Extreme Cold/Wind Chill — Mckean, Pennsylvania

2026-01-23 to 2026-01-24 · Mckean, Pennsylvania

Event narrative

Bitterly cold temperatures coupled with gusty winds allowed for dangerously cold wind chills in Somerset County during the late evening hours of January 23rd. These dangerously cold wind chills continued into the morning hours of January 24, 2026. The coldest wind chills were observed near Bradford, where Bradford Regional Airport registered a -27 degree wind chill during the late evening hours of January 23rd before winds began to become more light. The COOP observer five miles southwest of Bradford also reported an ambient temperature of -23 degrees during the morning hours of January 24th, not taking into account any wind.

Wider weather episode

Cold air behind a cold frontal passage allowed for temperatures to plummet rapidly during the evening hours of January 23, 2026 and into the mid-morning hours of January 24th. The cold front began to move eastward overnight; however, stalled out across portions of central Pennsylvania, allowing for the coldest temperatures to remain across western Pennsylvania. A combination of the colder temperatures behind the cold front and gusty winds along and behind the front allowed for wind chills to dip below -20 degrees across portions of western Pennsylvania by the early morning hours of January 24th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1306181. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.