States › Pennsylvania › 1996
Pennsylvania, 1996
The year's recorded storm events, federal disaster declarations and flood insurance claims.
NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders.
Events by hazard
Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 1996 was 1,657 against 632 in 1995.
Counties with the most recorded events
Notable events
| Date | County | Event type | Magnitude | Property damage | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jan 1996 | Lycoming | Flash Flood | — | — | 6 | — |
| 7 Jan 1996 | Philadelphia | Blizzard | — | $1,000,000 | 4 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Juniata | Flash Flood | — | — | 4 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Montgomery | Flood | — | $3,160,000 | 3 | — |
| 8 Sep 1996 | Montgomery | Flash Flood | — | $20,000,000 | 2 | — |
| 12 Jun 1996 | Bucks | Flash Flood | — | $14,500,000 | 2 | — |
| 19 Jul 1996 | Clarion | Flash Flood | — | $75,000,000 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 Jan 1996 | Montgomery | Blizzard | — | $2,690,000 | 1 | — |
| 7 Jan 1996 | Lehigh | Blizzard | — | $2,200,000 | 1 | — |
| 7 Jan 1996 | Delaware | Blizzard | — | $1,450,000 | 1 | — |
| 2 Jan 1996 | Crawford | Heavy Snow | — | $100,000 | 1 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Blair | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 12 Jan 1996 | Montgomery | Heavy Snow | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Bedford | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Cumberland | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 28 Jan 1996 | Bucks | Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Snyder | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 Jun 1996 | Allegheny | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 May 1996 | Philadelphia | Heat | — | — | 1 | — |
| 6 Sep 1996 | Perry | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 6 Sep 1996 | Cumberland | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 19 Jul 1996 | Bedford | Flash Flood | — | — | 1 | — |
| 12 Apr 1996 | Erie | Thunderstorm Wind | 70 mph | $800,000 | — | 12 |
| 19 Jul 1996 | Jefferson | Flash Flood | — | $100,000,000 | — | — |
| 8 Jun 1996 | Westmoreland | Lightning | — | — | — | 6 |
| 19 Jul 1996 | Venango | Flash Flood | — | $50,000,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jul 1996 | Indiana | Tornado | F2 | $200,000 | — | 3 |
| 19 May 1996 | Carbon | Heat | — | — | — | 3 |
| 8 Jul 1996 | Lackawanna | Lightning | — | — | — | 3 |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Monroe | Flood | — | $25,000,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Bucks | Flood | — | $4,000,000 | — | 2 |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Pike | Flash Flood | — | $23,000,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Luzerne | Flash Flood | — | $21,300,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Bradford | Flash Flood | — | $21,100,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Wyoming | Flash Flood | — | $20,100,000 | — | — |
| 8 Nov 1996 | Monroe | Thunderstorm Wind | — | — | — | 2 |
| 7 Mar 1996 | Berks | Winter Storm | — | — | — | 2 |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Lackawanna | Flash Flood | — | $19,500,000 | — | — |
| 19 Jan 1996 | Wayne | Flash Flood | — | $17,900,000 | — | — |
| 20 Jun 1996 | Union | Thunderstorm Wind | — | $15,000,000 | — | — |
Up to 40 events with deaths, injuries, damage of $50,000 or more, or a tornado rating, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage.
Federal disaster declarations in 1996
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 Dec 1996 | DR-1150 | Major disaster | Flood | Severe Thunderstorms, High Winds,Rain, Flooding | 1 |
| 13 Sep 1996 | DR-1138 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding Associated With Tropical Depression Fran | 6 |
| 26 Jul 1996 | DR-1130 | Major disaster | Flood | Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | 10 |
| 18 Jun 1996 | DR-1120 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding, Severe Storms | 5 |
| 21 Jan 1996 | DR-1093 | Major disaster | Flood | Severe Storms And Flooding | 67 |
| 13 Jan 1996 | DR-1085 | Major disaster | Snowstorm | Blizzard Of 96 | 51 |
Flood insurance claims with a 1996 date of loss
11,075 NFIP claims, 9,354 of them paid, for $138,263,908.
Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (1 Oct 2026); OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 (8 Sep 2026). Built 1 Oct 2026.