The Blizzard of ‘77 was a deadly blizzard which hit the city of Buffalo, New York and the area around it in New York and Ontario (and to a lesser extent, surrounding regions) from January 28th to February 1st, 1977.

The weather during the summer of 1976 in Western New York was abnormally wet, and the average temperature for both November and December was about 6 degrees below normal. Severe gas shortages were already underway and in addition to the extreme cold, snowfall in November totaled 31.3 inches. In December 60.7 inches fell, and up to the start of the storm, another 59.1 inches of snow fell, well-above normal even for a city that averages about 100 inches of snowfall per year.

The storm began on January 28th as snow started falling at 5AM. The temperature fell from 26 degrees Fahrenheit to just below zero in only a few hours. The blizzard reached its worst during the late afternoon as winds averaged 46 MPH and gusted to 69 MPH. Thousands were stranded in office buildings, schools, police stations, fire halls, and factories. Cars were stalled everywhere and roads became impassable. The blizzard lasted for the next three days, ending on February 1st. Daily peak gusts of 51, 52, 58 and 46 MPH were recorded during this period. Although only a foot of snow fell, the wind caused extensive blowing and drifting (particularly of the snow that piled just offshore on the well-frozen Lake Erie), reducing visibility and covering cars and some buildings. Twenty-nine deaths were caused by the storm, many frozen in their buried cars.

The Federal Government issued a declaration of emergency which allowed them to provide aid and restore normalcy. $20 million was spent removing snow. One method reportedly used to remove snow was to load boxcars with snow and have trains pull them "elsewhere." President Carter declared seven Western New York counties federal disaster areas, the first time ever for a snow storm in the United States.

The storm has become a historical point in the Buffalo, New York area: anyone who lived in the area during the storm has a story about what they did during it. A board game, called "The Blizzard of '77 Travel Game", was printed after the storm. In it, the players "drive" around the board, trying to collect goods such as groceries and gasoline before the storm hits. Once the storm hits, the board is flipped over to the "Blizzard" side and the players must continue in conditions, translated on the board into spaces like "Whiteout" or "Skid on ice," which have ill effects for the players. Almost every space on the "flip" side of the board game is one of these spaces, which makes further play very frustrating, thereby simluating life during the Blizzard.

See also

Lake effect snow

External link

• ClassicBuffalo.com Weather and Blizzard of '77 pics.