In March 1888, one of the worst blizzards in the memory of man dealt adevastating blow to the Northeast. What made this storm quite unusual is thatmany areas had rain before any snow fell. A synoptic weather map of March 12shows the storm centered south of New England with a cold front extending fromthe storm center due north through eastern Connecticut and Massachusetts. Westof that line, the storm was all snow; to the east it was still raining.Hardest hit were New England and the eastern flank of New York. Snowfalls werecrippling reaching 50 inches in some locations. The storm generated winds tohurricane force that blew the snow into drifts that were two stories high.
Entire trains were stranded in some of these mountainous drifts.
The huge amount of snow occurred as a vast amount of ocean moisture wascatapulted westward over much colder air that covered the interior. Inaddition, the storm made a complete loop south of New England giving it anentire two days to wreak havoc. Over the years that have passed, many stormshave come and gone, but none has achieved such long-lasting fame as the GreatBlizzard of 1888.
So, what's the point? The storm that is about to hit is not going to be anotherBlizzard of '88. However, it's a great benchmark to use whenever a big stormcomes along.
That being said there are some similarities here. The storm that hits Thursdayand Friday will have a loop in its path which will result in an extended periodof precipitation. The New England coast will be hit by strong gales and heavyrain which is what happened in 1888. Also similar is that the heaviest snow andblizzard conditions will be to the northwest of the storm center.
Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist John Kocet.
