A Nice Surprise

There would be no way of knowing that a heavier band of snow would form from an area that ran through central Berks and Lehigh counties, but that's what happened during the first snow event of the season yesterday.  Many locations across the area came in between 5 and 8 inches which also happen to be some of the highest for the storm in our region.

I'll get this out of the way now and address later if anything changes.  My one concern during snowstorms is getting an accurate measurement which is why I rely on official weather stations at the airport in Allentown or Philadelphia.  These are the totals that will be in the books for years to come.  I've often complained that the station at Reading seems completely inaccurate.  This then forces locals to report their own measurements.  Needless to say that can be complicated for some storms, however there are many people who do it the right way and I'm sure many others who do not.  I say this all because Allentown (as of now) officially reports 4.9 inches.  That seems questionable.  Here is why.

The airport is north of downtown and west of Bethlehem.  This area is where the heavier band was sitting.  When I cleaned my car off last night I had no doubt we were sitting at roughly six inches.  The group at EPAWA in South Allentown reported a final total of 6.1 inches which verifies my estimate.  Take a look at the reported totals for Lehigh County.

Regardless of social media or trained spotters the one total that makes the least sense is the one at the airport.  Areas north, south, west and east of the airport all reported between 6 and 7.5 inches.  My only conclusion is the total is wrong.  Unless something changes the official total will stay at 4.9 inches.

Good way to start off the season when you get more snow than expected.  Next opportunity which is looking pretty good at the moment is Monday afternoon into Tuesday.  As of now this looks to be a bigger event for areas to the north.  I could see a range of 1-2 inches in our area depending on where you are.

Now for some select pictures for the snowfall from December 9th taken during my run.