All eyes have been on Buffalo, NY as heavy lake-effect snow pounds the snowbelt. Up to 65 inches of snow (that’s over five feet!) have fallen in Buffalo suburbs so far, and more is unfortunately on the way. Andrew Cuomo, the Governor of New York, has issued a state of emergency for 10 of the snowbelt counties including Erie County (Buffalo). A 132-mile section of Interstate 90 remains closed because of the dangerous driving conditions. Five people have died in incidents related to the storm in Buffalo; two fell victim to automobile accidents and another three died due to cardiac complications.
Incredible RT @FrankFerragine: This is the craziest picture I’ve seen out of Buffalo yet #buffalo pic.twitter.com/mvuLNIsRlG #nywx #bufwx
— Chris Scott (@ChrisScottWx) November 19, 2014
Incredible pictures from near Buffalo, NY. 5 feet of snow in some spots! #LakeEffect #BuffaloSnow #nywx. pic.twitter.com/fOn3xuoM6D
— NWS Binghamton (@NWSBinghamton) November 19, 2014
House looks like it’s smiling but under weight of snow, probably not. #lakeeffect RT @confusedcaboose: pic.twitter.com/gyWTIKW27j
— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) November 19, 2014
The Weather Channel provides their forecast timeline for the rest of the week in a recent article:
– Wednesday: Lake snowbands disrupted from west to east by weak reinforcing cold front; more widespread light-moderate snow. Then, bands redevelop later in the western Great Lakes (round two begins).
– Thursday: Lake-effect snow (round two) continues
– Friday: Lake-effect snow ends first in the western Great Lakes early in the day, then downwind of Lake Erie late Friday. Lake Ontario lake snowband may persist into early Saturday before ending.
– Saturday: Lake Ontario snowband finally ends. Daytime highs should rise above freezing in most of the Great Lakes. Light rain is possible in parts of the Great Lakes, in western/central New York later in the day.
– Sunday: More substantial rain pushes into Great Lakes later in the day. Daytime highs push into the 40s over much of the Great Lakes.
Wall of snow seen from the air over Buffalo, courtesy @JamesAFry. See more photos: http://t.co/jeo2QjJ2Ha pic.twitter.com/xqCRUThUFU
— CBS News (@CBSNews) November 19, 2014
RT @ScottLevinWGRZ: Heroes in the storm. Buffalo’s bravest responding to an EMS call in Kaisertown. pic.twitter.com/oDQBVMVj1r
— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) November 19, 2014
Digging out, bracing for more: #LakeEffect snow will punish #Buffalo, NY area through Friday http://t.co/iQBpgmoJoS pic.twitter.com/KXH2h29wkz
— Capital Weather Gang (@capitalweather) November 19, 2014
Once the snow ends, Buffalo is not out of the clear, however; snowmelt and rain this weekend may lead to another area of concern: flooding.