Posted on 12/26/2022 9:53:52 AM PST by jimjohn
Buffalo, NY: 1977 vs 2022 (A Tale of Two Blizzards)
Observations by J. Johnson
Up early this morning, thankful that we still have electricity, I’d like to compare the 2 major events that have happened in this area in these 2 very difficult years. One was long ago. The other – still on going. Perhaps this can also be a teachable moment for many – including some political nay-sayers out there.
(Note: Having Google Maps handy to follow along with this story may help)
1977: Sent home early from school. The storm began as I got off the bus on Jefferson & Delavan Ave. When I got home, I immediately joined my father trying to shovel snow in front of the house. I remember snow on the ground getting replaced immediately after each scoop. A few minutes of that, and Dad said, “forget it, son. Let’s get inside”.
I didn’t see outside again for 4 days.
Buffalo is where I grew up – about a mile away from the May 14 supermarket shooting that killed 10.
2022: I peek past my Christmas tree in the window to see my neighbor. In what looks like the lull in the storm, he begins to clear his driveway, only to see the path he cleared immediately replaced with more snow. He soon gave up. From that point, I could not see outside – until Christmas morning.
I am in Niagara County – just north of the Buffalo Area.
1977: There are no smart phones. No social media. If there were fears of so-called ‘climate change’, I hadn’t heard about it as the exhaust of Lackawanna steel plants roared south of the city. Our weather was reported nightly with a guy outside writing notes on a chalkboard (with better accuracy than the Weather Channel). Still, with technology that would seem ancient today, I remember “The Weather Outside with Tom Jolls” and news anchor Irv Weinstein warning us days in advance of a major storm coming and we should prepare. Some did. Others didn’t. 23 deaths later, Western New Yorkers seemed to learn not to take chances for the next time – at least I thought.
2022: Instant communication is a virtual commodity; everyone has it. There were warnings galore, but I didn’t even pick up on the severity until I went into a Wal-Mart to get a set of specialized batteries for our Christmas decorations. The checkout lines were backed-up to the shopping areas with carts full. You see, I don’t follow regular media. I learned while filling up with gas at the nearby Indian Reservation.
As for this author, we are blessed with the ability to totally remove our flagpole from the yard. As I saw my neighbor testing his backup generator outside, I tried to test mine to no avail (and yes, I had it checked out in October – along with the snow plow). I also filled tanks in both vehicles, all 4 20-gal propane tanks, knowing that if the power went out, there’s plenty of wood and a wood-burning stove that could work in the garage to keep warm. Food and emergency supplies? I hang around this forum – that should answer those questions.
1977: The Aftermath: There is no red or blue – just Westerner New Yorkers digging out. I remember help coming in from other towns, but I especially remember churches helping out with emergency shelters, food, and even care for the sick when they couldn’t reach hospitals. Down our narrow street, an ambulance could not get down the street and an elderly man lost his life because of it. I remember us kids all out with shovels following that to make sure the road was clear for the next emergency; especially knowing there was an out-of-control fire on the west side of town. I remember the warm soups and hot chocolate that were given to us freezing kids for a hard day’s work. I remember my parents having to boil water due to a water main break. I remember adults and children knocking on neighbor’s doors after the storm subsided, to make sure those inside were okay. I remember a bunch of us being sent by our parents to a carryout store about ½ mile away (E. Ferry and Wohlers Ave) on foot to buy what we could. There was a group of us. There was no looting. I remember some of the kids didn’t have enough to pay, but the store owner simply had them give the name and number of their parents so he could ‘square it with them later.’ I remember on the way back home with groceries, climbing a snow bank at a major intersection where I was able to touch the traffic light, which wasn’t working.
The location was E. Ferry St. and Jefferson Avenue – about ¼ mile north of the Tops Supermarket where the May 14, 2022 mass shooting happened, a.k.a – the ‘hood’.
