February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard

The blizzard over theNortheastern United States imaged byNASA'sAqua satellite on February 5.
Meteorological history
Formed	February 1, 2010
Exited land	February 6, 2010
Dissipated	February 11, 2010
Category 4 "Crippling" blizzard
Regional snowfall index: 10.15 (NOAA)
Lowest pressure	978mbar (hPa); 28.88 inHg
Maximum snowfall or ice accretion	38.3 inches (97 cm) atElkridge, Maryland, U.S.
Overall effects
Fatalities	41
Areas affected	Midwest andEast Coast of the United States (fromIllinois toGeorgia toVermont) New Mexico, Mexico, Eastern Canada,California,Arizona
Part of the2009–10 North American winter

TheFebruary 5–6, 2010, North American blizzard, commonly referred to asSnowmageddon,^[1] was ablizzard that had major and widespread impact in theNortheastern United States. The storm's center tracked fromBaja California Sur on February 2, 2010, to the east coast on February 6, 2010, before heading east out into the Atlantic. Effects were felt to the north and west of this track in northern Mexico, California, and the southwestern, midwestern, southeastern, and most notablyMid-Atlantic states. Severe weather, including extensive flooding and landslides in Mexico, and historic snowfall totals in every one of theMid-Atlantic states, brought deaths toMexico,New Mexico,Virginia,Pennsylvania, andMaryland.^[2]

Most crippling was the widespread 20 to 35 in (50 to 90 cm) of snow accumulated across southernPennsylvania, theEastern Panhandle of West Virginia,northern Virginia,Washington, D.C.,Maryland,Delaware, andSouth Jersey, bringing air andinterstate highway travelto a halt. Rail service south and west of Washington, D.C., was suspended, and rail travel between D.C. and Boston was available with limited service.^[3]Blizzard conditions were reported in a relatively small area ofMaryland, but near-blizzard conditions occurred across much of theMid-Atlantic region.^[4]

This event was the second of fournor'easters during the 2009–2010 winter that brought heavy snow to enough of the Northeast's population to be numerically recognized byNOAA'sNESIS intensity rating. The first and third of these systems, theDecember 2009 Northeastern U.S. blizzard and theFebruary 9–10, 2010 North American blizzard, respectively, combined with this event to bring the snowiest winter on record to much of the Mid-Atlantic. Additionally, this event was the second of three major Mid-Atlantic snowstorms that occurred over a 12-day period; each subsequent storm focused its heaviest snow slightly farther north: the January 30, 2010, storm (not recognized by NESIS) dropped more than a foot of snow across Virginia and the lower Chesapeake Bay region, while theFebruary 9–10, 2010 North American blizzard bulls-eyed theMaryland-Pennsylvania border with as much as 38.3 inches.^[5][6]

The main storm system originated in the Pacific Ocean, bringing heavy rain and mountain snow toCalifornia andArizona on February 2. The storm center moved east through northern Mexico on February 3. The system produced over one foot of snowfall in the higher elevations and the eastern plains ofNew Mexico, shutting down major highways includingInterstate 40 east ofAlbuquerque for several hours on February 3. The storm's center then advanced acrossTexas to theLouisiana Gulf Coast on February 4, while dropping rain and snow inOklahoma and northernTexas, and severethunderstorms further south. Meanwhile, a second, more-northern disturbance tracked from the central Rockies to the lowerMissouri River Valley, bringing light snow showers toMontana, theDakotas, parts ofMinnesota,Wisconsin,Iowa, andIllinois.

On February 5, the two systems phased together, resulting in a band of heavy snow acrossIllinois,Indiana,Ohio, andPennsylvania. That evening, the northern system's energy was absorbed into the main southern circulation, promoting fast intensification. Heavy snow subsequently developed over theMid-Atlantic states as the storm's center tracked acrossNorth Carolina towards the Atlantic Coast.

An antecedent and nearly-stationary upper-level ridge over the Maritime Provinces of Canada served to block the storm system from following the traditional northeast track into New England. Instead, during the AM hours of February 6th, the storm center slowed its northeasterly movement as it continued to deepen east of Virginia Beach, before it eventually was forced eastward. The blocking pattern was reflected on the storm's snowfall map by a sharp northern gradient in northern New Jersey and by the axis of heaviest snow running WNW-ESE through Maryland and Delaware (opposed to the SW-NE pattern found from most Nor'Easters). Only moderate accumulations reached the southern suburbs of New York City, with no more than light snow falling in the city itself.Upstate New York andNew England were spared from this system, receiving little more than isolated snow flurries in southern sections. Easterly winds and onshore flow contributed to light snow accumulations of less than one inch inBoston,Cape Cod, and parts of coastalRhode Island.

