Syracuse, NY – A ferocious lake-effect snowstorm hit Syracuse, America’s snowiest capital city, on Tuesday with more snow in a single day than we’ve seen in nearly 80 years.
The National Weather Service recorded 24.2 inches of snow Tuesday at Hancock International Airport. That not only broke the record set on Dec. 30, but also made Tuesday the second snowiest day in Syracuse since official records began in 1902.
According to weather service records, the one-day snowfall record remains at 34 inches, set on February 15, 1946.
This month is now the fourth snowiest December on record for Syracuse. So far, Syracuse has had 58.5 inches, nearly double the normal of 30.6 inches for December.
A few more inches are expected in Syracuse today from a separate storm system that will bring more widespread snow to New York State just in time for the new year. Today’s forecast in Onondaga County is in the range of 2 to 6 inches by New Year’s morning in most locations.
Syracuse has had 76.2 inches of snow so far this season, the most in 25 years. The city typically sees nearly 128 inches, the most of any U.S. city of at least 100,000 people.
The snow fell so hard and for so long on Tuesday that a third of Syracuse’s streets remained unplowed, garbage collection was delayed, community groups and government offices in downtown New York were closed and highways were clogged with accidents and disabled vehicles.
Mayor Ben Walsh said it was the worst storm Syracuse had seen in years. Wind gusts in excess of 50 mph made it nearly impossible to see on the roadways.
A band of lake effect snow is drifting north this morning and could hit Oswego with more than a foot of snow today.
Another storm system, called a clipper, could dump several more inches of snow across much of New York state today. Forecasters also say a clipper system could generate dangerous snow storms tonight as the New Year’s Eve crowds head outside.
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