Posted on 01/30/2021 8:53:31 AM PST by daniel1212
The January 31 – February 2, 2011 North American winter storm, also called the 2011 Groundhog Day Blizzard,[14][15][16] was a powerful and historic winter storm, situated around the United States and Canada on Groundhog Day.[14][17][18] During the initial stages of the storm, some meteorologists predicted that the system would affect over 100 million people in the United States.[19][20] The storm brought cold air, heavy snowfall, blowing snow, and mixed precipitation on a path from New Mexico and northern Texas to New England and Eastern Canada. The Chicago area saw between 1 and 2 feet of snow and blizzard conditions, with winds of over 60 mph.[21] With such continuous winds, the Blizzard continued to the north and affected Eastern and Atlantic Canada. The most notable area affected in Canada was Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area. Blizzard conditions affected many other large cities along the storm's path, including Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, El Paso, Las Cruces, Des Moines, Milwaukee, Detroit, Indianapolis, Dayton, Cleveland, New York City, New York's Capital District, and Boston.[22][23][24][25][26][27][28] Many other areas not normally used to extreme winter conditions, including Albuquerque, Dallas and Houston, experienced significant snowfall or ice accumulation. The central Illinois National Weather Service in Lincoln, Illinois issued only their fourth blizzard warning in the forecast office's 16-year history. Snowfall amounts of 20 to 28 inches were forecast for much of Northern and Western Illinois.
An ice storm ahead of the winter storm's warm front also brought hazardous conditions to much of the American Midwest and New England, and many areas saw well over 1 in (2.5 cm) of ice accumulation.[29][30] Numerous power outages, flight cancellations, airport closures, road closures, roof collapses,[31] rail and bus cancellations, mail stoppages, and school, government, and business closures took place ahead of and after the storm; many of these disruptions lasted several days. Several tornado touchdowns were reported in Texas[32] and a tornado watch was issued for parts of Alabama,[33] ahead of the cold front in the warm sector of the storm. In addition, thundersnow was recorded at some locations, including downtown Chicago.[34] At least 24 deaths were reported to be related to the storm, many of them in shoveling or auto-related incidents. The total damages from the ice storm alone may exceed $1 billion USD.[20]
A system with a maximum pressure of 1,052 millibars (31.1 inHg) followed behind it, moving across Montana. A low pressure system from the Pacific Ocean later came ashore over Northern California and crossed the Rocky Mountains, merging with the Alberta Clipper low and a developing Texas low drawing moisture from the northwestern Gulf of Mexico. The storm later intensified, and moved northeast, developing a long warm front stretching toward the New England states, and moving northeast along this jet stream track.
Lake effect snow events started over Lake Ontario and Lake Michigan from northeasterly winds. Following the predominant jet pattern, the storm developed a very rapid forward trajectory and began to migrate toward the lower Great Lakes. The heaviest snow fell in a wide swath from central Oklahoma to Illinois, Indiana and the Ohio Valley. An official blizzard warning was issued in Southern Ontario for the first time since 1993, although the Canadian definition changed in 2010.[35]...
