winter

After getting caught in the snow four times during our last blizzard, I figured driving was not an option. Who in their right mind is going to drive around in this?

Apparently a lot of people are doing just that as Main St. had its usual mid-day traffic and was cleaned up for the most part.

Well I decided to get all bundled up and go for a walk. Dumb idea.

I took a trip around my part of the city, walking around two different blocks, and it was brutal. The weather is 32-degrees right now, so it wasn't the cold that was the problem. It was the snow coming down in such a burdensome manner. 

I'm guessing that if you get outside of the city and are driving on Rt. 63 or 19, you are in for a lot of whiteout conditions as there is a slight wind in the city, which means when you get out you are in trouble.

This isn't that light snow that is nice to see once in a while. This is the big flake, heavy, pain in the butt type of snow.  I am so happy that my neighbor has a big snow plow and is a good guy or I would be in trouble today. I still can't lift heavy stuff after the carpal tunnel surgeries over the summer and I have a feeling that it would kill me to have to clear that stuff out on my own.

So I noticed a few things on my walk. First is that moving during the winter sucks. I found a guy moving in on Montclair Ave. and let's just say these aren't the ideal conditions. 

In fact, he tried to move the moving truck so that the plow could get down the street, and the battery had died. He found somebody and was getting a jump as I decided to head towards Main St.

I understand the sidewalks on the side streets being bad because people are at work. I just walked down the road. But I watched the mail carrier walking through big piles of snow and struggling just to get to people's mail boxes.

And then I got to Main St. and the sidewalks were just as bad.

I made a left and walked towards Burger King and Arby's - which were both pretty slow for a mid-afternoon on a work day - and the sidewalks were clear in some places and not even touched in others. I thought the city owned some big machine that is supposed to drive around and clear of sidewalks?

How about getting that thing out on Main St.

I could hear the speaker at Ken Barrett's  calling for service, but none of the cars were cleared off and nobody was shopping for a car. I get it. There is no way to get a feel for a vehicle when you can't drive faster than like 15 miles per hour.

I really was surprised at the amount of people out there driving because it is nasty out and probably will be for the rest of the afternoon. 

I saw a few people out shoveling and plowing driveways, but most of those that work during the day looked like they went in because driveways were packed all over the place.

As I was walking down Oak St., I saw a guy riding a bicycle down the road. He wasn't moving very fast and I can't imagine it was a pleasurable trip. I've never understood those that ride bikes when the weather is like this.

Finally I got home. What would usually be a 45 minute trip around a couple blocks took nearly and hour and half, but I did stop and talk to a few folks out there clearing their driveways and walking places.

The most common complaint I heard was the lack of cleared out sidewalks. If anybody knows about how the city handles sidewalks, I'd love to hear it.

I finally got home and was able to sit down at my computer, after a change of clothing because I looked like a snowman.

Snowfall has gained some force over the past hour here in downtown Batavia. The flakes are bigger, there are more of them and they're falling faster.

A winter storm warning issued by the National Weather Service out of Buffalo will remain in effect until about 11 o'clock tonight, although this should be the worst of it.

Moderate to heavy snow will bring difficult travel to western New York through this evening. Steady snow will continue today into early this evening before tapering off later this evening.

Snowfall rates may reach around 1 inch per hour during bursts of heavier snowfall today. Storm total accumulations are expected to reach 8 to 10 inches by late this evening.

Here's a look at conditions on Main Street in Batavia, outside our office. This video was taken shortly before 11 o'clock this morning.

We're in the midst of it, now. It looks like we've so far collected maybe a couple inches of snow overnight, but this storms system has us blanketed like a croissant around a cocktail weiner.

Most meteorologists tell us that the worst is yet to come. Expect the snow to turn heavy later this morning, after 9 o'clock, and remain so right up through the afternoon. We do not yet have word of any school closures in the area.

Right now... it doesn't look too bad. It doesn't look fun, but not like anything we haven't tackled before. Here's how things stand on the Thruway at the Batavia exit. Please take it slow out there.

Most of the folks who have taken our poll so far today are in agreement that "maybe" we will get a couple inches of snow overnight tonight. In fact, it's an overwhelming 76 percent of poll-takers who feel that way right now. That "maybe" attitude may change a little bit, however. The National Weather Service has upgraded their winter storm watch to a warning, and it sounds like we could get "slammed" over the next 24 hours.

The warning goes into effect tonight at 11:00pm, through to 11:00pm Wednesday night, although it sounds like overnight and tomorrow morning will be the worst of it. So plan for a tricky commute. Here are the details:

Moderate to heavy snow will bring difficult travel to the western New York tonight through Wednesday evening. Snow is expected to overspread the region by around or shortly after midnight, with periods of snow continuing through Wednesday evening. The snow may be heavy at times, especially late tonight and Wednesday morning.

