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Weather Stories From WeatherMatrix Members : Winter
Weather
One of my most memorable weather events was standing on the Law Dome in the
Antarctica when the temperature was -66 degrees Celsius (about -87F, I
think). Near the area was an old ice mine from the 1957 geophysical year.
The ice crystals that had formed underground were huge and tinkled like
metal when they were fell. Although the camp was originally at ground level,
it was under about 15-20 feet of cover. Coming from tropical Australia, the
cold was quite something.
regards,
Mark Little
From: mjp27wx
I would definatly say the Blizzard of 98. I was home on leave from the
Navy (stationed in Va. Beach) and I was due back at my command, but me
being me pushed it and waited a day. I figured I would get out before
the snow began, but how wrong I was. I awoke to about a foot of snow
and
knew I was not going to make it back to my squadren in time. I called
my
Chief and let him know about my situation here in PA. Luckily, he was a
great guy (and I a good worker) and he said to take as much time as I
needed and he would check me in. Of course I had to make sure I didn't
get in an accident on the way back or I would get us both in a lot of
trouble. I hope I will one day witness something like that again. The
memories if the thundersnow, the feeling of the heavy sleet hitting me
in
the face, will be cherished forever and never be forgotten.
Another storm (snow of course) happned I would think back in 93 or 94.
I'm a Volunteer Fire Fighter and was called to a dwelling fire in the
middle of a snowstorm. I would say there was about 6" on the ground. I
was assigned to put a hole in the roof for ventilation. It was an
extremly dangerous operation to begin with because of heavy fire
involvment on the second floor. The snow compounded the problem and to
make it more intresting a heavy thundersnow storm was in progress. The
reflection of the red lights in the snow, the noise, confusion, the
lightning, all made for a very intresting 20 minutes or so, but minutes
that would be remembered for a lifetime. The house was a total loss for
anyone who might be wondering.
I would have to say by living in Eastern Ontario Canada...it would have to be the
"Ice Storm"...
If you did not live it or see it live...it was almost unbelievable. I had power
lines fall next to me, while "I skated" to the store to buy emergency supplies (my
youngest daughter was 3 months old at the time). The Minister in our Church did
not have power for over a month. I do not think one tree was left unaffected by
that storm or for that matter anyone living in the affected regions! As
frightening as it was, I must say it made for beautiful pictures though.
Kelli LeBlanc
I lived in Telluride, Colorado during the winter of 92-93. In December of
92 the local weather service was warning us of a series of moisture laden
low pressure systems. They were asking everyone to be prepared for some
very heavy snowfall. After three days we had a total of 80 new inches of
snow. You may remember this storm. The national news made a big deal over
some cross country skies that were lost over by Crested Butte. When they
were finally found the national news made a big deal over what hero's they
all were. Thankfully, the truth came out. They had left the night before
the series of storms, and the weather was well predicted by the weather
service. This storm really wasn't all that big a deal for the western
mountains, but I grew up in Oklahoma, and this was more snow than I had seen
in my lifetime.
Paul Conway
As a young person at 21 years old. I havent had MUCH experience, but living
in the Nations Capitol, I've seen some wild stuff. One was back in 95/96 I
believe. We had a snow/sleet storm that ive never seen. We had 2 inches of
snow, then 6 inches of sleet ontop, it made for the most wild Rush Hour I've
ever seen. Also in 96, the Blizzard of '96. Was somethin that I know i may
never see again in my life time, we had after the week total, 36 inches in
my backyard, i was out of school for 2 weeks. we had to shovel paths for
our dog to get around.
Jay Reed, Silver Spring, MD
If you lived in Memphis, TN in February of 1994, then you experienced one of
the worst ice storms on record! We received heavy rain and thunderstorms
overnight for several hours at a temperature of 29-32 degrees. This allowed
several inches of ice to accumulate on everything bringing down trees, power
lines, even some of the large power transmission towers! It looked much
like a tornado or a bomb had hit the entire area. There were some deaths, I
don't have the exact number, but most were from falling trees.
