What a difference a day makes!
Erie County residents emerged from their homes today as the wind died down, the snow let up, and the Blizzard of 2014 was transformed into memories.
But hold on.
Temperatures will be in the 50s on Saturday, which could cause some ice jam flooding in area creeks, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Jon Hitchcock.
“We believe there are ice jams in place,” he said.
There’s no water runoff from melting with the temperatures so cold, so they are not causing problems on the creeks, just yet, he said. But once the weather warms up and rain comes on Saturday, there could be ice jam flooding issues on Cazenovia, Cayuga and Buffalo creeks and possibly Cattaraugus Creek, he said.
Flooding problems from the Niagara River have subsided today.
The New York Power Authority canceled a flood watch for Cayuga Island in Niagara Falls, Mayor Paul A. Dyster announced on his Facebook page.
The watch remained in effect for the Robert Moses Parkway beneath the north Grand Island bridge.
Flood gauges are two feet below the damage level and falling, Dyster reported.
Department of Public Works “crews will continue ice removal efforts today, including helping residents clear their driveways. Ice breakers will remain on duty and power output has not been impacted,” the mayor wrote.
A lake-effect snow advisory remains in place for Erie County until 7 p.m. today.
“There is still a weak to moderate lake-effect from the City of Buffalo to mainly the northern suburbs right now,” Hitchcock said late Wednesday morning. “That’s going to slowly weaken in place.”
But without much wind, the light, fluffy snow should not cause too many problems on the roads, he said.
“Tomorrow will start the warming process,” he said.
Temperatures should rise to the lower 20s Thursday and into the upper 30s by Friday, and after hitting the 50-degree mark Saturday, back to the mid to upper 30s on Sunday and probably low 40s on Monday, he said.
By the middle of next week temperatures will be more seasonal, with highs in the 20s. But forecasters are keeping their eyes on another significant push of cold air that could be coming this way after Jan. 20, he said.
While this week’s Arctic temperatures went a long way to form ice on Lake Erie, particularly to the western end, there still is about 80 miles of open lake, Hitchcock said.
“We’re probably several weekends away from being frozen to end lake-effect snow,” he said.
The Blizzard of 2014 officially ended at 3:52 this morning, when the National Weather Service canceled the blizzard warning for Western New York.
The storm dumped 12.6 inches at the weather service office in Cheektowaga, and 22 inches in Orchard Park as of 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Other storm totals reported by the National Weather Service include 18.6 inches in Elma, 13.5 inches in Akron and 10 inches in Williamsville.
Measuring the snowfall from the storm proved difficult, even for the experts at the weather service. The area where snowfall usually is measured couldn’t be used, because the wind blew it off the snow board, Kelly said.
“We did have another snow board in a sheltered area,” he said.
The Thruway, and Routes 400 and 219 also reopened Wednesday morning, but they remained snowcovered as cars ventured on them for the first time in a day.
Route 5 in Lackawanna is not passable because of flooding, city officials reported. But other streets are now open for motorists to travel as travel bans were lifted.
...
Find a photo gallery of the blizzard aftermath here.
...
A massive ice jam on the upper Niagara River extended from Niagara Falls to the north Grand Island bridge, but police said the threat of flooding has subsided.
And driving on area roads still is tricky on the snow and icy roads.
“We have had cars spinning off on Route 20 (Southwestern Boulevard),” said Orchard Park Police Chief Mark Pacholec. “People are just not driving smart, not driving prudently.”
He advises caution while driving.
“It’s still slippery out. It’s still snowing,” Pacholec said. “When you hit the brakes, you’re going to spin.”
Lackawanna officials don’t know what is causing the flooding on Route 5 on the Lackawanna-Hamburg border, but it is not a water main break, nor is it from a creek, said Lackawanna Police Capt. Robert Janowski.
“We think it’s from ice,” he said.
Authorities believe ice jams may be causing the storm sewer to back up, he said.
“It’s coming from the ground,” he said.
On the upper Niagara River near the North Grand Island bridge, the power authority’s ice breaker was headed out to break up ice on the river this morning.
Glen and Nancy Gambino, who live on Cayuga Island in Niagara Falls, said their neighborhood floods in the winter when the ice builds up.
“Whenever the intakes for the power authority jam up with ice, it raises the level of the water on the north side of Cayuga Island,” Nancy Gambino said.
Outside their house at Griffon Avenue, the street is encrusted with several inches of ice.
“I’ve lived here all my life, and whenever there are sustained westerly winds, we get flooded on this side of the street,” she said.
Most schools in the area are closed again today, including Buffalo public and Catholic elementary schools.
