West Virginia, 2020

Dense Fog in West Virginia, December 18, 2020

December 18, 2020 · NWS LWX · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 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
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 LWX wrote it up.

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 17, 3:37 PM EST, 13 hours 23 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 17, 3:37 PM EST, 13 hours 23 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 17, 6:05 PM EST, 10 hours 55 minutes before
Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Baltimore MD/Washington DC
605 PM EST Thu Dec 17 2020

ANZ530>543-DCZ001-MDZ008-011-013-014-016>018-504-506-508-
VAZ052>057-181000-
Chesapeake Bay north of Pooles Island MD-
Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD-
Chesapeake Bay from Sandy Point to North Beach MD-
Chesapeake Bay from North Beach to Drum Point MD-
Chesapeake Bay from Drum Point MD to Smith Point VA-
Tidal Potomac from Key Bridge to Indian Head MD-
Tidal Potomac from Indian Head to Cobb Island MD-
Tidal Potomac from Cobb Island MD to Smith Point VA-
Patapsco River including Baltimore Harbor-
Chester River to Queenstown MD-Eastern Bay-
Choptank River to Cambridge MD and the Little Choptank River-
Patuxent River to Broomes Island MD-
Tangier Sound and the inland waters surrounding Bloodsworth
Island-District of Columbia-Cecil-Southern Baltimore-
Prince Georges-Anne Arundel-Charles-St. Marys-Calvert-
Central and Southeast Montgomery-Central and Southeast Howard-
Southeast Harford-Prince William/Manassas/Manassas Park-Fairfax-
Arlington/Falls Church/Alexandria-Stafford-Spotsylvania-
King George-
605 PM EST Thu Dec 17 2020

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the Maryland portion of the
Chesapeake Bay, Tidal Potomac River, and I-95 corridor through
central Maryland, northern Virginia, and District of Columbia.

.DAY ONE...Tonight

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

MDZ003>006-503-505-507-VAZ025>031-036>040-050-051-501-502-505>508-
WVZ050>053-055-181000-
Washington-Frederick MD-Carroll-Northern Baltimore-
Northwest Montgomery-Northwest Howard-Northwest Harford-Augusta-
Rockingham-Shenandoah-Frederick VA-Page-Warren-Clarke-Nelson-
Albemarle-Greene-Madison-Rappahannock-Orange-Culpeper-
Northern Fauquier-Southern Fauquier-Western Loudoun-
Eastern Loudoun-Northern Virginia Blue Ridge-
Central Virginia Blue Ridge-Hampshire-Morgan-Berkeley-Jefferson-
Hardy-
605 PM EST Thu Dec 17 2020

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of eastern West
Virginia, northern and central Virginia, and central and western
Maryland.

.DAY ONE...Tonight

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

MDZ001-501-502-VAZ503-504-WVZ501>506-181000-
Garrett-Extreme Western Allegany-Central and Eastern Allegany-
Western Highland-Eastern Highland-Western Grant-Eastern Grant-
Western Mineral-Eastern Mineral-Western Pendleton-
Eastern Pendleton-
605 PM EST Thu Dec 17 2020

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the Allegheny Front
counties in western Maryland, eastern West Virginia, and Highland
County Virginia.

.DAY ONE...Tonight

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday

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.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 dense fog. Local standard time, as filed.

Dense Fog, Hardy

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Hardy forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
39.008, -78.858 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Dense Fog, Eastern Grant

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Eastern Grant forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
39.105, -79.196 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Dense Fog, Eastern Pendleton

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Eastern Pendleton forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
38.681, -79.351 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Dense Fog, Western Grant

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Western Grant forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
39.105, -79.196 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Dense Fog, Western Mineral

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Western Mineral forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
39.415, -78.944 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

Dense Fog, Western Pendleton

When
December 18, 5:00 AM EST to 10:00 AM EST
Where
Western Pendleton forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
38.681, -79.351 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Dense fog developed early in the morning, with widespread visibility of 1/4 mile or below. Fog dissipated towards noon.

What these are

Dense Fog
Fog reducing visibility to a quarter mile or less, filed where it caused accidents or disruption.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in West Virginia in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in West Virginia, December 2020

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: 935635, 935636, 935637, 935638, 935639, 935640.