Parts of New York, Pennsylvania Buried by Up to 4 Feet of ‘Lake-Effect’ Snow

The governors of New York and Pennsylvania have declared disaster emergencies in areas hit with as much as three and four feet of “lake-effect” snow from a fierce winter storm.

New York Governor Hochul declared a state of emergency for Allegany, Erie, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Genesee, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oswego, St. Lawrence, Wyoming and Contiguous Counties. Additional states of emergency were declared by Erie County and the towns of Brant and Evans.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed a disaster proclamation for Erie County, making additional resources including the National Guard available to support response efforts in northwestern Pennsylvania.

The heaviest snowfall occurred through Sunday morning, with an additional period of heavy snow expected into Monday morning and continuing through Wednesday. The areas were seeing snowfall rates of one to two and three to four inches per hour in the most intense snow bands.

According to the National Weather Service, lake-effect snow occurs when cold air, often originating from Canada, moves across the open waters of the Great Lakes.

Due to the closure of I-90 in Pennsylvania, the NYS Thruway (I-90) westbound was also closed from Hamburg – East Aurora to the Pennsylvania state line until further notice. All commercial vehicles are banned on parts of the NYS Thruway from Rochester – Corning to the Pennsylvania state line.

Utility companies will have crews working in repair and restoration efforts over the next few days.

To assist with traffic safety related to Sunday’s Buffalo Bills vs. San Francisco 49ers football game, New York state doubled up on plow beats on key routes in and around the stadium. The Bills solicited help from fans to shovel snow at the stadiums for $20 per hour.

Pennsylvania officials said they are working closely with emergency crews from New York.

“This storm doesn’t limit its impact only to Pennsylvania and we’re working with partners in New York to coordinate our response and our plans to reopen highways as soon as we can,” said Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) Director Randy Padfield.

Pennsylvania National Guard members have been assisting with the use of high clearance vehicles to rescue stranded motorists and moving vehicles. The Pennsylvania State Police responded to nearly 200 incidents during the 24-hour period from 6 a.m. on November 29 to 6 a.m. November 30.

Topics New York Pennsylvania