Syracuse, N.Y. — A relentless lake effect snowstorm on Tuesday pounded Syracuse, America’s snowiest major city, with more snow in a single day than we’ve seen in nearly 80 years.
The National Weather Service recorded 24.2 inches of snow at Hancock International Airport on Tuesday. That not only smashed the record for Dec. 30, but also made Tuesday the second-snowiest day for Syracuse since official records began in 1902.
The single-day snowfall record remains 34 inches, set on Feb. 15, 1946, according to weather service records.
This month is now the fourth-snowiest December ever recorded in Syracuse. So far, Syracuse has had 58.5 inches, nearly double the normal of 30.6 inches for December.
Several more inches are expected today in Syracuse from a separate storm system that will bring more widespread snow to Upstate New York just in time for the new year. Today’s forecast in Onondaga County is for a range of 2 to 6 inches in most places by New Year’s morning.
Syracuse has had 76.2 inches of snow so far this season, the most in 25 years. The city typically sees almost 128 inches, the highest of any U.S. city with at least 100,000 people.
Snow came down so hard and for so long on Tuesday that a third of Syracuse streets remained unplowed, trash pickup was delayed, community groups and government offices across Central New York shut down, and the highways were clogged with crashes and disabled vehicles.
Mayor Ben Walsh said it was the worst storm Syracuse has seen in years. Wind gusts exceeding 50 mph made it nearly impossible to see on roadways.
The lake effect snow band is drifting north this morning, and could pound Oswego with more than a foot of snow today.
Another storm system, called a clipper, could drop several more inches of snow in much of Upstate New York today. Meteorologists also say the clipper system could generate dangerous snow squalls tonight as New Year’s Eve revelers are heading out.
