Posted on 01/22/2005 4:04:20 AM PST by SamAdams76
Well all the stops have officially been pulled out by the weather prognosticators. They are on a "war footing." The Northeast is getting a true BLIZZARD this weekend. Not a "nor'easter". Not just your basic snowstorm dumping 6-10 inches in Boston and New York with a mix and changeover to rain along the coast. No! We are talking 20-30 inches of windblown powdery snow in many locations with no chance of a mix with or change to rain whatsoever.
The temperatures are currently running zero or below zero across most of the Northeast this morning so the cold air is in place and fully entrenched. With the high winds expected with this storm, This will be a true BLIZZARD.
So as I sit in the epicenter of it all (my area is expecting over two feet of snow), I thought I'd start this thead so that Freepers can give us reports of how conditions are in there area. And you don't have to be in the Northeast to participate as this storm is currently affecting Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and West Virginia as it heads to the East Coast where it is expected to undergo what the weather nuts call "bombogenesis" and literally explode into a superstorm as energy is transferred over the comparatively milder Atlantic Ocean.
So there you have it. Even in areas where plenty of snow falls this time of year, you have people running to the supermarket early this morning to "stock up", as if somehow a few feet of snow is going to stop all commerce and transportation for the forseeable future (the reality is that we should be all shoveled and plowed out by Monday morning no matter how bad things get).
The local TV stations around here have gone absolutely bonkers, as they are wont to do. It's even more extreme this year because TV "broadcast" stations are struggling to maintain their relevancy in a high world of internet, satellite radio and many other distractions that consumers have these days.
Weekday "anchors" are being rolled out of bed early this Saturday morning as they throw on their hairpieces and head to the studios for all-day "wall-to-wall" coverage of this blizzard. Seasoned reporters are being sent to Home Depots where people are already nervously buying shovels (even though they likely have 7 or 8 shovels in their garage already) and supermarkets where silly old ladies are buying gallons of milk (that they normally never drink) and loaves of bread (that they will never eat and end up throwing to the birds). Other reporters will be sent into the streets to do interviews with snow-plow drivers and "public safety" officials. More junior reporters are being sent to the sides of highways for liveshots where absolutely nothing is going on presently. But they will stand there nevertheless, filming the traffic going by and commenting on "how dangerous" this highway will be in just a few more hours. Then when the storm hits, these same reporters will retreat to rest areas where they will continue their liveshots as their cameramen instruct them to "sway in the wind" and "hold on to their hats" to help convince the viewers at home that the storm is severe indeed.
Yes, it's going to be a fun weekend in New England and the Northeast in general. But the beauty of this is that is is on a weekend. If we are going to get a true blizzard, the timing just couldn't be much better. We are able to get our normal errands done on Saturday morning and then in the afternoon, we can retreat to our homes and stoke up the fireplace as the snow moves in. Then tomorrow (Sunday), we can sleep late and take our time shoveling out. Then we have a perfect excuse to sit around the warm house all afternoon watching football as THREE out of the four teams still playing are all in the snow-bound Northeast. The ratings ought to be phenomenal, provided the power doesn't go out.
So post conditions in your area here.
Outside my home (approx 30 miles northwest of Boston near the NH border), it is -11 degrees! It is daybreak and the skies are mostly clear with some high clouds. It is COLD out there, almost too cold for snow. But it's coming, at least that's what they tell me!
Went to bed last night and skies were clear. Woke up to wind, snow and a temp of 15 degrees. Snow plow's been past already. I have to be at work at noon and my husband works from 3:00 p.m. to 10 p.m. We're expecting 6 to 10+ inches. We'll just have to take our time. We're in Indiana, Pa. - about 60 miles east of Pittsburgh.
Woke up by the howling wind.....Temp is right at freezing....Very hazy outside.
Here's the forcast:
Saturday : Windy with snow, sleet or freezing rain this morning tapering to snow showers late in the day. High 34F. Winds NW at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of precip 60%. Snowfall around one inch.
Saturday night : Windy. Snow flurries and a few snow showers throughout the night. Low 11F. Winds NNW at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of snow 30%.
Morning, Sam, and thanks for starting (what should be) a good thread. It was about 4 below out here this morning when I got up around 5AM. Got wood in the stove, gas in the generator and snowblower, beer and snacks in the fridge and enough sense to stay off the roads in a blizzard. Let it snow.
