Piles of snow, in some places taller than most people, buried parts of western and northern New York as a lake-effect storm pounded areas east of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario for a third straight day on Saturday, with possibly even more to come.
The lake-effect storm, caused by cold air picking up moisture from warmer lakes, created narrow bands of windblown snow that dumped feet of snow in some communities, while leaving towns a short drive away relatively unscathed.
Greg Mitri helps dig out a plow after an intense lake-effect snowstorm impacted the area in Hamburg, New York, November 18, 2022. /CFP
Snowfall totals as high as 196 centimeters were reported in the Buffalo suburb of Orchard Park. Partway across the state, the town of Natural Bridge near the Fort Drum Army base, reported just under 1.8 meters.
The snowfall in some spots ranked among the highest ever recorded in the area, rivaling the eye-popping amounts that fell during similar storms in 2014 and 1945.
Good Samaritans help dig out a plow after an intense lake-effect snowstorm impacted the area in Hamburg, New York, November 18, 2022. /CFP
The snowfall totals, which began accumulating the night on November 17 in some spots, “would be on the order of historic not only for any time of year but for any part of the country,” said National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Frank Pereira, at NWS headquarters in College Park, Maryland.
Bob Roesca helps dig out a plow after an intense lake-effect snowstorm impacted the area in Hamburg, New York, November 18, 2022. /CFP
Buffalo has experience with dramatic lake-effect snowstorms, few worse than the one that struck in November of 2014. That epic storm dumped 2 meters of snow on some communities over three days, collapsing roofs and trapping motorists in more than 100 vehicles on a lakeside stretch of the New York State Thruway.
(Cover image via CFP)
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