Lake-Effect Snow in New York, January 30, 2012

Name: Lake-Effect Snow in New York, January 30, 2012
Start: 2012-01-30T03:00
End: 2012-01-30T15:50
Location: New York

January 30, 2012 · NWS BUF · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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Heat and drought
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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $40,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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.

Following a cold front that brought four to six inches of snow to the eastern Lake Ontario region, a broad west to east flow followed over Lake Ontario early on the 30th. A convergence boundary combined with little wind shear aloft, ample moisture in the boundary layer and cold air to provide ideal lake effect conditions. These ingredients combined allowed for a steady band of heavy lake effect snow southeast of Lake Ontario. Prior to sunrise on the 30th several inches of snow had fallen across far northwestern Wayne, northern Cayuga and western Oswego county. As the intensity of the snow band increased through the morning hours, the band of snow remained over western Oswego county with snowfall rates between three and four inches per hour over a several hour period. The focus point for this lake effect snow was on the city of Fulton and vicinity where nearly three feet of snow fell. Snowplows at one point within the city had to stop plowing as visibilities within the heavy snow became dangerously low for driving snowplows. Winds gradually backed to westerly through the day, and by time the band of snow shifted northward it was rapidly weakening, making this event localized to primarily western Oswego county and vicinity.

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 Jan 29, 11:54 PM EST, 3 hours 6 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 29, 11:54 PM EST, 3 hours 6 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 29, 10:04 PM EST, 4 hours 56 minutes before

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In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 29, 9:15 PM EST, 5 hours 45 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jan 29, 11:16 PM EST, 3 hours 44 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
1116 PM EST SUN JAN 29 2012

NYZ006>008-300530-
OSWEGO-JEFFERSON-LEWIS-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...OSWEGO...WATERTOWN...LOWVILLE
1116 PM EST SUN JAN 29 2012

...MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW TONIGHT...

MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW ACROSS THE REGION WILL SLOWLY TAPPER OFF
FROM WEST TO EAST AS A POTENT STORM SYSTEM MOVES AWAY FROM THE
REGION. EXPECT AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SNOWFALL BEFORE
ENDING ACROSS MOST LOCATIONS TONIGHT.

IN ADDITIONS...THE RECENT SNOWFALL ACROSS THE REGION WILL MAKE
FOR TREACHEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS BACK ROADS
WHERE SNOW COVERED ROAD AND ICY CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST TONIGHT.
MOTORIST ARE URGE TO TAKE PRECAUTIONS IF THEY MUST TRAVEL AND
ALLOW FOR EXTRA TIME TO ARRIVE AT THEIR DESTINATIONS.

NYZ021-300530-
ALLEGANY-
INCLUDING THE CITY OF...WELLSVILLE
1116 PM EST SUN JAN 29 2012

...MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW TONIGHT...

MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW ACROSS THE REGION WILL SLOWLY TAPPER OFF
FROM WEST TO EAST AS A POTENT STORM SYSTEM MOVES AWAY FROM THE
REGION. EXPECT AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SNOWFALL BEFORE THE
SNOWFALL ENDS ACROSS MOST LOCATIONS TONIGHT.

IN ADDITIONS...THE RECENT SNOWFALL ACROSS THE REGION WILL MAKE
FOR TREACHEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS BACK ROADS
WHERE SNOW COVERED ROAD AND ICY CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST TONIGHT.
MOTORIST ARE URGE TO TAKE PRECAUTIONS IF THEY MUST TRAVEL AND
ALLOW FOR EXTRA TIME TO ARRIVE AT THEIR DESTINATIONS.

NYZ003>005-013-014-300530-
MONROE-WAYNE-NORTHERN CAYUGA-LIVINGSTON-ONTARIO-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...ROCHESTER...NEWARK...FAIR HAVEN...
GENESEO...CANANDAIGUA
1116 PM EST SUN JAN 29 2012

...MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW TONIGHT...

MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW ACROSS THE REGION WILL SLOWLY TAPPER OFF
FROM WEST TO EAST AS A POTENT STORM SYSTEM MOVES AWAY FROM THE
REGION. EXPECT AN ADDITIONAL 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SNOWFALL BEFORE THE
SNOWFALL ENDS ACROSS MOST LOCATIONS TONIGHT.

IN ADDITIONS...THE RECENT SNOWFALL ACROSS THE REGION WILL MAKE
FOR TREACHEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS BACK ROADS
WHERE SNOW COVERED ROAD AND ICY CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST TONIGHT.
MOTORIST ARE URGE TO TAKE PRECAUTIONS IF THEY MUST TRAVEL AND
ALLOW FOR EXTRA TIME TO ARRIVE AT THEIR DESTINATIONS.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 lake-effect snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Lake-Effect Snow, Northern Cayuga

When: January 30, 3:00 AM EST to 3:50 PM EST
Where: Northern Cayuga forecast zone
Property damage: $15,000
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 43.010, -76.574 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Oswego

When: January 30, 3:00 AM EST to 3:50 PM EST
Where: Oswego forecast zone
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 43.464, -76.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Lake-Effect Snow: Heavy snow in bands downwind of a large lake as cold air crosses warmer water.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in New York in 2012 Every state in 2012 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, January 2012

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: 363474, 363475.