Epic snowfall across southern New York & New England

An incredible record-setting 100cm (40 inches) of snow has fallen in Binghamton, New York in the last 24 hours. (Syracuse.com)

The massive Nor'Easter that dumped record amounts of snow from Pennsylvania to New England is slowly moving towards Nova Scotia on Thursday afternoon. The storm put down a general 30-60cm (12-24 inches) of snow from the central Appalachians into New England. The snow was accompanied by 50 to 90km/h winds.

The storm was epic in a swath from northeast Pennsylvania into southern Vermont, where between 75-100cm of snow fell in less than 24 hours. This included the city of Binghamton, New York along the southern tier of the state, where the largest snowfall in recorded history occurred. They measured over 100cm (40 inches) through Thursday morning and it is still snowing. Numerous roads are closed and the region is completely shut down. A state of emergency has been declared in many communities across southern New York. Closer to metro New York City, 15-25cm of snow fell. The storm will arrive along coastal sections of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick later today, with 15-25cm forecast.

A spectacular NOAA satellite image of the Nor'Easter, with an eye no less, south of Long Island, New York on Thursday morning. Montreal remained on the northern edge of the epic storm, with just clouds and gusty northeast winds. (NOAA).

In Montreal, overcast skies and gusty northeast winds were all we felt from the historic snowstorm. 

As a reference point for just how big this storm was, Montreal has only recorded 27cm of snow since November 1. Last winter, October 2019 to May 2020, we measured 204.6cm (82 inches) of snow at Trudeau Airport. That was for an entire season! Binghamton had half our seasonal snowfall in 24 hours. Many northeast cities have measured more snow since late Wednesday afternoon than they did all last winter.

Winter arrives close to home

Plows clear away heavy wet snow from Route 115 in northern New Hampshire early Saturday morning. The storm dumped 10 to 20cm of snow at the highest elevations of the White and Green Mountains, and into the Beauce and Townships of southern Quebec. (NHDOT Photo).

The first snowflakes of the season fell across portions of southeastern Quebec and adjacent northern New England late Friday into early Saturday morning. The snow was produced by deep Atlantic moisture being transported inland by a developing coastal storm. Meanwhile a cold front that gave Montreal showers on Friday, provided marginally cold enough temperatures for snowfall across the higher elevations of the region. 

Over 15cm of snow fell across the Beauce and parts of the Eastern Townships into northern New Hampshire and eastern Vermont. Snow also fell at Le Massif in the Charlevoix region of Quebec.  The snow was accompanied by strong winds, in some cases up to 90km/h, knocking down tree branches and power lines under the weight of the heavy wet snow. At the lower elevations, the precipitation fell as heavy rain, with close to 70mm at Newport and 55mm at Sherbrooke where snow mixed in at the end. A peak wind gust of 105km/h (65 mph) was reported on Ile-aux-Perroquets east of Sept Iles. Montreal missed the storm, with just a few showers Friday and seasonable temperatures over the weekend.

Western Arctic Chill

Meanwhile, arctic air has been pouring into western Canada, delivering early season snow and frigid temperatures across portions of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and northwestern Ontario. Dozens of new record lows were established over the weekend, including -14.7C (5.5F) at Edmonton Airport early Saturday morning. The accompanying snow blanketed portions of the southern Prairies making travel very poor.

The cold air will moderate as it moves east, with southern Ontario and Quebec remaining mild through early next week. The weather will be wet in Montreal, with frequent frontal boundaries producing clouds and light rain through at least Thursday. 

Briefly looking ahead to next week in Montreal, we may be seeing our own snowflakes as we head towards Halloween. Time will tell, but I am watching a couple of interesting systems that are brewing. Stay tuned!

From record warmth to the biggest snowstorm of the season for Montreal

Every now and then Mother Nature puts on a show to remind us who is in charge. The car above lies buried under the overnight snow on L'Ile Perrot. It has been a wild 24 hours, from record heat to the biggest snowstorm of the season here in southern Quebec. (ValleyWeather Photo)

Winter Storm Warning remains in effect for southern Quebec.

The biggest snowstorm of the year is ongoing in southern Quebec this morning, just 24 hours after record warmth. Police are advising against travel on all area highways as heavy snow continues to fall in Montreal. As of 9am, 30cm is on the ground here on L'Ile Perrot, and the snow is still falling. Zero visibility is being observed in many locations. There have been hundreds of accidents reported across eastern Ontario and western Quebec. The biggest wreck occurred near Prescott, Ontario last evening, when several trucks collided spilling chemicals, and shutting down both directions of Highway 401 overnight. The road remains closed this morning, and the OPP is advising you stay home.

The snow started around 8pm Friday evening in Montreal, after what was a remarkably warm day. The temperature reached plus 9.8C (50F) in Montreal, smashing the old record of 5.3C set in 1986. In addition to the warmth, heavy rain created isolated flooding in many locations. Montreal had its wettest January 12 on record as well, with 17mm falling. A powerful arctic front dropped the temperature below freezing within a couple of hours last evening. The current temperature is -13C (9F). The snow is being caused by low pressure riding along the aforementioned front. The heaviest snow is falling along an axis lined up with the St Lawrence Valley and points immediately south of it to the US border. By the time the snow ends early this afternoon, 30 to 40cm will have fallen. Frigid temperatures will arrive behind the snow, with an overnight low of -24C (-11F) by Sunday morning.