December 2022 North American winter storm

From December 21 to 26, 2022, an extratropical cyclone created crippling winter storm conditions, including blizzards, high winds, snowfall, and record cold temperatures across the majority of the United States and parts of Canada.The cold wave affected all U.S. states from Colorado to the Eastern Seaboard, with effects felt as far south as Miami, Florida.[10] Media and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul referred to the situation in the Buffalo area as the Blizzard of the Century.[24][30] Buffalo's first blizzard since January 6, 2014 (as defined by the National Weather Service) forced snow into massive drifts, shuttering the city and leaving hundreds stranded.[1] As the storm began to exit the United States, it brought the fourth-highest high tide on record to Portland, Maine.[42] In Ontario, among airport weather stations reporting wind speeds and visibility (Sarnia, London, Kitchener, Toronto, Hamilton, St. Catharines, Wiarton, Peterborough, Kingston, Ottawa), Kingston had blizzard conditions (visibility reduced to 400 meters [0.25 mi] or less due to blowing snow) from 2 p.m. on December 23 until 7 p.m. on December 24 along with a peak wind gust of 98 kilometers per hour (61 mph).[50][51] An average of 76 centimeters (30 in) of snow fell in Fort Erie with drifts as high as 3 meters (9.8 ft) while peak wind gusts of 125 km/h were recorded in nearby Port Colborne.[58] Additionally, South Dakota governor Kristi Noem declared a winter storm emergency for the state and activated the National Guard.[59] States of emergency were also declared in Colorado, Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, New York, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.[63] Storm-related deaths reached above 100 and occurred from diverse causes, including cold exposure outside or inside homes without heat or inside marooned cars, traffic accidents, falling trees or branches, electrocutions, carbon monoxide poisonings and a house fire caused by unsafe heating methods.[84] In mid-Michigan, four people died from exposure, three from cardiac arrest while shoveling or blowing snow, and one from carbon monoxide poisoning while in their car.[52] The Port Colborne Fire and Emergency Services Chief said his team responded to multiple incidents regarding carbon monoxide, including one with "very serious" injuries but would not detail exact outcomes.[104] On December 28, it was announced Southwest Airlines had canceled more flights for an extended period as a result of damage to operational systems which occurred from the storm.[106] More than 100 vehicles were left struck in intense snow on I-90 between Rapid City and Wall in South Dakota prompting authorities to move in to rescue all of the motorists by transporting them to shelter.[120] On December 27, state and military police were sent to Buffalo to enforce the driving ban to enable snow-clearing efforts to progress.[4] Buffalo announced a two-day effort for December 27 and 28 to clear at least one lane on every street in the city to accommodate emergency vehicles.[122] Hundreds of vehicles, including tractor-trailer rigs and buses, were snowed in and abandoned all over the city; over 500 people were rescued from snowed-in cars, some having been trapped for up to two days.[4][123] After more than five-and-a-half days in effect, the City of Buffalo lifted its driving ban at 12:01 a.m. December 29 on the basis that streets had been adequately cleared.[50] In southern Niagara, snow drifts were so deep that most police vehicles and plows became stuck themselves and had to be abandoned until the snowfall subsided on December 25.[145] In the Seattle area, a separate storm resulted in all buses operated by King County Metro and Sound Transit being canceled due to icy road conditions.[150] The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration declared an emergency covering 44 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., on December 22, suspending statutory driving time limits and other regulatory restrictions.[151] Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Wisconsin all made similar declarations on a state level.[156][157] High load caused the Tennessee Valley Authority in the southeastern U.S. to announce several hours of rolling blackouts throughout much of their service area.[164] The National Football League postponed kickoff for a game between the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans for an hour because of the rolling blackouts in the area.[166] Many delivery services, including Amazon, FedEx, UPS, and USPS, had major delays at hubs or closures of processing sites due to weather conditions.[198] That day, the Blue Ridge Parkway closed due to ice on the roads and wind chills as low as −45 °F (−43 °C) on Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.[201] The extreme temperature drop, combined with flooding in the morning of December 23, caused several cars to be stuck in frozen floodwaters in Edgewater, New Jersey.[211] In Asheville, North Carolina, water outages that lasted as much as a week resulted when basins at an intake location froze, and leaks developed elsewhere in the system.[212] Within the city of Richmond, Virginia, low temperatures hovered around 10 °F (−12 °C) with the highs briefly reaching 24 °F (−4 °C), tying a daily record.[216][217][218] Lingering cold air left over Atlanta combined with a clipper resulted in 0.1 in (0.25 cm) of snow on December 26, tying a daily record.
December 22, 2022, warnings, watches, and advisories issued by the National Weather Service
December 23, 2022, warnings, watches, and advisories issued by the National Weather Service
SPC Mesoscale Discussion #2072 indicating blizzard conditions around Buffalo, New York, on December 24
Animation of high temperatures from December 11 to 28
December 18–24 temperature anomaly in the United States
Regional Snowfall IndexLackawanna, New YorkMount WashingtonNew HampshireSnyder, New YorkExtratropical cyclone2022–23 North American winterwinter stormblizzardsEastern Seaboardlake-effect snowfallBuffalo Niagara International AirportVia RailNational Weather Service in Buffalo, New YorkWeather Prediction CenterKathy HochulNorthern PlainsThe Weather Channelbomb cycloneBlizzardMinnesotaWisconsinDuluthGrand Marais Harbor, MinnesotaNorth DakotaIndianaOntarioDetroitwhiteoutGrand Rapids, MichiganCincinnatiClevelandKentuckylake-effect snowBuffaloNational Weather ServiceseicheLake Eriewestern basinPortland, Mainesevere thunderstorm warningLong IslandCape CodSarniaLondonKitchenerHamiltonSt. CatharinesWiartonPeterboroughKingstonNiagara RegionFort EriePort ColborneMontrealQuebec CityBaie-ComeauGeorgiaBrian KempJoe BidenSouth DakotaKristi NoemNational GuardColoradoConnecticutKansasMarylandMissouriNorth CarolinaNew YorkOklahomaWest VirginiaEnvironment Canadablizzard 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