That Epic, Fickle, Shovel-off-to-Buffalo Snow: An All-Time U.S. Record?

Roy W. Spencer, Ph. D. ^ | November 20th, 2014 | Roy W. Spencer, Ph. D.

[kosciusko51]

I have a special place in my heart for lake effect snow. Living in Sault, Michigan as a teenager is what got me interested in weather and started me down my career path.

But it’s hard to compete with what Buffalo, New York gets for lake effect snow. Over six feet of snow fell in some areas on the south side of town in the last 48 hours, most of it in a 24 hour period.

The all-time U.S. record for a 24 hour snowfall is 76 inches in Silver Lake, Colorado way back in 1921, and it is possible this was exceeded yesterday. We will have to wait and see what NOAA decides.

The reason why Buffalo gets pounded so bad is the shape of Lake Erie…long and narrow, so a cold wind blowing down its length generates a single, intense snow band. You are either in it or out of it. Driving down the road, you can be in sunshine one minute, and in white-out conditions the next. This pair of pictures taken at the same time only 5 miles apart in Buffalo during the storm illustrates the fickle nature of lake effect storms.

[caww]

Rains coming soon....so will be huge flooding

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Hundreds of trucks being used to haul out the area as there is no place to put the snow....

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One of several dumping mountains

People getting paid $10. hourly to help clean out the stadium

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Caravans of snow filled trucks winding throughout the area to dump sites

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Residents trying to clear the area

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More than one way to get the job done! LOLOL

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This guy was cooking out despite the depth of snow above his grill!

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Another amazing shot of the snow wall as it came in

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The Snow Blob struck!

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Snow removal continues in the stands at Spartan Stadium Friday afternoon

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Another dumping site

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Fellow trying to dif out his furnace vent

[caww]

LOL...pretty much said it all for those in Buffalo earlier!....coming around the corner..."Flooding as we haven't seen for a long while" via Como

[McGruff]

We have our own FReporters on the ground. You'll never guess what we have here on the ground in Buffalo...(vanity)

[fhayek]

Yup, cars out dug out, streets have been open. Roof is mostly shoveled off. Time to brace for flooding. I have ten foot piles of snow in my yard due to plows and shoveling. Buffalonians can generally roll with the punches when it come to snow, but there have been 13 fatalities from this storm, which is extraordinarily high for a Buffalo snowstorm.

[QualityMan]

LOL