Winter Weather — York, Pennsylvania

2014-03-30 · York, Pennsylvania

Event narrative

Poor road conditions caused by rain, snow and ice were blamed for numerous crashes in York County, including one that was fatal. A 52-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene of a two-vehicle crash on Carlisle Road in Dover Township around 1650 EDT. Northern York County Regional Police believe the crash was caused when a 16-year-old driver of a Jeep Cherokee, that the 52-year-old woman was a passenger in, lost control on the icy road and went into the northbound lane, colliding with a Dodge Durango SUV. The 44-year-old man driving the Dodge SUV suffered minor injuries, and the teen suffered life-threatening injuries.

Wider weather episode

A persistent, narrow band of rain, wet snow and sleet on the backside of a cut-off upper low centered near the Delmarva/NJ coast produced significant travel impacts across portions of the Susquehanna Valley. Locally heavy snow (6 to as much as 12 inches) was observed from the Middle Susquehanna Valley (Shamokin area) into the Poconos/Endless Mountain region northeast of Williamsport, with the highest amount reported atop the North Mountain at Ricketts Glen State Park (2449 FT elevation) in southeastern Sullivan County. Lesser amounts (1-3) were reported closer to the Mason-Dixon line, but still managed to cause serious travel conditions. Numerous traffic accidents were reported due to slick, icy and snow/slush covered roads. The travel difficulties impacted most of the major and secondary roads from York County northward through Columbia and Sullivan Counties. The poor road conditions were blamed for at least one confirmed fatality.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 498424. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.