In Chicago, in anticipation of the imminent blizzard conditions, 1,300 flights were canceled at O'Hare and Midway airports.[59] By 4:30pm, CST (22:30 GMT), the storm reached blizzard status with sustained winds exceeding 35 miles per hour (56 km/h), with white-out conditions being reported by spotters in the Old Town neighborhood on the city's North Side.[60] while Lake Shore Drive was temporarily shut down due to impassable conditions.[61] City officials said on February 2, that at least 900 cars and buses were stranded on Lake Shore Drive, with their drivers and passengers being trapped in some cases for as long as 12 hours (many drivers opting to stay with their cars in the false-fear of being ticketed for abandoning their vehicles instead of walking the short distance to the high-rise buildings lining the drive), but that closing the roadway earlier could have resulted in disastrous traffic conditions and possible accidents on other Chicago area streets.[62] Tow trucks began pulling cars from Lake Shore Drive on the evening of February 2, and moving them into six temporary lots for motorists who abandoned their vehicles to arrive and claim. The city of Chicago was unable to keep track of the license plates for each vehicle, which led to complaints from many drivers and by the time they located their vehicles, many were unable to retrieve them from the lots because they were parked bumper-to-bumper.;[63] on February 3, the City of Chicago reopened Lake Shore Drive to traffic before rush hour.[62]
The Chicago Public Schools announced, on February 1, that some schools will be closed and some will still be open on the following day (Wednesday, February 2), which marked the first cancellation of classes district wide since the Blizzard of 1999.[64] Heavy snow and high sustained winds gusting in excess of 50 miles per hour (80 km/h), caused rail switches to freeze on the CTA's Red Line and blew a portion of the roof off Wrigley Field.[65][66] Northwestern University, Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Chicago canceled classes Wednesday for the first time in over a decade due to the weather.[67][68] Over 39,000 state workers were ordered not to come into work due to the weather; this was the largest figure since a blizzard in 1978.[69] Mail service was stopped on Wednesday for six post office regions in Northern Illinois.[70] Amtrak train service out of Chicago was also canceled across Illinois on Wednesday.[71][72]
In the central part of the state, numerous municipalities were all but shut down by the storm. On Monday, residents rushed to the stores to stock up on groceries, and numerous stores reported record sales.[73] On Tuesday, several school districts and universities pre-emptively canceled classes for Tuesday evening and all-day Wednesday.[74] Many school districts planned to close a second day in a row, on Thursday.[70] About 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) of snow fell Monday night.[75] Tuesday afternoon brought heavy snowfall and sustained 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) winds, with gusts of over 50 miles per hour (80 km/h). Local government officials encouraged all businesses to close down, and local hospitals braced for the storm by preparing living and sleeping areas for essential personnel.[76][77] Flights from area airports were canceled, and local officials repeatedly urged residents not to travel, since because of the whiteout conditions, snow plows had been taken off the roads.[77][78] Interstate 80 was closed Tuesday night between Morris and Princeton. On Wednesday, I-290 and Illinois Route 53 were shut down from Lake Cook Road in Arlington Heights to St. Charles Road in Elmhurst. Forty vehicles were abandoned on Route 53. Parts of Interstate 57 were also shut down. The state police described most expressways as "impassable".[69][79] 50 motorists stranded on Illinois Route 47 south of Huntley received assistance from a snowmobile club, while dozens of motorists had to be rescued on Illinois Route 72, west of Hampshire.[70] During the storm's peak on Tuesday night, more than 100,000 customers were without electricity across the state, including 79,000 ComEd customers across Northern Illinois and 35,800 Ameren customers in Central Illinois.[80] Several charities set up shelters for the homeless and those stranded by the blizzard,[81] and governor Pat Quinn mobilized 500 Illinois National Guard troops to help rescue stranded motorists.[82] Hundreds of motorists had been rescued off Interstates 290, 55, 57, and 80. In addition, over 80 traffic accidents were reported.[69]...