According to the blog ofWeather Channel senior meteorologistStu Ostro, the storm formed from "Miller Type B" cyclogenesis: a storm centered over the Ohio river runs into a blocking ridge and redevelops along the Carolina coast. (This differed from theNorth American blizzard of 2009, of "Miller Type A" cyclogenesis where a storm center develops over the eastern Gulf of Mexico and strengthens while tracking north to a latitude of greater temperature contrast.) This storm was carrying an enormous amount of moisture drawn from both theGulf of Mexico (as seen on February 3 satellite imagery over Mexico), and from the Atlantic (as seen inradar imagery from early on February 5). Ostro characterized the storm as having "strong dynamics" and expected the snowfall to be of long duration, typically leading to large accumulations.^[7]

Media reports emphasized the magnitude of the storm, giving rise to many nicknames for it includingSnowmageddon^[8][9] andSnowpocalypse.^[10]

TheCapital Weather Gang blog onThe Washington Post website ran an online poll on February 4, 2010, asking for reader feedback prior to the blizzard,^[11] and severalblogs, including the paper's own blog, followed that up by using either "Snowmageddon" and/or "Snowpocalypse" during the following days, before, during, and after the storm hit.^[12]

TheWashington Post also popularized otherportmanteaus, including "snOMG" (fromOMG) and "kaisersnoze" (fromKeyser Soze), in response to the February snowstorms.^[13]

Wikinews has related news:

• Major snowstorm sweeps across Eastern US

During the evening preceding the first blizzard hitting Washington, D.C., most of theUnited States federal government closed, and press coverage continued to characterize the storm using either "Snowmageddon", "Snowpocalypse", or both.^[14] The phrase was later popularized by thePresident of the United States,Barack Obama, on February 8, 2010, who used the term while speaking at theDemocratic National Committee's meeting.^[15]

An unofficial storm total snowfall observation of 39.0" was made from Riverwood, MD (in Frederick County) onCoCoRaHS, and later referenced in the February 2010 Washington Baltimore Climate Review (not published electronically). HoweverNOAA/NWS products list the 38.3" total at 2WSW Elkridge, MD as the "storm's greatest (so far)".

Pittsburgh with 21.1", was the first major city to experience the storm's heavier snowfall, separating sub-20" amounts over Indiana and Ohio from 20 to 35" readings found in the Laurel Highlands and east. This was Pittsburgh's 4th greatest snow event since records began in 1871. Areas south of Pittsburgh received up to 26" of snowfall. Although initially forecast to bring only 4–8" of snow to the area, the storm's track farther to the north lead to the explosive accumulations. The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh office recorded 7" of snow over 700P-1159P February 5 and 5.3" over 300A-600A on February 6.

The swath of heaviest snowfall then crossed theAppalachians and squeezed betweenWashington, D.C., andBaltimore. The District of Columbia's totals were generally near 20", ranging from 18 to 28". Baltimore City's totals were around 25", ranging from 21 to 28". Dulles

International Airport's 32.9" set all-time records (since 1962) for most 2-day and 3-day snowfall, shattering the old records from theBlizzard of 1996 of 23.2" and 24.6", respectively. Dulles received 17.5" on February 6, however, making the day's total only the 3rd greatest 24-hour snowfall amount. Baltimore Washington International Airport, despite being near numerous 30"+ reports, saw a relatively tame 25". This 2-day total was 2nd greatest (since 1892), behind 26.3" from the 1922Knickerbocker Storm. Reagan National Airport's 17.8" was one of the metro region's lowest, but still ranked as Washington's 4th greatest (since 1871) in both 2-day and 3-day totals.

Additional local reports from Maryland include: Edgemere, 35.4"; Clarksville, 34.9"; Crofton, 34.0"; Columbia, 33.8"; Laurel, 32.9"; Pasadena, 31.0"; Dundalk, 30.5";Ellicott City, 30.2"; Frederick, 29.0"; Olney, 28.0"; Germantown, 27.4"; andCatonsville, 22.9".

