January 14–17, 2022 North American winter storm

Category 2 "Significant" (RSI/NOAA: 3.407)
The winter storm intensifying over theSoutheastern United States late on January 16.
Type	Extratropical cyclone Winter storm Nor'easter Tornado outbreak
Formed	January 13, 2022
Dissipated	January 19, 2022
Highest gust	91 mph (146 km/h) nearWellfleet, MA
Lowest pressure	981 mb (28.97 inHg)
Tornadoes confirmed	7
Max. rating1	EF2 tornado
Maximum snowfall or ice accretion	Snow – 27.5 in (70 cm) nearAshtabula, Ohio Ice – 0.50 in (13 mm) inLancaster, South Carolina
Fatalities	4 deaths, 17 injuries (14 winter storm and 3 tornadic)
Damage	$600 million[1] $10.745 million tornadic
Power outages	>375,000
Areas affected	Central Canada,Northwestern,Central,Southeastern, andNortheastern United States
Part of the2021–22 North American winter andTornadoes of 2022 1Most severe tornado damage; seeEnhanced Fujita scale

TheJanuary 14–17, 2022 North American winter storm brought widespread impacts and wintry precipitation across large sections of eastern North America and parts of Canada. Forming out of ashortwave trough on January 13, it first produced a swath of snowfall extending from theHigh Plains to the Midwestern United States. The storm eventually pivoted east and impacted much of theSouthern United States from January 15–16 before shifting north intoCentral Canada, theMid-Atlantic states, and theNortheastern United States. The system, namedWinter Storm Izzy byThe Weather Channel, was described as a "Saskatchewan Screamer".^[2]

Several states in theSoutheast declaredstates of emergencies ahead of the storm, including asNorth Carolina,South Carolina,Georgia, andVirginia. Snowfall totals of up to one foot (0.30 m) were observed across much of the affected areas in the High Plains and Central United States, with the storm bringing gusty winds and numerous power outages in its wake. The system also spawned seven tornadoes inFlorida, one of which was an EF2 that resulted in three injuries.Ice storm conditions were observed in the Southeastern states, while snowfall amounts in excess of two feet (0.61 m) were reported acrossNortheast Ohio.^[3][4] Large areas of Southern Ontario received 33–55 centimetres (13–22 in) of snow, in some places at rates of over 10 centimetres (3.9 in) per hour, resulting in the closure of some highways, and impacting transit services in some areas.

A weak area of low pressure developed on January 13 in southwestern Canada along astationary front from a weakeningextratropical cyclone that was impacting theWest Coast of the United States.^[5] From there, the system drifted southeastwards into theHigh Plains while delivering heavy snowfall and began moving more southwards through the states ofNebraska,Kansas andMissouri into the early morning hours of January 14.^[6] Later that day, at 21:00 UTC theWeather Prediction Center (WPC) began issuing periodic storm summary bulletins on the developing system, albeit with competing areas of low pressure.^[7] A stronger low began forming over southernMissouri on January 15, moving intoArkansas and began strengthening due to a strong upper-level low located nearby.^[8] Associated cold air in place over the aforementioned areas allowed snow to break out in areas further south, as the system beganoccluding – with a new low forming just offshore in the northernGulf of Mexico before moving onshore – later that night as snowfall, ice and mixed precipitation spread eastward towards theSoutheastern United States into the early morning hours of January 16.^[9] The winter storm began turning more northward later that day into the southernAppalachian Mountains as the two centers began merging.^[10]

Prior to snowfall, totals were forecasted between 20–40 centimetres (7.9–15.7 in) acrossSouthern Ontario.^[11] In response to that, winter storm watches and warnings were issued across a large swath ofsouthern Ontario and southwestern Quebec. As the storm progressed, a rareblizzard warning was issued for much of theGreater Toronto Area andNational Capital Region, now forecasting up to 60 centimetres (24 in) of snow. This was the first blizzard warning for Toronto since 1993. Winter storm and snowfall warnings were expanded in to parts of central and southwestern Ontario. Ahead of the storm, many school districts cancelled in-person classes for January 17 and 18.^[12]

Winter storm watches andwarnings were issued across a large swath of the Central andEastern United States, along withice storm warnings for several areas inNorth Carolina andSouth Carolina due to the potential for ice accumulations.^[13] However, inNew York City, it was expected to bring rain and strong winds.^[14]Amtrak cancelled several trains in advance of the storm.^[15]

Georgia,Virginia,North Carolina andSouth Carolina all declared astate of emergency in preparation for the winter storm.^[16]

The storm brought heavy snow across much of southern Ontario, with snow accumulations of up to 50 centimetres (20 in) inSt. Catharines, 48 centimetres (19 in) inOttawa (second largest snowstorm on record), 55 centimetres (22 in) of snow inToronto (the third largest snowfall since 1937),^[a] 41 centimetres (16 in) inHamilton, and 32 centimetres (13 in) in Kitchener-Waterloo.^[17] In hard hit areas, snow fell at a rate of over 10 centimetres (3.9 in) per hour during the morning of January 17, which along with winds created blizzard conditions.^[18]

