The first major snowfall of the season blanketed parts of New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan during a hectic weekend for travel and shopping in the US, with extreme cold and heavy snow expected to continue through the first part of the week and cause hazards in the Great Lakes. Plains and Midwest regions.
The blizzard led to a state of emergency being declared in parts of New York and a disaster declaration in Pennsylvania, with officials warning of dangerous conditions for travelers returning home for Thanksgiving.
The National Weather Service said gusts of arctic air dropped temperatures to 10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit below average in the northern Plains, prompting hail warnings to be issued in parts of North Dakota. Cold air is expected to move over the eastern third of the United States by Monday, with temperatures about 10 degrees below average.
About 61 centimeters of snow fell in parts of New York, Ohio and Michigan, and 73 centimeters of snow fell in the northwestern tip of Pennsylvania.
“Travel will be difficult and extremely dangerous this weekend, especially in areas where multiple feet of snow may accumulate very quickly,” the National Weather Service said.
In an update Saturday afternoon, the weather service said heavy snowfall was expected “downwind from Lakes Erie and Ontario, affecting areas of northeastern Ohio, far northwestern Pennsylvania, western New York State and parts of northwestern New York State.” .
In a phone interview Saturday with WWNY-TV, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said the state had prepared for the storm for several days by deploying snow plows and thousands of workers and consulting with utility providers. It also sent personnel from other parts of the state to help.
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“I know it’s something they’re all used to and can handle, but I want to let them know that we’re there with reinforcements and to make sure everyone can travel safely, especially over a really busy weekend,” she said.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a disaster emergency declaration and said parts of northwestern Erie County received nearly a meter of snow and more was expected through Monday night.
Pennsylvania State Police responded to nearly 200 incidents during a 24-hour period from 6 a.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday, officials said. Authorities closed a portion of I-90 in Pennsylvania and the westbound lanes of the New York Turnpike heading toward Pennsylvania.
The city of Erie, Pennsylvania, said travel is limited to emergency responders, essential personnel and medical emergencies until further notice. Snowy and slippery conditions led to vehicles stopping at intersections and streets. Residents were urged to shelter in place and allow crews to disinfect neighborhoods.
With portions of some roads impassable in northwestern Pennsylvania, dozens of travelers took refuge in the lobby and hallways of a Holiday Inn near I-90. Hotel employee Jeremiah Weatherly said workers opened the meeting room and gave them blankets.
“They just show up, and we don’t want to turn people away,” he said.
In Buffalo, officials with the NFL’s Bills sought to use snow shovels on the field for the season, including before Sunday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. The team said it would pay $20 an hour and serve food and hot drinks.
Parts of Michigan experienced lake-induced snowfall, which occurs when warm, moist air rising from a body of water mixes with cold, dry air above. Bands of snow falling off Lake Superior buried parts of the Upper Peninsula under 61 centimeters or more, said Lily Chapman, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Marquette, Michigan.
She added that there was 69 cm of snow northeast of Ironwood, on the western ends of the Upper Peninsula, and another 61 cm in Munising, in the eastern region.
Lakeshore snow could add 12 inches (30.5 centimeters) more over the eastern Upper Peninsula through Monday morning, or 15 to 25 centimeters or higher to the west, Chapman said.
Keith Berger of the National Weather Service’s Gaylord office said that the city of Gaylord, Michigan, received 63 centimeters of snow on Friday, setting a new single-day record for the city in an area dotted with ski resorts. The previous record of 43 cm was set on March 9, 1942.
The snowfall was good news for Treetops Resort, which includes 80 acres (32 hectares) of ski hill terrain within its 2,000-acre (809 hectare) site. That reinforced the base that will have more snow machines before the resort’s season opens next weekend, said Doug Hoy, recreation director.
“Obviously when you get this much snow, it’s great for snowy hills, but it’s bad for parking, so we’re kind of in the process of digging in,” Hoeh said.
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