Staff reporters Lou Michel and Aaron Besecker contributed to this story.
email: bobrien@buffnews.com
Erie County residents emerged from their homes today as the wind died down, the snow let up, and the Blizzard of 2014 was transformed into memories.
But hold on.
Temperatures will be in the 50s on Saturday, which could cause some ice jam flooding in area creeks, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Jon Hitchcock.
“We believe there are ice jams in place,” he said.
There’s no water runoff from melting with the temperatures so cold, so they are not causing problems on the creeks, just yet, he said. But once the weather warms up and rain comes on Saturday, there could be ice jam flooding issues on Cazenovia, Cayuga and Buffalo creeks and possibly Cattaraugus Creek, he said.
Flooding problems from the Niagara River have subsided today.
The New York Power Authority canceled a flood watch for Cayuga Island in Niagara Falls, Mayor Paul A. Dyster announced on his Facebook page.
The watch remained in effect for the Robert Moses Parkway beneath the north Grand Island bridge.
Flood gauges are two feet below the damage level and falling, Dyster reported.
Department of Public Works “crews will continue ice removal efforts today, including helping residents clear their driveways. Ice breakers will remain on duty and power output has not been impacted,” the mayor wrote.
A lake-effect snow advisory remains in place for Erie County until 7 p.m. today.
“There is still a weak to moderate lake-effect from the City of Buffalo to mainly the northern suburbs right now,” Hitchcock said late Wednesday morning. “That’s going to slowly weaken in place.”
But without much wind, the light, fluffy snow should not cause too many problems on the roads, he said.
“Tomorrow will start the warming process,” he said.
Temperatures should rise to the lower 20s Thursday and into the upper 30s by Friday, and after hitting the 50-degree mark Saturday, back to the mid to upper 30s on Sunday and probably low 40s on Monday, he said.
By the middle of next week temperatures will be more seasonal, with highs in the 20s. But forecasters are keeping their eyes on another significant push of cold air that could be coming this way after Jan. 20, he said.
While this week’s Arctic temperatures went a long way to form ice on Lake Erie, particularly to the western end, there still is about 80 miles of open lake, Hitchcock said.
“We’re probably several weekends away from being frozen to end lake-effect snow,” he said.
The Blizzard of 2014 officially ended at 3:52 this morning, when the National Weather Service canceled the blizzard warning for Western New York.
The storm dumped 12.6 inches at the weather service office in Cheektowaga, and 22 inches in Orchard Park as of 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Other storm totals reported by the National Weather Service include 18.6 inches in Elma, 13.5 inches in Akron and 10 inches in Williamsville.
Measuring the snowfall from the storm proved difficult, even for the experts at the weather service. The area where snowfall usually is measured couldn’t be used, because the wind blew it off the snow board, Kelly said.
“We did have another snow board in a sheltered area,” he said.
The Thruway, and Routes 400 and 219 also reopened Wednesday morning, but they remained snowcovered as cars ventured on them for the first time in a day.
Route 5 in Lackawanna is not passable because of flooding, city officials reported. But other streets are now open for motorists to travel as travel bans were lifted.
...
Find a photo gallery of the blizzard aftermath here.
...
A massive ice jam on the upper Niagara River extended from Niagara Falls to the north Grand Island bridge, but police said the threat of flooding has subsided.
And driving on area roads still is tricky on the snow and icy roads.
“We have had cars spinning off on Route 20 (Southwestern Boulevard),” said Orchard Park Police Chief Mark Pacholec. “People are just not driving smart, not driving prudently.”
He advises caution while driving.
“It’s still slippery out. It’s still snowing,” Pacholec said. “When you hit the brakes, you’re going to spin.”
Lackawanna officials don’t know what is causing the flooding on Route 5 on the Lackawanna-Hamburg border, but it is not a water main break, nor is it from a creek, said Lackawanna Police Capt. Robert Janowski.
“We think it’s from ice,” he said.
Authorities believe ice jams may be causing the storm sewer to back up, he said.
“It’s coming from the ground,” he said.
On the upper Niagara River near the North Grand Island bridge, the power authority’s ice breaker was headed out to break up ice on the river this morning.
Glen and Nancy Gambino, who live on Cayuga Island in Niagara Falls, said their neighborhood floods in the winter when the ice builds up.
“Whenever the intakes for the power authority jam up with ice, it raises the level of the water on the north side of Cayuga Island,” Nancy Gambino said.
Outside their house at Griffon Avenue, the street is encrusted with several inches of ice.
“I’ve lived here all my life, and whenever there are sustained westerly winds, we get flooded on this side of the street,” she said.
Most schools in the area are closed again today, including Buffalo public and Catholic elementary schools.
Staff reporters Lou Michel and Aaron Besecker contributed to this story.
email: bobrien@buffnews.com