HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) - 2024 marks the 30th anniversary of the worst cold snap on record in the Harrisburg area. On January 21, 1994, the thermometer dropped to minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit, as arctic air dipped south and locked much of the country in a deep freeze.
For this four-part series, we are bringing you stories from our 5:30, 6:00, and 11:00 p.m. newscasts (We didn't have a 5:00 p.m. back then) from January 18 to January 21.
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By 3 p.m. on January 20th, temperatures had managed to claw their way up to +13 degrees Fahrenheit. People started to dig out, though not always soon enough to prevent building collapses from the tons (yes, tons) of snow on their roofs.
Even with the sun and plowing and salting, roads were still treacherous. Cars and trucks lost control on the ice, invisible but still very much there.
In spite of the roads, people started getting out and shopping, either because their cupboards were getting bare, or they'd learned the hard way they needed to upgrade their cold weather preparedness, or they were just suffering from cabin fever.
The Central Pennsylvania Blood Bank put out a call for donors, having run dangerously low on blood after several days without donations.
After 3 p.m. temperatures once again began to drop, falling back into negative numbers by 8 p.m.
And they kept going down through the night...