The storm's highest total of 27 inches was reported in northwest suburban Roselle and Medinah, Illinois.[1] Peak gusts during the blizzard included 61 mph at O'Hare and 67 mph along the lakefront.[70]
The January 31 – February 2, 2011 North American blizzard, also called the 2011 Groundhog Day Blizzard,[14][15][16] was a powerful and historic winter storm, situated around the United States and Canada on Groundhog Day.[14][17] During the initial stages of the storm, some meteorologists predicted that the system would affect over 100 million people in the United States.[18][19] The storm brought cold air, heavy snowfall, blowing snow, and mixed precipitation on a path from New Mexico and northern Texas to New England and Eastern Canada. The Chicago area saw 21.2 inches (54 cm) of snow and blizzard conditions, with winds of over 60 mph (100 km/h).[20] With such continuous winds, the Blizzard continued to the north and affected Eastern and Atlantic Canada. The most notable area affected in Canada was Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area. Blizzard conditions affected many other large cities along the storm's path, including Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, El Paso, Las Cruces, Des Moines, Milwaukee, Detroit, Chicago, Indianapolis, Dayton, Cleveland, New York City, New York's Capital District, and Boston.[21][22][23][24][25][26][27] Many other areas not normally used to extreme winter conditions, including Albuquerque, Dallas and Houston, experienced significant snowfall or ice - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_31_%E2%80%93_February_2,_2011_North_American_blizzardaccumulation. The central Illinois National Weather Service in Lincoln, Illinois issued only their fourth Blizzard Warning in the forecast office's 16-year history. Snowfall amounts of 20 to 28 inches (51 to 71 cm) were forecast for much of Northern and Western Illinois.
An ice storm ahead of the winter storm's warm front also brought hazardous conditions to much of the American Midwest and New England, and many areas saw well over 1 in (2.5 cm) of ice accumulation.[28][29] Numerous power outages, flight cancellations, airport closures, road closures, roof collapses,[30] rail and bus cancellations, mail stoppages, and school, government, and business closures took place ahead of and after the storm; many of these disruptions lasted several days. Several tornado touchdowns were reported in Texas[31] and a tornado watch was issued for parts of Alabama,[32] ahead of the cold front in the warm sector of the storm. In addition, thundersnow was recorded at some locations, including downtown Chicago.[33] At least 36 deaths were reported to be related to the storm, many of them in shoveling or auto-related incidents, and the total damages were US $1.8 billion.
Whistling past the graveyard here.
We’ve had a fairly mild winter so far in Pennsylvania. One good snow and temps rarely very low.
49 days to go and it’ll be spring.
1993 was a misery, here.
cars totally buried and not enough plows.
Oddly, when I was a kid, that was the norm.
When I was 7 or 8, while the neighbor was plowing us out, I was in the backyard in the dark, walking across the top of the ‘frozen’ snow.
I fell in and it was over my head and no one could hear me yelling over the noise of the tractor.
I managed to get out myself and that was the last time i ever walked across deep frozen snow.
:D
I remember that one. I was up late working from home, monitoring my company’s switch that night from our old system to SAP. The wind howled and blew snow against the windows and I hoped the electricity would hold out. The third shift couldn’t make it in, so the second shift stayed over. We had a reduced first shift the next day. The snow in the alley behind my garage drifted to waist-high and didn’t get plowed for four days.
I was on the road headed south from Chicago just before the 1999 storm hit. On my return trip a few days later, I-65 was still closed north of Indianapolis. I joined other stranded motorists at the Super 8 in Seymour, Indiana. The interstate opened the next day, but with really bad driving conditions. Roadside services started closing early in the afternoon. It was an adventure.
Winters such as those make me appreciate the mild and dry winter we have had so far this year. The 6-9 inches of snow that is forecast for tonight doesn’t seem that bad at all.
A 4-paw drive snowmobile!
I was working at a dairy farm when the Blizzard of 78 hit, leaving 3k cars and trucks on Rt. 128 and over 30” of snow on the ground and martial law in effect (higher population density). The people cheered when the milk truck showed up, as milk, bread and eggs went fast. Thank God for it all.
Those are the kinds of experiences that teach you not to sweat the small stuff.
Film of the NYC blizzard of 1902.....the worst, at the time, since the Blizzard of 1888...
Vids....
Lakeshore Drive....hundreds of cars under snow/stranded....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV3Bcngnv3M
Chicago Blizzard 2011 - Abandoned Bus on Lake Shore Drive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uH3eBWsRAL0
It been going on about 2 years of good weather here in PA. Great last winter. spring not wet and mild. summer very mild.
I knew we shouldn’t be talking about this. :(
8-14 inches coming our way.
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