High Wind — Northampton, Pennsylvania

2009-02-12 · Northampton, Pennsylvania

Wider weather episode

Strong to high winds affected Eastern Pennsylvania during the day on the 12th. The strong winds started shortly after a cold frontal passage between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. EST and persisted through most of the day. Peak wind gusts averaged between 50 and 65 mph and knocked down numerous tree limbs, weak trees and power lines. Several roofs were torn away and billboards knocked down. Numerous vehicles were damaged by downed trees. Throughout the state of Pennsylvania about 250,000 homes and businesses lost power. Power was not fully restored in Eastern Pennsylvania until the 14th. In Eastern Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley, Berks County and the northwest Philadelphia suburbs reported the most wind damage.

In the Lehigh Valley, about 19,000 homes and businesses lost power including Westgate Mall in Bethlehem. In Lehigh County, the roof was blown off a garage in Allentown. A billboard was bent along U.S. Route 22 in Whitehall Township. Pennsylvania State Route 309 was closed because of downed trees. Many trees and limbs were knocked down along a five mile stretch of the Ironton Rail in Whitehall, North Whitehall and Coplay. In Northampton County, downed power lines caused a fire that totally destroyed a century old barn in Forks Township. Forty firefighters were able to contain the blaze from reaching other structures, although the heat caused the siding to melt at a nearby garage. A tree fell on and damaged a home in Bethlehem. An eighteen foot pillar was blown off the First Moravian Church in Easton. In Northampton Borough, the roof blew off a building at 14th Street and Newport Avenue. At least six roadways were closed in the county including Pennsylvania State Route 611 in Upper Mount Bethel.

In the local Philadelphia area, PECO Energy reported about 85,000 homes and businesses lost power with Bucks and Delaware Counties suffering the most outages. All power was restored by the 13th. In Montgomery County, in Pottstown, the wind blew off the western facing portion of the roof off the four story building in the former Mrs. Smith Pies complex. The roof landed in a parking lot. A nearby family was evacuated until the roof was secured. The wind also started pealing away a roof of a home on Lincoln Avenue. Elsewhere a northbound tractor trailer was blown over on the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike just beyond the Blue Route Tolls. In Stowe (West Pottsgrove Township), the wind start to peel back the roof of the West End Fire Company. In Norristown, another home's roof was partially blown off and it took down a pole and wires. Signs were also blown down. In Lower Merion Township, a downed tree trapped a woman within her vehicle for over an hour. Another downed wire led to a raging garage fire which totally destroyed the structure. Numerous trees were reported knocked down in both Upper and Lower Gwynedd Townships. Within Philadelphia itself, the high winds ripped part of a portable classroom's roof away. It forced forty kindergarten students to evacuate; none were injured. A metal light post snapped at the corner of Broad and Callowhill Streets. In Delaware County, in Lansdowne, a downed tree crushed part of one house and a neighbor house's roof. In Media, a couple of cars and fences were damaged by downed trees. In Chester County, downed trees fell on and damaged vehicles in Birmingham and East Coventry.

In Berks County, a tractor-trailer was blown off the westbound Pennsylvania Turnpike. The driver was not injured. In Mount Penn, about fifty tiles were blown off the five story Pagoda building. In Upper Bern Township (Shartlesville) the section of a tin roof in the rear of a hotel was peeled off. In Oley Township, roof damage occurred to homes under construction in the Meadow View Farms Development. Two homes were damaged by the winds in South Heidelberg Township. In Reading, a billboard was knocked down along the West Shore Bypass. Pennsylvania State Route 724 was closed for one hour because of downed trees in Cumru Township. About 5,000 homes and businesses lost power. Power was fully restored by the 13th. In the southern Poconos, about 5,500 homes and businesses lost power, but no home or business damage were reported.

Peak wind gusts included 64 mph in Forks Township (Northampton County) and within the city of Philadelphia, 56 mph in Pottstown (Montgomery County), 55 mph at the Philadelphia International Airport, 54 mph in Mount Pocono (Monroe County), 53 mph in Doylestown (Bucks County), 52 mph in Reading (Berks County) and West Grove (Chester County) and 51 mph in Drexel Hill (Delaware County).

The strong and high winds were caused by the pressure difference between an intensifying low pressure system that moved through the lower Saint Lawrence River Valley, northern New England and the Canadian Maritimes and an approaching high pressure system from the lower Mississippi Valley. The winds increased after a cold front moved through the state between 3 a.m. EST and 5 a.m. EST on the morning of the 12th and slowly subsided that night.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 152288. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.