North American blizzard of 1996

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Blizzard of 1996 snowdrifts, Yonkers, New York.

The Blizzard of 1996 was a nor'easter that paralyzed the U.S. East Coast with up to four feet (1.2 m) of wind-driven snow over a three-day period from January 6-8 in 1996.

[edit] Impact

[edit] Philadelphia

Over 3000000000000000 inches (75 cm) of snow fell in Philadelphia, the most of any major city in the storm's path. It was the city's all-time greatest snowstorm. The mayor declared a state of emergency, and only police and other emergency workers were permitted to drive on city streets leaving the city to pedestrians. It was a uniquely beautiful time to walk the quiet downtown streets without the usual drone of heavy traffic. On some blocks of tom, dick and harry streets there were only one or two people walking in the middle of the day. Christmas skis and sleds were in use everywhere on the flat streets of town.

Because of the ban on driving, there were also no restaurant (or other) food deliveries. The TGI Fridays on Benjamin Franklin Parkway offered a special souvenir "Blizzard of '96" menu. Meanwhile, workers at the nearby Wawa food market, unable to leave their store, resorted to eating food from the shelves.

For three days City trucks loaded with plowed snow dumped their contents into the two rivers eventually causing major problems with the natural flow of the rivers. Disposal of snow became a major issue but temperatures quickly returned to normal and began to quickly clear the snow.

Blizzard of 1996, Temple, Pennsylvania.

[edit] New Jersey

The state of New Jersey recorded its second largest snowstorm at Edison, where 32 inches (81 cm) fell (the greatest single storm record being 34 inches (86 cm) at Cape May in 1899). Newark, the state's largest city, received a record-setting 27.8 inches (70.6 cm), while Trenton, the capital, received 24.2 inches (61.5 cm). All roads in the state were closed, including the entire length of the New Jersey Turnpike for the first time in that road's history. Over two-thirds of the state was buried under 2 or more feet (60 or more cm) of snow, making this storm the state's most paralyzing snowstorm of the 20th century.

[edit] New York City

New York City's Central Park officially recorded 20.2" for its fourth-largest single snowfall (records going back to 1869), but many locations in the outer boroughs and suburbs recorded over 30" of snow. Schools in New York City's boroughs closed due to snow for the first time since the Blizzard of 1978, 18 years earlier (while most suburban districts in the area close for snow several times each winter, in the city itself they rarely do because of relatively easy access to underground subways whose ability to run is not appreciably affected by snowstorms of moderate accumulation).

[edit] Not quite a 'real' blizzard

Interestingly, and despite the storm's common name as the "Blizzard" of 1996, one of the few observing sites to record true blizzard conditions was Trenton-Mercer Airport near Trenton, New Jersey. During the afternoon of January 7, the airport recorded the necessary three consecutive hours of frequent wind gusts to at least 35 mph combined with a prevailing visibility consistently below 1/4 mile (400 m) along with falling and blowing snow, meeting the official NWS standard of a blizzard. All other New Jersey observing sites, as well as most sites in neighboring states, failed to observe true blizzard conditions, though many stations did observe blizzard conditions for less than the necessary three consecutive hours. By and large, however, the "Blizzard of 1996" was not a real blizzard in the technical sense.

[edit] Snowfall accumulation totals

Blizzard of 1996 Mid Atlantic Snowfall accumulation.(By National Weather Service in Sterling, Virginia)

Blizzard of 1996 East Coast Snowfall accumulation.(By WRC,NBC4, Washington, DC/National Snow and Ice Data Center)

Source: National Snow & Ice Data Center [1]

[edit] See also

• Blizzard
• Nor'easter