Philadelphia's 28.5" ranked the storm as the city's 2nd greatest on record (since 1872), falling not far behind theBlizzard of 1996's 30.7". This made for Philadelphia's first winter with multiple 20"+ storms, following the 23.2" from theNorth American blizzard of 2009. Wilmington, DE's 25.8" was their greatest storm total of all-time (since 1894), passing the 1996 storm's 22". In February 2021, theNational Centers for Environmental Information announced that the officialDelaware snow depth record was established nearGreenwood on February 7, 2010, after the February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard resulted in a measurement of 28 inches. The record was measured at the Greenwood 2.9 SE station of theCommunity Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network.^[16][17]

South Jersey saw as much as 29" of snow; Vineland reported 19.8".^[18] InSouth Central Pennsylvania, the areas ofHarrisburg,Lancaster andYork reported receiving over 18" of snow.^[19]

Many counties, including the rural areas across the Appalachian mountains and Delmarva averaged over two feet of snow.

The storm was well spotted by the winter storm reconnaissance (WSR) program at National Center of Environmental Predictions (NCEP). Two aircraft missions were deployed over the Pacific regions on February 1, 2010. Accurate measurement in the cloudy regions were taken, the data were assimilated by the global forecast models in different numerical forecast prediction centers.

TheWSR program is led byDr. Yucheng Song from theNational Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP).

Source:CoCoRaHS

Source:NWS Washington/Baltimore Public Information Statement & Maps

Source:NWS Philadelphia/Mt. Holly Public Information Statement & Map

Source:NWS State College, PA Public Information Statement & Maps

Freak winter rains across Mexico collapsed hillsides, sent rivers over their banks and left at least 15 people dead, officials said on Friday, February 5. The rain, which began early in the week and peaked on Thursday, February 4, had relented by Friday morning, providing officials with their first good look at the damage. More than half of the country was affected. The hardest area hit by the storm was the western state ofMichoacán, a famous reserve formonarch butterflies, where at least 13 people were killed by landslides and flooding. An unknown number of people were missing Friday.^[20] Other areas that were hard hit by flooding was the eastern Mexico City borough ofIztapalapa and municipalities in easternState of Mexico such asCiudad Nezahualcóyotl andEcatepec de Morelos.^[21] The rain broke records for February in Michoacán, the State of Mexico and Mexico City, with twice the normal amount for the entire month falling in 24 hours.^[22] There was a silver lining: Officials said the copious rain had filled reservoirs outsideMexico City that are a key source of water for the metropolis. Water shortages had forced on-and-off rationing since last summer.^[20] Water authorities state that most of the country now has a "positive balance" in reservoirs with 21,000,000 cubic metres (5.5×10⁹ US gal) of water added to reservoirs.^[22]

The storm affectedArizona andNew Mexico from February 1 to 4. Up to 1 foot (0.30 m) of snow fell in the mountains east ofAlbuquerque, New Mexico, while snow accumulations in the city varied from less than 1 inch (2.5 cm) near downtown to 5 inches (13 cm) on theWest Mesa and in the far northeast foothills. Ice-covered roadways caused numerous accidents – including one fatal crash near Gallup – shutting downInterstate 40 throughTijeras Canyon and betweenGrants andGallup for several hours on February 3.^[23]

Prolonged rains from Thursday morning through Thursday evening (February 4), produced widespread rainfall totals of 1 inch (2.5 cm) – 4 inches (10 cm) statewide with flooding reported in portions of Central and SouthernMississippi. The capital city ofJackson broke a daily rainfall record with 2.51 inches (6.4 cm) of rainfall.^[24] Power outages were reported inNorth Carolina's mountain counties as the winter storm brought a mixture of snow, sleet and freezing rain to much of the state and rain to the rest, with about 40,000 outages late Friday afternoon (5 February). A drenching rain fell early Friday in theCharlotte andAtlanta area and then transitioned to a few inches of snow later in the day, while several inches of snow accumulated farther north. Parts of central and eastern North Carolina were under flood watches in advance of significant rainfall of up to 2 inches (5.1 cm).^[25]

Heavy snowfall occurred inIllinois,Indiana, andOhio February 4–6. Snowfall totals ranged from 6 inches (15 cm) to over 1 foot (0.30 m) across the region. Drifts of up to 4 feet (1.2 m) were reported in central Indiana.^[26]

The heavy snow,ice storms and low temperatures of January the 26th led toInterstate 90 being closed fromChamberlain, South Dakota, to theMinnesota border.^[27] On the nightfall on Monday,Interstate 29 was closed fromSioux Falls to theNorth Dakota border.^[27] Power company officials estimated that about 7,600 customers inSouth Dakota and 100 inNorth Dakota did not have power on Monday. Some phone systems also experienced brieftelecommunications outages.^[27] Kristi Truman, director of theNorth Dakota Office of Emergency Management was concerned about failing water and power supplies.^[27]

In the Dakotas a number of Indian Reservations were left without power or running water.