In Toronto, the storm prompted the closure of Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway for several hours in the early afternoon to remove stranded automobiles and to facilitate plowing, while sections of Highway 401 were blocked by stranded vehicles for up to 12 hours with one section blocked until the late morning of the next day.^[19] Near Ottawa, a stretch of Highway 7 was closed to due blizzard conditions and a section of Highway 417 was closed for eight hours due to a fatal accident that killed two people.^[20][21] Some cities' transit systems had difficulties providing service, such as 504 of the Toronto Transit Commission's 1,300 bus fleet and 150 OC Transpo buses being trapped in snow.^[b][22][23] School boards throughout theGolden Horseshoe closed their schools for both January 17 and 18 while some other school boards closed schools for January 17.^[23][24] The storm temporarily shut downToronto Pearson International Airport, and forced the cancelation of all flights atOttawa International Airport.^[25]

The storm dropped 11 inches (28 cm) of snow inLaurens,Iowa and 14.3 inches (36 cm) inDes Moines. There were also 78 car crashes reported, which caused 14 injures.^[26][27]

Heavy snow was recorded across eastern Ohio, where 15 inches (38 cm) fell atCleveland and 13.6 inches (35 cm) atAkron-Canton. Parts of Ashtabula County reported 27.5 inches (70 cm) of snow.^[3]

TheNashville Fire Department inDavidson County, Tennessee, opened a shelter from the cold weather on January 15.^[28]

Snow fell in mostly the northern and central part ofAlabama with only a trace recorded in most areas.York recorded 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) whileLivingston recorded 2.0 inches (5.1 cm).^[29][30]

In Georgia, approximately 100,000 customers were without power at the height of the storm on January 16.^[13]Atlanta recorded 0.3 inches (0.76 cm) of snow from the storm, which became the first measurable snow at the airport since January 2018.^[31]

InNorth Carolina, parts ofU.S. Route 276 were closed due to icing.^[13] The city ofCharlotte opened a shelter for those who sought warmth from the cold.^[32][13] TheNorth Carolina Highway Patrol responded to approximately 200 collisions by noon of January 16.^[13] A car crash also killed 2 people inRaleigh, North Carolina.^[33] Over 90% of flights that day fromCharlotte Douglas International Airport were cancelled.^[34]

Astate of emergency was declared inVirginia due to the storm.^{[citation needed]} Virginia reported 482 car crashes and 486 disabled vehicles.^[35]

The warm side of the storm caused severe thunderstorms, high winds, and several tornadoes in Florida.^[36] An EF2 tornado touched down inIona, damaging numerous homes and causing three injuries. Around 7,000 homes lost power in the state.^[37] The Iona tornado caused $10 million in damage.^[38] Some parts of the Panhandle saw flurries while in areas in northern Escambia County saw light accumulation, the first snow accumulation observed in the state since awinter storm in 2018.^{[39][40][41][42]}

Buffalo received 19.2 inches (49 cm) of snow while areas to the east of Buffalo, such as Medina (22 inches (56 cm)) and Batavia (17 inches (43 cm)) received similar amounts, whileRochester further east received 11.5 inches (29 cm) inches of snow.^[43] Snow was reported falling at as much as 4.6 inches (12 cm) per hour in the early hours of January 17 in Buffalo.^[44] Schools in the Buffalo area were closed both January 17 and 18 due to the storm.^[45] The storm was the third snowiest January day in Buffalo history.^[46]Albany, New York, received 4 inches (10 cm) of snow while mountain areas to its west and east received between 10 inches (25 cm) and 14 inches (36 cm).^[47]New York City received less than 1 inch (2.5 cm) of snow after which it received rain and experienced wind gusts approaching 60 miles per hour (97 km/h), promptingCOVID-19 vaccination and testing sites to close temporarily.^[44] InStaten Island, where temperatures remained 38 °F (3 °C) or higher during the event, significant rainfall of 2.06 inches (52 mm) fell.^[48] InSuffolk County, New York, a 60 knot wind gust was confirmed at 3:46 a.m. EST on January 17.^[49]

• Weather of 2022
• List of North American tornadoes and tornado outbreaks
• February 2014 nor'easter
• February 2015 Southeastern United States winter storm
• February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm
• Great Snowstorm of 1944

Wikimedia Commons has media related toMid-January 2022 North American winter storm.

• Archive of Storm Summaries from theWeather Prediction Center
• Strong EF-2 Tornado Hits Fort Myers, Florida - Jan. 16, 2022

• 2022 meteorology
• Tornadoes in Florida
• Ice storms in the United States
• Nor'easters
• 2021–22 North American winter

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