Storm total accumulations are expected to reach 8 to 10 inches by late Wednesday evening.

Meteorologists are holding true to their winter storm watch, still expecting the massive system now sweeping up from Ohio to hit hard tonight—check out our post from this morning. Although, initial predictions of up to a foot of snow for the region have already been eased. We're know expecting between five and eight inches of snowfall. Still, looking at this thing, there seems a chance that it could just sail right by us, never lifting north enough to cause any damage.

Last year, if I remember correctly, there were about a half dozen "major" snow storms that were predicted that never came to pass. Are we looking at another flop, or should be all be picking up our shovels?

A winter storm watch first issued yesterday evening is still in effect for tonight and tomorrow. Initial predictions were between 6 to 12 inches of snowfall.

From the National Weather Service out of Buffalo:

A storm system tracking northeast from the southern plains could bring a significant general snowfall to the area tonight and Wednesday. Some uncertainty still exists on the exact path the storm system will take, and therefore the amount of snowfall which may occur. Probabilities remain high enough that significant snowfall may occur to maintain the winter storm watch.

Again, here's a look at this storm right now. As you can easily see: it's enormous, stretching from Dallas to Philadelphia. It looks as if the real threat is the mass of snow currently creeping up through Ohio. Maybe we'll get lucky, and it will drift on by south of us.

A storm system creeping over the midwest could hit our region Tuesday night and bring up to a foot of snow. The National Weather Service out of Buffalo has issued a winter storm watch, in effect beginning tomorrow night.

A storm system tracking northeast from from Texas has the potential of producing a widespread 6 to 12 inches of snow across the area Tuesday night and Wednesday. The heaviest amounts are likely to be across the Southern Tier counties. It is still too early to be certain of these amounts. Remember, this is just a watch at this time. Warnings or advisories will be issued when we are more certain.

A watch is essentially the first alarm in the storm prediction business, so don't go warming up the generator yet.

Here's what we may have to look forward to—now looming ominously in the form of a wintry mix over Oklahoma and into Missouri.

We've got a winter weather advisory in effect until noon today. From the National Weather Service out of Buffalo:

Patchy freezing drizzle will be found across the region into the late morning hours. The freezing drizzle will likely produce a very light glaze on untreated surfaces, with the greatest potential for trouble being found on sidewalks.

Temperatures will lift throughout the day, and we may even get up above freezing.

Here's a look at the current Thruway conditions:

A wind chill advisory for the region has been extended through today up until about 11 o'clock Saturday morning. Temperatures with the wind chill could drop as low as 20 degrees below zero this morning and overnight, according to the National Weather Service out of Buffalo. Right now it feels like about 14 degrees below zero, and it may not get any worse than that as long as the winds hold steady.

And of course: more snow. From the National Weather Service:

Bitterly cold wind chill values with significant lake effect snows east of the lakes through Friday night.

A frigid arctic airmass will remain in place across all of western and north central New York through at least Saturday morning. Temperatures during this period will average some 15 degrees below normal.

In addition to the bitterly cold wind chills, winds will be aligned well enough for organized lake effect snow east of both lakes Erie and Ontario. Some areas could see storm totals close to 2 feet.

Anyone else catch that: "a frigid arctic airmass." Doesn't sound friendly.

A look at the radar shows that most of this snow will be south and east of us, maybe reaching Attica and Warsaw, and well north on the Lake Ontario shoreline. For now and for the rest of the morning, at least.

Scenes similar to this clean up yesterday at the site of a head-on collision on Clinton Street Road in the city have been common over the past few days. Below zero temperatures have kept the road salt from doing its work and frequent snowfalls have kept the plows more than busy.

In response, the city of Batavia police have issued a statement urging motorists to drive cautiously and maybe drive a little more slowly than they normally would.

In the past 24 hours the Batavia Police Department has investigated about 15 motor vehicle accidents. Only a few resulted in minor injuries. With the extreme cold weather conditions and the snow we have received, the city streets remain slippery and icy especially at intersections. Even after being treated, the intersections and streets become icy quickly with the near zero temperatures we are experiencing.
 
We are asking all drivers in the city to use extreme caution and to slow down, especially when approaching intersections.

This morning may not be too bad here in Batavia... But that wasn't the case in Rochester when I left shortly before 7 o'clock this morning. A few inches of snow had already accumulated and more was falling. Streets were greasy and driving slow almost all the way down I-490 to Bergen. So be careful if you're heading in that direction today in your commute.

As for the rest of the day: cold. We're at about 9 degrees right now and could see a low of zero! Yikes. Fortunately, we will not see significant wind until later this evening into tomorrow. In fact, a wind chill warning is in effect from 4:00am until noon tomorrow.