"There's been winters this bad before, but not with rain so bad it freezes the power lines and snaps the poles", said Joseph Brings Plenty, the 38-year-old chairman of the Cheyenne River Sioux tribe.^[28]

Power outages began with a storm in December knocking down around 5,000 power poles, and was accelerated by an ice storm Jan. 22 knocking down another 3,000 power lines on the reservation.

Among the tribes of South Dakota who suffered from the multiple storms wereCheyenne River Sioux,Crow Creek Sioux Tribe,Flandreau-Santee Sioux Tribe,Lower Brule Sioux Tribe,Rosebud Sioux Tribe,Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate andStanding Rock Sioux Tribe.^[29]

The Episcopal Church stepped in to help the reservations residents survive the winter.^[30][31][32]

On February 1, utility crews worked overtime to get power back to the 14,000 residents ofCheyenne River Sioux Reservation.^[33] Thewind chill factor averaged about 25 °F below zero and there was about 1 foot of snow on average.^[33]

Power outages in both the Dakotas power covered only 100 rural electric customers and minimal numbers inBismarck, North Dakota by February, 5.^[34]

TheUnited States Government implemented an unscheduled leave policy for federal employees on Friday February 5 and shut down four hours early in an effort to clear metropolitan Washington before substantial snow accumulations began. Numerous school districts in theWashington metropolitan area announced closures for Friday February 5 well in advance, althoughDistrict of Columbia Public Schools and some Maryland schools held a half day of class. Many districts had used all their built-in snow days and some began scheduling classes on upcoming holidays, such asFairfax County, Virginia, on February 15, the Monday ofPresident's Day weekend.^[35] Late on Sunday February 7, theOffice of Personnel Management announced that theUnited States Government would again be closed on Monday February 8, with only emergency/essential personnel required to report, and numerous school districts again canceled classes between February 9–11.

As of shortly after midnight on February 6, more than 50,000 homes and businesses in theWashington, D.C., metropolitan area were without electricity. In northern Virginia, the total was 33,000 and in northern Maryland and theDistrict of Columbia the total was 19,000. Roadways were blanketed with snow,Metro bus service ended at 9 pm EST, and above ground Metro rail service had also ended. Flights were canceled at the Washington-Baltimore area's three main airports and atPhiladelphia International Airport.Delta Air Lines had suspended flights in and out of Washington, Baltimore, and Philadelphia.^{[citation needed]} AWashington Wizards game was postponed due to the storm.^[36]

In Maryland, theMaryland Transit Administration ran special snow trains on its heavy rail and light rail lines to keep tracks clear.Delaware Gov.Jack Markell declared a state of emergency Friday night and ordered all vehicles off the roads by 10 p.m. EST (this was in addition to an earlier state of emergency declared by Virginia Gov.Bob McDonnell and snow emergencies declared in theDistrict of Columbia and some Maryland counties).^[37] Maryland was under a state of emergency as of mid-day on February 6, as state and county road crews said they were struggling to keep even one lane open on major roads and 151,000 customers were without power in Maryland, including 34,000Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. customers in the region. Cars were left abandoned on highways, trees came down and Humvees were used to ferry patients to local hospitals.^[38] TheUnited States Postal Service decided to cancel mail delivery and collection in the affected areas for Saturday, February 6.^[35]

The weight of the snow caused several roof collapses throughout the Washington area. Most notably, the roof of ahangar housingprivate jets atDulles International Airport caved in twice due to the snowfall.^[39] Also reported were the collapse of a house roof inNortheast, Washington, D.C., a house in the Luxmanor Area inRockville, Maryland, which collapsed from a fire that resulted from trying to melt the snow from the roof, the entire Prince William Ice Center inDale City, Virginia,^[40]and the total collapse of awarehouse inCalifornia, Maryland. In none of the four cases were there reports of injuries.^[41] Around 2 pm EST on February 6, DC fire and EMS personnel responded to a church collapse inNortheast DC–preliminary reports from the scene were that the weight of the heavy snow caused the 1- or1+1⁄2-story wooden building to completely collapse, and subsequent gas leaks caused some neighbors to be evacuated.^[42] The roof of St. John's School inHollywood, Maryland, also collapsed,^[43] as did the roof of the truck bay at the volunteer fire station inBailey's Crossroads, Virginia, on the morning of Monday February 8, but there were no injuries.^[44]

Amtrak shut down much of their service in the region, canceling itsSilver Meteor,Silver Star,Crescent,Carolinian,Palmetto, andCapitol Limited, as well as cancelingCardinal service pastHuntington, West Virginia However services north continued to operate through the teeth of the storm on a limited schedule.