2022: The Honorable Governor Kathy Hochul (D-New York – gag, spit) in the midst of the storm wasted no time in eluding that this event was due in part to ‘climate change’. Obviously, most churches are closed and reports of looting are rampant in some areas. We can assume these are folks who did not prepare for whatever reason (despite instant communications). There are even reports of people opening up their door to help a person in need, only to learn said person was only there to rob them of their belongings. Other public officials, soon to be congratulating themselves for a wonderful job, openly stated, “We can’t get road clearing crews and emergency vehicles on the road. If you have an emergency you are on your own – and stay off the roads.”
And online I saw a photo of some guy who had climbed a snow bank to touch a traffic signal.
If the 70+mph gusts off Lake Erie didn’t take down the power lines, those old Ash Trees that were turned into buffets from some insect called an ash-borer (or something like that), and has caused a massive removal of these dead trees over the years in this area – but not enough. Perhaps that may be given some serious consideration due to recent events.
This is Christmas in Buffalo and Western New York – circa 2022. Like many others on my street, I rotate between plowing approximately 3 feet of snow with a hard base from my driveway and getting warm in my running truck. You could hear the motors roaring throughout the community. While outside, I looked around wondering about the more seniors in the neighborhood. Not to worry; locals with blades and shovels were already clearing their paths, and checking to make sure they were okay. Then again, I am in Niagara County – just north of Buffalo/Erie County.
No doubt many of you have seen the photos and videos. As I write, they are still pulling frozen bodies from cars and homes. Yes, they warned us all to stay indoors. But these people were probably trying to get home, or out trying to help others – since government officials said no help would be coming. The actual statement was “no emergency services would be available”. Isn’t this exactly what “emergency” service is for?
1977: There were no red areas. No blue areas. Just people. None of us voted for this. We simply hunkered down and looked after each other – just like in previous storms.
2022: This storm has hit a wide section of New York State. Red, blue, and whatever colored area you can think of. And like 1977, none of us voted for this. I want the above statements to sink in to all those who have no empathy since “you voted democrat – this is what you get” or blame all this on ‘climate change, global warming, or whatever you call it these days. The finger pointing has already started. What more could have been done. How much is this going to cost? Why didn’t people just stay inside? Why didn’t the government…blah blah blah.
(Homework assignment: Google ‘Lake Effect’.)
The weather conditions of 2022 may be worse than 1977, but from my observations, the social conditions of 2022 are much worse than 1977, and will probably result in more casualties because of it.
Being on the north end of this storm, there was between 2 and 4 feet of snow in the driveway and on the street, but I learned on Christmas that we didn’t get anywhere near the worst of it. But I did receive my greatest Christmas blessing. You see, we have close friends/family in Amherst, NY – seniors who lost power.
With a borrowed generator running, they were suddenly facing inches of water in a flooding basement due to a sump pump malfunction. No place was open to buy a new one, and the wife was not looking forward to manually operating a pump all night in a dark basement while her husband had to mind a generator just to keep warm in the one room with a space heater. Their daughter, also buried in snow over 30 miles away, could not help. What’s worse: There is a total driving ban in Erie County.
But in Niagara County, I had a spare pump (note to all: If your home uses a sump pump, ALWAYS make sure you have a spare!) I also had extra extension cords for the generator etc. It took about 30 minutes, but their basement is now water free, with my sump pump sending water into their basin sink.
What was my gift: That I was able to help my friend/brother – and the other man down the street whose pickup was stuck in the snow, and the utility workers who were outside putting chains on their tires; I made sure to thank them for their service (been there, done that – 9 years on poles for cable, telephone and electric). Yes, that was my Christmas gift this year.
Again, this storm did not spare anyone based on how they voted. If you’re still looking at your google map, every country surrounding Buffalo/Erie County was hit just as hard, and most are red counties. Most are people who moved out of the blue area of Buffalo. If you live in what we call the ‘southtowns’ (anything south of the Buffalo River to the PA state line), you get it even worse. It’s what we call ski-country where snow blowers are replaced with construction machines and earth movers on winter storm days.
