County border. In the Lehigh Valley, many accidents were reported on Interstate 78, U.S. Route 22 and Pennsylvania State Route 33. Accidents were reported on State Route 93 in Carbon County. In Upper Bucks County, multiple accidents were reported on the Pennsylvania State Route 309 Bypass, Pennsylvania State Routes 309 and 313, Tollgate Road in Quakertown and Allentown Road in Milford. A section of Pennsylvania State Route 309 was closed after a half dozen accidents occurred and several people were hospitalized.

Snowfall totals included 0.8 inches in Reading (Berks County) and 0.5 inches at the Lehigh Valley International Airport, Forks Township (Northampton County) and Quakertown (Bucks County). The snow occurred preceding a cold front that moved through the region early on the 7th.

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 6, 10:15 AM EST, 5 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 6, 10:15 AM EST, 5 hours 45 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 6, 5:13 AM EST, 10 hours 47 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

6 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Berks

When
December 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 PM EST
Where
Berks forecast zone
Injuries
0 direct, 2 indirect
Reported by
Newspaper
Coordinates
40.416, -75.926 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Bucks

When
December 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 PM EST
Where
Bucks forecast zone
Injuries
0 direct, 4 indirect
Reported by
Newspaper

Winter Weather, Carbon

When
December 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 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 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 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, Lehigh

When
December 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 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 6, 4:00 PM EST to 10:00 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

More

Every storm in Pennsylvania in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, December 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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 143122, 143123, 143124, 143125, 143126, 143127.