InPittsburgh, both the impact and severity of the storm caught many by surprise. Snow began falling in earnest late Friday morning. The sudden onset of the storm forced many local school districts, especially districts south of the city, to close early due to rapidly deteriorating road conditions; this is an extremely uncommon event for schools in southwestern Pennsylvania.^[45] Nearly all schools, including thePittsburgh Public Schools, cancelled classes the following week. Most local universities were also forced to cancel classes for much of the following week due to the storm's effects. Additionally, over 130,000 people in the Pittsburgh area were without power as a result of the heavy, wet snow.^[46] For many residents, power was not restored until Monday, February 15.

Severalcross-country skiers were spotted throughout Washington, D.C., during the blizzard. Photographs of two skiers were shown in several regional newspapers, making them an iconic image of the storm and local celebrities.^[47] More than 2,000 people joined asnowball fight inDupont Circle which had been organized on Facebook. This event marked the founding of theWashington DC Snowball Fight Association.^[48][49][50]

Three children died when their home inAngangueo was overwhelmed by a flooded river, and two other people died under a landslide inZitácuaro. A sixth victim was crushed beneath a collapsed wall of a home in Ocampo. Two children drowned trying to cross the swollenChapulin River in the central state ofGuanajuato.^[20] In total, twenty eight deaths in the states of Michoacán, Mexico State and the Distrito Federal (Mexico City) have been attributed to the storm.^[51]

On February 3, 2010, a family from California was traveling east on snow-coveredInterstate 40 nearGallup, New Mexico, when the driver hit a patch of ice, sending their pickup truck across the median into the westbound lanes, striking an oncoming vehicle, killing the adult passenger, and leaving the driver, the child, and the driver of the westbound vehicle critically injured.^[52]

On February 5, 2010,Brendan Burke, son ofToronto Maple Leafs General ManagerBrian Burke, was killed while driving inEconomy, Indiana, near the Ohio border. While driving in heavy snow, his 2004Jeep Grand Cherokee slid sideways into the path of an oncoming Ford truck, killing him and his passenger, Mark Reedy (18) of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.^[53]

On February 6, 2010, a father and son were hugging a tree to the occupants of a disabled vehicle onInterstate 81 in Virginia. A tractor trailer that was approaching the scenejackknifed and killed the men.^[54]

In Maryland, a family was traveling north ofAberdeen onRoute 462 when they ran into the back of a snow plow.Maryland State Police said that the accident was serious.^[55] InBladensburg, two men were found dead in a running car whose tailpipe was blocked by snow; they died ofcarbon monoxide poisoning.

In Delaware, officials investigated 8 deaths inNew Castle County related to the storm. Two men were found under snow piles and a third suffered from dementia and wandered outside only to be found an hour later by a family member half buried in snow.^[56]

A father and daughter inMcKeesport were killed bycarbon monoxide poisoning, as a result of improper usage of a generator after a power outage.^[57][58] ACanonsburg man was found dead at the bottom of a snow-covered staircase.^[59] Twenty five vehicles were involved in two separatepileups onInterstate 80, killing one and injuring eighteen.^[60] Two were killed inLancaster when theirsnowmobile was struck at an intersection.^[61]

Wikinews has related news:

• Major snowstorm sweeps across Eastern US

• List of Regional Snowfall Index Category 4 winter storms
• February 25–27, 2010 North American blizzard
• February 9–10, 2010 North American blizzard
• March 2010 North American winter storm
• December 2009 North American blizzard
• January 2016 United States blizzard
• Winter storms of 2009–2010

Wikimedia Commons has media related toNorth American blizzard of 2010.

• "Washington gets hit with a winter wallop", photo gallery byThe Washington Post
• "Snowstorm Slams the East Coast", photo gallery byThe New York Times
• "'Snowmageddon' in D.C.", video report byCBS News
• "Dupont Circle Snowball Fight" video report byThe Washington Post
• "Timelaps NEXRAD Radar Animation", Atmospheric Physics group atUMBC
• Snowmageddon, five years later: The first of two Mid-Atlantic blizzards in February 2010

• Blizzards in the United States
• Blizzards in Canada
• Nor'easters
• 2010 natural disasters in the United States
• 2010 disasters in Canada
• Natural disasters in Delaware
• Natural disasters in Kentucky
• Natural disasters in Maryland
• Natural disasters in Mexico
• Natural disasters in Virginia
• Natural disasters in Washington, D.C.
• Natural disasters in West Virginia
• 2009–10 North American winter
• February 2010 in the United States

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