High Wind in New York, February 1, 2002

Name: High Wind in New York, February 1, 2002
Start: 2002-02-01T11:30
End: 2002-02-01T14:05
Location: New York

February 1, 2002 · NWS BUF · 14 events in 14 counties and zones

An intensifying storm moved across the Great Lakes and lifted northeast to the St. Lawrence Valley.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 14 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 2
Property damage: $7.5 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 14

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 BUF wrote it up.

An intensifying storm moved across the Great Lakes and lifted northeast to the St. Lawrence Valley. Very strong winds behind the low blasted the region with wind gusts exceeding 55 mph. Trees and power lines were downed by the strong winds. Hundreds of thousands were without power...some for several days. Fallen trees and limbs littered the area and closed roads. Numerous reports of damage to homes and automobiles were received from throughout the area. Driving bans and States of Emergency were declared in several counties. Numerous school districts were forced to close on the first and several remained closed through the beginning of the following week. In Monroe county, two injuries resulted from the high winds. A man was briefly hospitalized after gusts blew apart the trailer he was working in at the Greater Rochester Airport. Also in Rochester, a woman was blown from the sidewalk into the street where she was hit by an oncoming car. In Tonawanda, an inflated golf dome was torn to shreds by the high winds.

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 Buffalo, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 1, 9:21 AM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 1, 9:21 AM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
921 AM EST FRI FEB 1 2002

...AFTER SIGNIFICANT ICING...THE EMPHASIS WILL SHIFT TO STRONG WINDS
THIS AFTERNON...

THE STEADIER RAIN (AND POCKETS OF FREEZING RAIN) OVER THE FINGER
LAKES AND NORTH COUNTRY WILL CLEAR THESE AREAS BY LATE MORNING...SO
ALL THE WINTER STORM WARNINGS WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPIRE.

FLOOD WARNINGS REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR CAYUGA...CAZENOVIA AND BUFFALO
CREEKS.

OUR FOCUS WILL THEN SHIFT TO THE LIKELIHOOD OF VERY STRONG WINDS THIS
AFTERNOON. SURFACE OBSERVATIONS SHOW 7 MB PRESSURE RISES OVER WESTERN
OHIO. THE STRONG WINDS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS WESTERN NEW YORK BY LATE
MORNING AND DURING THE EARLY AFTERNOON ACROSS THE FINGER LAKES AND
THE NORTH COUNTRY. KBUF VAD WIND PROFILE SHOWS 60 KNOT WINDS AT 2K
FEET...SO OCCASIONAL GUSTS OVER 50 MPH ARE LIKELY...ESPECIALLY
DOWNWIND OF LAKE ERIE.

THE PROBLEM WITH THE WIND WILL BE COMPOUNDED WITH THE ICE THAT IS
STILL LINGERING ON SOME TREES AND POWER LINES.

THE RELATIVELY LOW LAKE LEVELS WILL HELP TO PREVENT A BIG SURGE  FROM
DEVELOPING AT THE EAST END OF LAKE ERIE...BUT SOME EROSION IS
POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON.

.BUF...HIGH WIND WARNING THIS AFTERNOON NYZ001>008-010>014-019>020

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

14 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Erie

When: February 1, 11:30 AM EST
Where: Erie forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph)
Property damage: $1.0 million
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 42.758, -78.780 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Wyoming

When: February 1, 11:50 AM EST
Where: Wyoming forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 42.702, -78.224 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Oswego

When: February 1, 12:00 PM EST
Where: Oswego forecast zone
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: METEOROLOGIST(NON NWS)
Coordinates: 43.464, -76.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Chautauqua

When: February 1, 12:15 PM EST
Where: Chautauqua forecast zone
Measured: 59 kt (68 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 42.303, -79.406 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Niagara

When: February 1, 12:24 PM EST
Where: Niagara forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $750,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 43.173, -78.691 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Cattaraugus

When: February 1, 12:34 PM EST
Where: Cattaraugus forecast zone
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 42.249, -78.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Monroe

When: February 1, 12:39 PM EST
Where: Monroe forecast zone
Measured: 63 kt (72 mph)
Injuries: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $750,000
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates: 43.165, -77.636 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Jefferson

When: February 1, 12:40 PM EST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $750,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.999, -76.052 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Orleans

When: February 1, 12:49 PM EST
Where: Orleans forecast zone
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 43.251, -78.189 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Wayne

When: February 1, 1:00 PM EST
Where: Wayne forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 43.066, -76.978 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Lewis

When: February 1, 1:00 PM EST
Where: Lewis forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 43.785, -75.449 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Livingston

When: February 1, 1:00 PM EST
Where: Livingston forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 42.728, -77.775 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Ontario

When: February 1, 1:30 PM EST
Where: Ontario forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 42.853, -77.300 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Genesee

When: February 1, 2:05 PM EST
Where: Genesee forecast zone
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Property damage: $500,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 43.001, -78.194 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in New York in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, February 2002

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5283312, 5283313, 5283314, 5283315, 5283316, 5283317, 5283318, 5283319, 5283320, 5283321, 5283322, 5283323, 5283324, 5283325.