The National Weather Service out of Buffalo warns us that wind chills could dip as low as 20 to 25 degrees below zero. As if that isn't enough:

In addition to the very cold wind chills, winds (will) become well enough aligned later today and tonight for bands of heavy lake effect snow east of Lake Erie. Warnings will remain in place for southern Erie County and also Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties.

Here's a look out at the Thruway interchange in Batavia right now:

Temperatures have settled at about 4 degrees, or nearly 30 degrees below freezing, in the Batavia area this morning. As a result, area police have cautioned motorists to be wary of black ice on the roads. Even those roads treated with salt have iced up in some spots, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer.

Fortunately, there's no significant wind to push that cold all the more insistently into our faces today. Unfortunately, that won't be the case tomorrow when more wind develops and could yank the temperature down near -17 degrees. Expect more of the same on Friday.

A well-written article this morning in the Buffalo News has some tips on how to get through the "deep freeze." For example: You may want to keep your water running just a little bit so that it doesn't freeze in the pipes.

We're looking at a severe winter weather advisory for the region from 9 o'clock this morning through 6:00pm this afternoon, issued by the National Weather Service out of Buffalo. Don't expect things to get more friendly after that. We're already hearing talk of record low temperatures possibly down to minus ten degrees by Thursday. For now, here's what to expect:

A strong cold front will cross western New York early this afternoon and bring 1 to 3 inches of snow to the area. Strong southerly winds ahead of the front will shift to west with the frontal passage and gust up to 35 mph. This will result in considerable blowing and drfiting snow. Expect very hazardous conditions for travel for a few hours during the afternoon.

Please be careful driving out there. Wind, plus snow, plus cold usually make for the worst driving conditions. I can speak from experience that Route 33 between Batavia and Bergen is often treacherous when the gusts start kicking the snow across the road.

Everything looks clear right now on the Thruway.

That's right folks, it's time to play everybody's favorite audio clip guessing game: Name that Wintertime Sound... Simply click on the link to open the audio file in another window. Please give it a minute to load before pressing play or else the sound will be choppy.

Here's a clue: It's not Tito Puente.

Time for an update with a photo clue. This should give it away. Thanks for playing!

Fresh snow and heavy, gusting winds made for some slippery travel this morning, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. A few area schools have been closed and Le Roy has delayed its start for two hours. Closings include: Attica, Alexander, Pavilion and Pembroke.

This morning I was awakened by the phone and a delay by the school district because of the weather.  We are waiting for the salt trucks to make the roads safe for children to get to school.  The freezing rain that had started last night continues to fall and just makes a mess of the streets in Batavia.  I took a clip of the roads by my house and just listen to the crackling sounds:

This weather makes it very difficult to get around to school, work or really any outdoor activity.  I would rather have snow than this freezing rain any day.  How do you feel about the weather we have had in the last couple weeks?  What are others thoughts on this subject?

Many area schools are already delayed this morning to help give highway crews time to get the roads salted. Ice is the main problem right now. Wind will become the hazard this evening. As for the best news of all: expect more of it, throughout the day today.

A winter weather advisory issued yesterday by the National Weather Service that was supposed to run through 5:00pm today has been extended through the evening until 5:00am Thursday. From the advisory:

Freezing rain will produce very slipper conditions across the area this morning. A changeover to all snow and increasing westerly winds will make driving hazardous tonight.

Freezing rain will change to occasional rain and drizzle this morning. Additional ice accumulation of less than one tenth of an inch expected. Expect periods of snow tonight with 1 to 3 inches possible by Thursday morning. Accumulations of 2 to 5 inches are likely well south of Buffalo and Batavia. The snow will also be accompanied by westerly winds gusting up to 35 mphs at times.

Here's a look at conditions out on the Thruway at the Batavia interchange:

We've received yet another winter weather advisory from the National Weather Service. This one goes into effect tonight at 8:00pm through 5:00pm tomorrow.

A wintry mix will produce slippery travel tonight through Wednesday. Light snow is expected to overspread the Niagara Frontier, Genesee Valley and northern Finger Lakes this evening. The light snow will change to sleet and freezing rain from southwest to northeast after midnight. Occasional light freezing rain and freezing drizzle is expected to continue through Wednesday. The freezing rain may change to just rain later Wednesday with temperatures rising just above freezing.

Snow accumulations of 1 to 2 inches are possible before the changeover. Ice accumulations of up to a tenth of an inch are possible.

Be careful out there. This doesn't sound like the worst we've had—freezing drizzle isn't all that intimidating—but even a tenth of an inch of ice can cause some hairy driving conditions.