After helping my friend, I had to use 4 wheel drive to get to the other end of his street. We approached a man walking in the middle of the road, since no sidewalks were cleared. He stopped, then stepped into the deep snow and waved for us to pass. As I did, we gave each other that familiar Western New York greeting: “Go Bills!”
As I look outside, the snowflakes are starting to fall again, it’ll soon be time to bundle up to do it all over again, as the women in our lives are already rearranging schedules for Christmas. Fortunately, the rest of the family is in good shape.
1977: We were Western New Yorkers. We got through it.
2022: We are Western New Yorkers. We’ll get through it.
Merry Christmas, Everyone! Our celebrations here will be a little delayed.
P.S. Shout – out to the folks up in the Jefferson/Lewis county areas (I-81 north of Syracuse for those following along). They are digging out as well. If you know folks there, ask them what ‘Lake Effect’ means.
different Beast, similar results
Buffalo only had 7 inches of new snow from the 1977 storm
Lake Erie froze over very early (mid dec) which collected large amounts of dry powdery snow on it over time
very strong SW winds blew all of that snow into the city off the Lake
Diversity is strength bro
There is no global warming CAUSED BY MAN. It is the phenomenon of constant change applicable to our universe.
There was no looting in 1977
I was working in 1977 with one of my first jobs. Yeah it was bad but people handled it well as seen by this documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK0e4mwK34M
Now we have people (particularly the under 40 set) going out and buying heat pumps as their sole heating source then bringing in charcoal grills, etc. in thus COing themselves.
The signs were all there for significant lake effect and cold temps; fairly long hot summer, swarms of box elder bugs and lady bugs in the Fall.
I was living off campus during the blizzard of ‘77. My car was buried for 2 weeks and the snow was so high that plows couldn’t be used, they had to bring in front end loaders to put it on dump trucks to get rid of it. The wind was so bad the wind chill got to -60 F.
Might be true if not for the fact that over 100 people were prosecuted for looting during the 77 storm.
I remember 1977.
Jimmy Carter
Arab oil embargo
Ice age predictions
Turn thermostat down
SALT treaty
Ford Pintos
“Afternoon Delight”
Disco
Leisure suits
My 1971 Gremlin
your sources?
Ha, I had to laugh at your last line as we live 100 miles southeast of the tip of Lake Michigan, but we’re are in direct line of Lake effect snow.
There is a roughly 50 year cycle to sun spot cycles.
there is one difference that might have been overlooked, maybe not.
1977 did not have the NYZtate version of Kamala Harris for governor.
In 2020, churches were closed and some who tried to go were cited or arrested. You don’t build relationships via online services.
The winter of 77-78 in Indiana, we had a blizzard much like yours. My husband and I walked to the local grocery/produce market and bought what we could carry. Driving was prohibited, but it was inventory time at Kmart so they sent someone to get me so we could keep on calculating. That was the end of January’78. A few weeks into February, I knew we had a blizzard baby coming.
Now we have great grandchildren, and the neighbor snow blowed the drive this morning before we could get out. I will donate a meal to their table in return later this week. We shoveled a foot and a half of snow that filtered into the garage. New spring on the door, tight enough to not let it close all the way. At this age I’m happy with shoveling a bit of snow from the garage.
We didn’t get much, hard to say we even got 4-6”. But the 50 mph winds we the beast!
Exactly, I remember the leftists promising us BENEFITS from ultimate diversity.
It’s all a lie, what makes a people great is what they have in common. Not all their differences.
Eagles Hotel California was the #1 song of the year.
GoD speed Buffalo..
we don't have a race problem.......we have problem.......
In 1977 it was used as proof of THE COMING ICE AGE was upon us.
2022 is being used as proof of Glo-Bull Warming!
The brutal cold should have put the global warming nonsense out of it’s misery.
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