National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Overview

Low pressure moved northward from the Outer Banks of North Carolina to just south of Long Island from Wednesday, December 16th into the early morning hours on Thursday, December 17th. Copious moisture was lifted over a dome of cold air over the Northeastern US, allowing snow to spread into eastern New York and western New England during the afternoon and evening hours of the 16th. Heavy snow bands of 1- 2" per hour were common with this initial activity. The heavy snow bands slowed their northward progress and pivoted, resulting in incredible snowfall rates of up to 6" per hour after midnight on the 17th through the late morning. A swath of very heavy snow occurred where these bands pivoted across Schoharie, Schenectady, Saratoga, southeast Warren, Washington, and northern Bennington Counties. Snowfall amounts of 2-3 feet were common in these areas before the snow finally ended in the late morning/early afternoon of the 17th. Elsewhere in the region, snow amounts of 1-2 feet were common aside from the southern Adirondacks which were on the periphery of the storm. Officially, 22.9" was measured at Albany International Airport, making this storm the 8th largest snowstorm on record at Albany at the time, and the 4th largest in December.

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