The cleanup was horrific and took a long time. People were still putting
out broken limbs and debris on the street six months after the storm. The
entire mid-south area was affected, but Memphis, West Tennessee, and north
Mississippi were the hardest hit. Many people were without power for
several weeks, and some even months!
Danny Phelps
The snowstorm of January 1988 is one of the most memorable weather events in
this area. This area of South Carolina receives only a couple of measurable
snowfalls a winter, however, this particular event proved to be
extraordinary. The snow began to fall about 8AM and continued to get heavier
and heavier and snowed heavily until about 5PM and we ended up with 18-20
inches in one day. Everything was paralyzed because we don't have the
equipment to cover a storm of that magnitude. It is still the topic of
conversation here and I'm sure will be for years to come.
Jack Cannon
Salem, SC
1) The Megalopolis Blizzard of 1983 (New York City area). The storm
was well forecast in advance. It was a classic "El Nino" storm, with
enough cold air in place to keep the precipitation in the form of
snow. I was working at a law firm in mid-Manhattan, but was doing
research at a law library at the southern tip of Manhattan (near the
World Trade Center). Looking out the window, I could see, in the
distance, some "virga" far to the south, so I decided it was time to
get moving. I got back to my office about 20 minutes later, and there
were by then a few flakes whirling around. They closed the office
early, and not one hour later, the snow had started in earnest and
there was about 2 inches on the ground. Within 12 hours, 23 inches
had fallen, making it New York City's second biggest snow storm. It
had a hurricane-style eyewall, and there was abundant thunder and
lightning (courtesy of the El Nino driven involvement of the
subtropical jet stream).
2) The Blizzard of 1996. That day, around 10:00 a.m. the temperature
was around 8, and a few flakes were blowing around. My wife and I
headed into NYC (about 26 miles south) and by the time we got there
there was a nice, light to moderate snow falling. An hour later,
around 11:45, the snow was coming at intensities as if coming out of
a hose. The trip down took 40 minutes, back 2 hours. The next morning
I cross-country skiied to the supermarket about 2 miles away. The
snow was powdery and light. The maximum temperature during the storm
was 14. I guess La Nina can create some nice storms (this one about
21 inches in NYC) also.
chapter11lawyer
I've been a 'Matrix member for several months now and I haven't yet said
thank you to all of the dedicated posters in the "Matrix family." Especially
Jesse Ferrell who has answered my every request and question (there have
been several) and all of those who helped me get a weather station. I'm
still looking around, but I think I'm going with the Vantage Pro.
As far as the question "What is your most memorable weather event." I would
have a tie between at least a few. 2 of them being monster snow storms which
I'm sure many people from the Northeast remember. The blizzards of '93 and
'96. The 1993 storm dumped over 20 inches on us, while the '96 storm
walloped us with 40" here in Perkasie, when down in Philly, the alltime 24
hr snowfall record was broken. 30-32" or so.
Thanks again,
Bill Deger
I guess one of my most memorable would be the Storm of the Century back in
1993! Living in northeast Alabama at the time, forecasters were predicting
4-6" of snow, but when I woke up, it was more like 17" of snow, and drifts
to 6 feet with high winds and trees snapping. We were without power from
that Sat. morning until the next Friday afternoon, it was miserable.
The other most UNPLEASANT experience would be, coming home on an early April
evening in 1998, when super-cells were being reported across the southeast
that night. The one in particular, that I kept ahead of by only 10-15mins,
and only by speeding may I add, was the April 8, 98 F5 tornado that tore
through Jefferson County Alabama near Oak Grove outside of Birmingham. That
was a scary storm, but don't get me wrong, I love to chase naders, but not
have them chasing me!
Scott Ford
Meteorologist
Huntsville, Alabama
I guess my most memorable weather event was the 36" of snow we recieved in Sunbury, PA on Easter Sunday in the early 70's. My father, who was not very religious got up early and went to Easter Sunrise Service with my mother. When he came out of the church and saw all of the snow, he felt it was some kind of 'devine sign' and never went to church again. My family and I still laugh about it.
Mike(y)
W3SLK
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