A period of heavy rain ahead of a cold front, combined with snow melt produced flooding of stream and some roadways across eastern Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, and the northern Panhandle of West Virginia.
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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 PBZ wrote it up.
A period of heavy rain ahead of a cold front, combined with snow melt produced flooding of stream and some roadways across eastern Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, and the northern Panhandle of West Virginia.
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 Pittsburgh, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 18, 12:52 AM EST, 2 hours 53 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Pittsburgh PA 1252 AM EST Sun Dec 18 2016 .SYNOPSIS... Rain and mild temperatures tonight will be replaced by snow showers and much colder air Sunday. Another system will affect the area with rain and snow by Thursday. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TODAY/... Warm air in place across the forecast area will be short-lived as an cold front tracks across the forecast area early this morning. Models have been consistent with a relatively quick progression of the surface boundary with the the shallow arctic airmass undercutting the warmer temperatures aloft and allowing for a hour or two window of mixed precipitation as the front crosses. While the transition to snow will be rather quick, so will the erosion of mid and upper-level moisture. A quick half an inch of snow could fall in this transition, but little more. Icy roads will be a concern behind the front as there will only be a small margin between the end of widespread rain in the warm sector and temperatures plummeting after frontal passage. Temperatures will be in the upper twenties by daybreak in Ohio and likely areawide by early afternoon. Black ice will be a problem on any roads not treated in the AM as overnight rain would have washed away previous treatments. High temperatures will be in the morning, with temperatures falling some 20 degrees during the day in many locations. && .SHORT TERM /TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/... Drier air will quickly move into the area on strong cold advection Sunday night with the moisture depth quickly peeling off as this occurs. Upslope snows will likely taper off in the evening as even the saturated unstable layer near the ridgetops becomes far less saturated. Skies will slowly likely also start to erode such that sun and clearing will be common by Monday with nearly clear skies expected by Monday night into Tuesday. A lessening of skies will mean wider diurnals than we have experienced recently. With colder Canadian air in charge, most areas will largely remain sub-freezing with Monday night likely be to the coldest of the who period. Fries && .LONG TERM /TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY/... Warm advection will commence by Wednesday ahead of the next system to affect the area on Thursday. Layer temperatures ahead of it suggest most areas will be mainly rain ahead of the system or a mix of rain and snow. However, colder air will again move in behind it with a trend back toward snow showers Thursday night and fairly seasonable temperatures to start the weekend. Fries && .AVIATION /06Z SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/... Conditions continue to range from VFR south of PIT to IFR at FKL/DUJ. LLWS will remain a concern for the next couple of hours before a cold front crosses the region. During the evening hours there have been isolated embedded thunderstorms within widespread rain that develop for 10-20 minutes then dissipate. Considering how limited the coverage is as well as the duration, have not included thunder in TAFs, but cannot rule out thunder at any individual terminal.The front will initially bring a wind shift from south to west, then drop ceilings to IFR at all locations, and finally bring a transition from rain to snow around daybreak. Snow should end by late morning/early afternoon as the front exits, though MVFR ceilings are expected most of the day in cold gusty NW flow. .OUTLOOK... Restrictions are possible with a Thursday cold front. && .PBZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MD...None. OH...None. PA...None. WV...None. &&
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 524 PM EST SAT DEC 17 2016 MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016-020>023- 029-031-073>076-WVZ001>004-012-021-509>514-182230- GARRETT-TUSCARAWAS-CARROLL-COLUMBIANA-COSHOCTON-HARRISON-JEFFERSON- MUSKINGUM-GUERNSEY-BELMONT-NOBLE-MONROE-MERCER-VENANGO-FOREST- LAWRENCE-BUTLER-CLARION-BEAVER-ALLEGHENY-ARMSTRONG-INDIANA- WASHINGTON-GREENE-WESTMORELAND-WESTMORELAND RIDGES-FAYETTE- FAYETTE RIDGES-HANCOCK-BROOKE-OHIO-MARSHALL-WETZEL-MARION-MONONGALIA- RIDGES OF EASTERN MONONGALIA AND NORTHWESTERN PRESTON-PRESTON- EASTERN PRESTON-WESTERN TUCKER-EASTERN TUCKER- 524 PM EST SAT DEC 17 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN MARYLAND...EAST CENTRAL OHIO...NORTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA...SOUTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA...WEST CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA...WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA AND NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. RIVER LEVELS WILL BE ON THE RISE SUNDAY AND MONDAY FOLLOWING THE MELTING OF SNOWPACK ALONG WITH ADDITIONAL RAINFALL ALONG THE COLD FRONT TONIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Pittsburgh PA
316 AM EST SUN DEC 18 2016
PAZ031-075-076-WVZ021-509>512-180900-
Fayette-Greene-Fayette Ridges-Eastern
Preston-Preston-Monongalia-Marion-Ridges of Eastern Monongalia and
Northwestern Preston-
316 AM EST SUN DEC 18 2016
...A LINE OF SHOWERS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING GUSTY WIND AND HEAVY RAIN
WILL AFFECT SEVERAL COUNTIES...
At 315 AM EST, radar indicated showers were located along a line
extending from near Fredericktown-Millsboro to near Salem. Movement
was east at 55 mph.
Wind gusts up to 55 mph are possible with these showers.
Locations impacted include...
Morgantown... Fairmont...
Uniontown... Connellsville...
Westover... Kingwood...
Mannington... Star City...
Terra Alta... Rowlesburg...
California... Pleasant Valley...
This includes the following highways...
Interstate 68 in West Virginia between mile markers 1 and 31.
Interstate 79 in Pennsylvania between mile markers 0 and 13.
Interstate 79 in West Virginia between mile markers 131 and 160.
Torrential rainfall also is occurring with these showers and may
cause localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded
roadways.
These showers may intensify, so monitor local radio or television
stations for additional information and possible warnings from the
National Weather Service.
LAT...LON 3945 7994 3939 8009 3946 8043 4001 8006
3998 8005 4002 7989 4007 7990 4011 7985
4008 7959 4014 7949 4004 7929 3986 7942
3979 7936 3978 7939 3972 7939 3972 7948
3942 7948 3927 7959 3927 7985
TIME...MOT...LOC 0815Z 264DEG 48KT 4003 8004 3933 8052The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Law enforcement reported flooding along Boggs Run Creek, with some road flooding across the county.
Emergency management reported road flooding across the county.
Emergency management reported Buffalo Creek was out of its banks, with some roads flooded across the county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in West Virginia in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in West Virginia, December 2016
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: 667410, 667411, 667412.