Winter Storm, Northwest Suffolk
- When
- January 20, 9:30 PM EST
- Where
- Northwest Suffolk forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in New York, January 20 to 21, 2001
A low pressure system developed off the mid Atlantic coast Saturday afternoon and moved northeast, passing east of Long Island early Sunday. With abundant low level moisture and cold air in place, light intermittent precipitation occurred Saturday.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 13 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 15
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS OKX wrote it up.
A low pressure system developed off the mid Atlantic coast Saturday afternoon and moved northeast, passing east of Long Island early Sunday. With abundant low level moisture and cold air in place, light intermittent precipitation occurred Saturday. As the low intensified, heavy precipitation developed and moved northeast across the area. Heavy snow occurred across Orange, Putnam, Rockland, and northern Westchester counties. In the New York City area, southern Westchester County, and across Nassau County, a period of sleet and freezing rain occurred Saturday night, producing ice accumulations of up to 0.20 inches. This buildup of ice on major highways and bridges produced hazardous travel conditions Saturday night, and contributed to an airplane skidding off the runway at JFK Airport Sunday morning. The sleet and freezing rain changed to heavy snow early Sunday morning. Across Suffolk County, a significant period of sleet and freezing rain occurred Saturday night, before changing to heavy snow early Sunday morning. Ice accumulations ranged from 0.25 to 0.50 inches. This accretion of ice on tree limbs caused some tree branches to fall, and led to power outages. Here are some specific snowfall and ice amounts for:Orange County: from 5 inches at Newburgh to 7 inches measured at Chester.Putnam County: 8.1 inches measured at Fahnestock State Park.Rockland County: 6 inches measured at Pomona.Westchester County: from 5 inches at Yorktown Heights to 7.3 inches measured at White Plains.New York City: Manhattan - up to 0.10 inches of ice followed by 6 inches of snow at Central Park.Brooklyn - up to 0.10 inches of ice followed by 7 inches of snow.Queens - 0.11 inches of ice followed by 6 inches of snow at John F. Kennedy International Airport.Nassau County: 0.20 inches of ice followed by 7 inches of snow at Bayville.Suffolk County:Upton National Weather Service Office: 0.43 inches of ice followed by 6 inches of snow.Islip McArthur Airport: 0.33 inches of ice followed by 4 inches of snow.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS New York, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 20, 3:12 PM EST, 6 hours 18 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 20, 3:12 PM EST, 6 hours 18 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Jan 20, 5:55 PM EST, 3 hours 35 minutes before
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</html>The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
11 winter storm, 4 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Winter Storm, Southwest Suffolk
- When
- January 20, 9:30 PM EST
- Where
- Southwest Suffolk forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Northeast Suffolk
- When
- January 20, 10:30 PM EST
- Where
- Northeast Suffolk forecast zone
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Southeast Suffolk
- When
- January 20, 10:30 PM EST
- Where
- Southeast Suffolk forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.941, -72.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Nassau
- When
- January 21, 6:00 AM EST
- Where
- Nassau forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
Heavy Snow, Northern Westchester
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Northern Westchester forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.152, -73.753 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Southern Westchester
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Southern Westchester forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.152, -73.753 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, New York (Manhattan)
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- New York (Manhattan) forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.774, -73.970 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Bronx
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Bronx forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.827, -73.924 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Richmond (Staten Is.)
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Richmond (Staten Is.) forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.583, -74.150 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Kings (Brooklyn)
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Kings (Brooklyn) forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 40.634, -73.950 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Storm, Queens
- When
- January 21, 7:00 AM EST
- Where
- Queens forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
Heavy Snow, Orange
- When
- January 21, 7:15 AM EST
- Where
- Orange forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.402, -74.306 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Rockland
- When
- January 21, 7:15 AM EST
- Where
- Rockland forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.152, -74.024 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heavy Snow, Putnam
- When
- January 21, 7:30 AM EST
- Where
- Putnam forecast zone
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 41.427, -73.749 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Winter Storm
- A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
- Heavy Snow
- Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Winter Storm in Tennessee, January 20, 2001
- Winter Storm and Sleet in New Jersey, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Kentucky, January 20, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Massachusetts, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Virginia, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in Maryland, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Winter Storm in Pennsylvania, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Strong Wind in North Carolina, January 20, 2001
- Winter Weather in Georgia, January 20, 2001
- Winter Storm and Winter Weather in West Virginia, January 20 to 21, 2001
- Heavy Snow in West Virginia, January 20 to 21, 2001
More
Every storm in New York in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in New York, January 2001
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5228766, 5228768, 5228767, 5228769, 5228765, 5228758, 5228759, 5228760, 5228761, 5228762, 5228763, 5228764, 5228755, 5228757, 5228756.