Here in Mount Airy, MD (near Frederick) we have about a half inch at 9:00 AM. It's coming down at a reasonable clip. We're expecting about eight inches by Sunday morning, when it should stop. Definitely enough time to get the roads cleared off before Monday morning. I anticipate a relaxing weekend (doing indoor chores!) and back to work as usual on Monday. Certainly not a Donner Party situation, but you wouldn't know that to listen to the network news.
It's actually very pretty and the baby alpacas are having fun in it.
It's obvious that there is global warming on the east coast </s
We're having very warm weather for this time of year (60 yesterday and about 51 now (6 a.m.) Maybe the global warming is only hitting the left coast.
In all seriousness, they're expecting a lot more rain, and, since it's warm in the mountains, too, they'll also probably get rain instead of snow increasing the chance of flooding(some of the ski places have closed down because they've lost so much snow).
Flash flood warning for WA:
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
FLOOD WATCH BULLETIN NO. 3
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
430 AM PST SAT JAN 22 2005
WAC009-027-031-033-045-053-057-061-073-222330-
430 AM PST SAT JAN 22 2005
...THE FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM PST MONDAY FOR THE
FOLLOWING WESTERN WASHINGTON COUNTIES...
COUNTIES IN WASHINGTON: CLALLAM...GRAYS HARBOR...JEFFERSON...
KING...MASON...PIERCE...SKAGIT...SNOHOMISH...WHATCOM.
$$
ANOTHER ROUND OF SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL THIS WEEKEND COULD DRIVE
WESTERN WASHINGTON RIVERS ABOVE FLOOD STAGE AGAIN BY SUNDAY OR
MONDAY.
RIVERS FACING THE GREATEST THREAT OF FLOODING INCLUDE THE SATSOP...
BOGACHIEL...ELWHA...SKOKOMISH...THE REACH OF THE PUYALLUP NEAR ORTING
...THE SNOQUALMIE...TOLT...SKYKOMISH...SNOHOMISH...STILLAGUAMISH...
SKAGIT...AND NOOKSACK RIVERS.
THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL WILL LIKELY OCCUR SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY
NIGHT...WHEN SOME LOCATIONS IN THE OLYMPICS AND CENTRAL AND NORTH
CASCADES COULD RECEIVE 4 TO 8 INCHES OF RAIN. FORKS ON THE NORTH
COAST RECEIVED NEARLY TWO INCHES DURING THE NIGHT. THE FREEZING
LEVEL WILL BE UNUSUALLY HIGH FOR JANUARY...REMAINING ABOVE 8000 FEET
UNTIL MONDAY.
A FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT FLOODING IS POSSIBLE BUT NOT IMMINENT OR
CERTAIN. IF YOU LIVE ALONG A FLOOD PRONE RIVER IN THE WATCH AREA...BE
READY TO ACT QUICKLY IF THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ISSUES A FLOOD
WARNING.
bump
My uncle owned the club across from Anthony's Pier 4 at the time (IIRC, The Atlantic ?), and they were stuck there for three days during the 1978 blizzard. Snow drifts all the way to the top of the doors.
We live on Long Island. It's 8 deg and we're supposed to get 18" (or more depending on who you listen to).
Our snow blowers are ready, generators on standby.
So far, so good :)
Uffda! Wifey's from the St. Cloud area (New Munich, to be exact), and we're hoping none of the relatives choose this time of year to die, such as with the last two...
This Southern California boy will gladly put up with the summertime skeeters versus trying to drive up there in the winter....scared the hell out of me last winter.
Is this pic current? The home owners of the house in pic need to get the snow off their roof. Way too much, could have damaging effects
Makes what we're getting here in Michigan look pretty tame.
LOL. I don't know...You haven't seen our skeeters...
Lancaster/Lebanon County border (Middlecreek Wildlife Area) - just started to snow and it is 9 degrees!
Ugh, how many days until spring? I'm sick of being cold. I have to work tonight and nurses are not allowed to call out "snowed in".
Is that a real temperature or wind chill?
Insert H-mo sound effect here ;>
22 below Downeast this mornin', currently a barmy 5 degrees. Woohoo!
We've had a couple of deaths from exposure around here lately. Especially for the elderly, this weather's no joke.
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