Lake-Effect Snow in New York, December 18, 2013

Name: Lake-Effect Snow in New York, December 18, 2013
Start: 2013-12-18T02:00
End: 2013-12-18T20:30
Location: New York

December 18, 2013 · NWS BUF · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 7 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: 0
Property damage: $68,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 7

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.

The fourth lake effect event of the season was a combination of light synoptic snows followed lake effect snows. Off Lake Erie, snow fell through the morning and afternoon hours of the 18th before migrating northward through the evening hours and dissipating. The lake effect band of snow off Lake Ontario intensified through the late morning and afternoon hours of the 18th while impacting the Tug Hill region. This band too also shifted northward overnight and weakened. Snowfall rates peaked at two inches per hour. Within the higher snowfall rates, thunder snow occurred. Gusty winds and the timing of early morning did bring accidents on area roads slowing the morning commute. Specific amounts reported included: 12 inches at West Falls and Highmarket; 11 inches as Boston and Lacona; 10 inches at Dunkirk and 8 inches as Constableville.

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 Dec 18, 12:00 AM EST, 2 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 18, 12:00 AM EST, 2 hours before

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 17, 7:32 PM EST, 6 hours 28 minutes before

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Dec 17, 10:30 PM EST, 3 hours 30 minutes before

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Lake-Effect Snow, Oswego

When: December 18, 2:00 AM EST to 8:30 PM EST
Where: Oswego forecast zone
Property damage: $9,000
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 43.464, -76.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Jefferson

When: December 18, 2:00 AM EST to 8:30 PM EST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Property damage: $8,000
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 43.999, -76.052 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Lewis

When: December 18, 2:00 AM EST to 8:30 PM EST
Where: Lewis forecast zone
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.785, -75.449 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Wyoming

When: December 18, 11:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Wyoming forecast zone
Property damage: $7,000
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.702, -78.224 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Chautauqua

When: December 18, 11:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Chautauqua forecast zone
Property damage: $9,000
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.303, -79.406 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Cattaraugus

When: December 18, 11:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Cattaraugus forecast zone
Property damage: $13,000
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.249, -78.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lake-Effect Snow, Southern Erie

When: December 18, 11:00 AM EST to 6:00 PM EST
Where: Southern Erie forecast zone
Property damage: $12,000
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 42.758, -78.780 (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 2013 Every state in 2013 This day in weather history Warnings in New York, December 2013

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: 490931, 490932, 490933, 490934, 490935, 490936, 490937.