An intense low pressure system brought a winter storm to Sussex County and a wintry mix in the rest of Northwest New Jersey.  A combination of snow, sleet and freezing rain occurred. Snowfall averaged 1 to 4 inches, except around 6 inches in Sussex County. Ice accumulations averaged around one tenth of an inch. The same storm system brought high winds and flooding rains to the eastern part of New Jersey.  The wintry mix caused accidents with the greatest impact in Morris and Sussex Counties. There were approximately forty reported accidents on state highways during the first two hours of precipitation.
Snow began throughout Northwest New Jersey on the afternoon of the 26th. The snow fell at its heaviest during the second half of the afternoon in Sussex County. As warmer air moved in aloft, the snow changed to sleet in the Raritan Basin during the second half of the afternoon on the 26th, but took most of the evening for this to occur in far Northwest New Jersey. In the Raritan Basin, the sleet changed to freezing rain and then rain during the late afternoon and early evening and rain fell heavy at times late that evening before ending overnight. In the rest of Northwest New Jersey, the sleet changed to freezing rain overnight and precipitation changed back to snow before ending on the morning of the 27th.  Sussex County was affected the hardest by the winter storm. In Sparta alone there were twenty reported accidents. In Frankford Township, a mail truck drove through a guard rail on U.S. Route 206.  The driver was uninjured. In Warren County, in Hardwick Township, all westbound lanes of Interstate 80 were closed after a tractor trailer overturned. In Morris County, minor accidents were reported in Chatham, Jefferson, Mendham, Mount Olive and Roxbury Townships. In Jefferson Township, an overturned public works truck closed closed East Shawnee Trail.

Representative snowfall included 7.2 inches in Highland Lakes (Sussex County), 6.0 inches in Wantage (Sussex County), 5.9 inches in Hardyston Township (Sussex County), 5.5 inches in Montague (Sussex County), 5.2 inches in Vernon Township (Sussex County), 5.0 inches in Sparta (Sussex County), 4.0 inches in Milton (Morris County), 3.8 inches in Butler (Morris County), 2.8 inches in Blairstown (Warren County), 2.5 inches in Marcella (Morris County), 2.3 inches in Hackettstown (Warren County), 2.0 inches in Hope (Warren County) and Watchung (Somerset County), 1.6 inches in Califon (Hunterdon County) and 1.0 inch in Flemington (Hunterdon County).
The wintry weather was caused by a low pressure system that moved from Texas on Christmas Day northeast into the Tennessee Valley on the 26th. A secondary low pressure system formed in the Carolinas on the 26th and became the main low. This low moved northeast and passed through southern Delaware on the evening of the 26th and across southeast New Jersey overnight on the 26th. The low pressure system reached the eastern tip of Long Island, New York late in the morning on the 27th. That storm track made it difficult for warm air at the surface to reach northwest New Jersey.

Winter Weather in SOMERSET, NEW JERSEY
From 26-DEC-12 13:00:00 to 26-DEC-12 17:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Weather in HUNTERDON, NEW JERSEY
From 26-DEC-12 13:00:00 to 26-DEC-12 18:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Weather in MORRIS, NEW JERSEY
From 26-DEC-12 14:00:00 to 26-DEC-12 22:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Weather in WARREN, NEW JERSEY
From 26-DEC-12 14:00:00 to 27-DEC-12 00:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Winter Storm in SUSSEX, NEW JERSEY
From 26-DEC-12 14:00:00 to 27-DEC-12 12:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter