Gusty northwest winds combined with unseasonably cold temperatures produced bitterly cold wind chills across the northern and western mountains of central Pennsylvania.
Every event with a place to put it; 13 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS CTP wrote it up.
Gusty northwest winds combined with unseasonably cold temperatures produced bitterly cold wind chills across the northern and western mountains of central Pennsylvania.
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 State College, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 2, 10:17 PM EST, 43 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA 1017 PM EST MON MAR 2 2009 .SYNOPSIS... AS THE COASTAL STORM THAT GAVE SNOW TO PARTS OF THE AREA DEPARTS INTO THE MARITIMES...HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD OVER THE REGION WITH GUSTY WINDS AND FRIGID TEMPERATURES. A GRADUAL MODERATING TREND APPEARS IN STORE BY THE END OF THE WEEK. A FEW PERIODS OF RAIN ARE ALSO POSSIBLE LATE IN THE WEEK AND DURING THE UPCOMING WEEKEND. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM TUESDAY MORNING/... FORECAST PRETTY MUCH ON TRACK WITH BREEZY-CHILLY CONDITIONS CAUSING WIND CHILLS DOWN IN THE ADVISORY RANGE OVERNIGHT. OTHER THAN A FEW CLOUDS OFF THE LAKES AND A FEW SCATTERED FLURRIES TO GO WITH THEM...NOT MUCH ELSE EXPECTED OVERNIGHT. ZONE PRODUCT LOOKS GOOD AND WILL NOT NEED UPDATING. AGAIN...A BIG THANKS TO ALL OF OUR SNOW SPOTTERS FOR VALUED REPORTS OF SNOW RATES/INTENSITY EARLIER TODAY...WHICH WERE AS HIGH AS 2.5 INCHES PER HOUR. TOTAL SNOWFALL RANGED FROM AN INCH OR LESS IN MOST COMMUNITIES TO THE NW OF INTERSTATE 81...WITH 6-8 INCHES ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN YORK AND LANCASTER COUNTIES. A GENERAL 1-3 INCHES FELL JUST 10 TO 25 MILES FURTHER TO THE NORTHWEST...INCLUDING THE GETTYSBURG...AND GREATER HARRISBURG AREAS. && .SHORT TERM /6 AM TUESDAY MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/... HIGH PRESSURE WILL GRADUALLY BUILD IN FROM THE WEST DURING THIS PERIOD WITH SUBSIDING WINDS...BUT STILL VERY COLD TEMPS FOR EARLY MARCH. MIN TEMPS TUESDAY NIGHT COULD BE COLDER THAN TONIGHTS BY A FEW DEGREES IN MANY AREAS...UNDER MAINLY CLEAR SKIES WITH LIGHTER WINDS. MAX TEMPS WILL BE VERY SIMILAR TO TODAYS (MONDAYS) IN ALL AREAS. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... BROAD RIDGE SLIDES ACROSS EASTERN THIRD OF CONUS...ALLOWING HEIGHTS TO INCREASE. ACCOMPANYING WILL BE A DRY AIRMASS THRU END OF THE WEEK. A FEW ENSEMBLE MEMBERS SUGGEST A LOW CHC FOR PRECIP FRI WITH A WARM FRONTAL BNDRY...HOWEVER EXPECT THIS TO EVOLVE INTO MID-DECK CLOUDS. CONFIDENCE HAS INCREASED MARGINALLY WITH PRECIP CHC/S FOR THE LATER PERIODS SAT/SUN/MON. TRACK OF SYSTEMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE STEERED NW ACROSS THE GREAT LAKES REGION. THE CHALLENGE CONTINUES TO RESIDE AROUND HOW WARM/COLD WE WILL BE IN THE LATER PERIODS. && .AVIATION /03Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... MID LVL CYCLONIC FLOW WILL KEEP 2-4KFT CIGS AT BFD/JST ALONG WITH SOME OCNL 1.5-3SM VIS IN -SHSN. ELSEWHERE...EXPECT AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF VFR FLYING FROM TONIGHT THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK. NWLY WINDS WILL REMAIN GUSTY AT 20-25KT...BUT SHOULD RELAX SOME AFT MIDNIGHT...THEN PICK BACK UP EARLY TUE/15Z. SFC HIGH PRES WILL MOVE ACROSS THE REGION LATE TUE/WED...THEN SHIFT OFF THE ATLC COAST ON THUR AS A WARM FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE S/W. A FNTL SYS IS FCST TO TRAVERSE THE AREA ON FRI BCMG STNRY INVOF OF PA INTO THE WEEKEND. OUTLOOK... THU...VFR. FRI/SAT...MVFR/IFR PSBL IN RW ASSOC WITH FROPA. && .CTP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WIND CHILL ADVISORY UNTIL 9 AM EST TUESDAY FOR PAZ004>006- 010>012-017-018-024-033-037-041-042. && SYNOPSIS...LACORTE/LAMBERT NEAR TERM...LACORTE/LAMBERT SHORT TERM...DANGELO/LAMBERT LONG TERM...BEACHLER AVIATION...STEINBUGL
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA 245 PM EST MON MAR 2 2009 PAZ004>006-010>012-017-018-024-033-037-041-042-031945- WARREN-MCKEAN-POTTER-ELK-CAMERON-NORTHERN CLINTON-CLEARFIELD- NORTHERN CENTRE-CAMBRIA-SOMERSET-TIOGA-NORTHERN LYCOMING-SULLIVAN- 245 PM EST MON MAR 2 2009 ...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM EST TUESDAY... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV/STATECOLLEGE ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. WIND CHILL ADVISORY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. PLEASE LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR GO TO WEATHER.GOV/STATECOLLEGE ON THE INTERNET FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOLLOWING HAZARDS. WIND CHILL ADVISORY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. PAZ019-025>028-034>036-045-046-049>053-056>059-063>066-031945- SOUTHERN CENTRE-BLAIR-HUNTINGDON-MIFFLIN-JUNIATA-BEDFORD-FULTON- FRANKLIN-SOUTHERN CLINTON-SOUTHERN LYCOMING-UNION-SNYDER-MONTOUR- NORTHUMBERLAND-COLUMBIA-PERRY-DAUPHIN-SCHUYLKILL-LEBANON-CUMBERLAND- ADAMS-YORK-LANCASTER- 245 PM EST MON MAR 2 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. NORTHWEST WINDS AVERAGING 15 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 35 MPH WILL COMBINE WITH THE VERY COLD AIR TO PRODUCE WIND CHILLS OF ZERO TO 10 BELOW LATE TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. NORTHWEST WINDS AVERAGING 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS AROUND 25 MPH WILL COMBINE WITH THE VERY COLD AIR TO PRODUCE WIND CHILLS OF ZERO TO 10 BELOW THROUGH THE MID MORNING HOURS TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. LAMBERT
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
13 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Warren County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across McKean County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Potter County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Elk County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Cameron County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Northern Centre County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Northern Clinton County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Clearfield County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Cambria County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Somerset County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Tioga County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Northern Lycoming County.
Wind chill readings of 15 to 25 degrees below zero were reported across Sullivan County.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Pennsylvania in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Pennsylvania, March 2009
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: 150859, 150860, 150861, 150862, 150863, 150864, 150865, 150866, 150867, 150868, 150869, 150870, 150871.