The Great Appalachian Storm of 1950
To this day, this is the greatest snowstorm the Central Appalachians have ever experienced. Over 30 inches of snow was reported in a band from Erie, PA southward into the heart of West Virginia, where there were several reports of at least 50 inches. The greatest snowfall amount was reported in Coburn Creek, WV where an amazing 62 inches of snow was reported. This storm also packed extreme winds and cold, Newark; NJ reported a wind gust of 108 mph and on top of Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina, the mercury fell to -26F and just 3F in Atlanta, GA. This powerful storm was a Cat 5 in the Ohio Valley Region, a Cat 4 in the Northeast Region and a Cat 1 in the Southeast Region. (Kocin and Uccellini)
The storm by region
Each region’s thresholds are its own, so the same depth of snow counts for more in the South than in the Northeast.
| Region | Index | Category | Area with snow (sq mi) | People under snow | Above the top threshold (sq mi) | People above it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio Valley | 34.69 | Category 5, Extreme | 308,845 | 49,245,400 | 34,845 | 6,316,540 |
| Northeast | 14.53 | Category 4, Crippling | 149,339 | 57,671,970 | 3,882 | 1,207,570 |
| Upper Midwest | 4.62 | Category 2, Significant | 242,691 | 23,542,743 | 413 | 7,676 |
| Southeast | 2.38 | Category 1, Notable | 175,613 | 31,395,962 | 1,537 | 51,238 |
| South | 0.11 | Below category 1 | 113,667 | 6,582,261 | 0 | 0 |
The Regional Snowfall Index is NOAA’s ranking of snowstorms east of the Rockies by how much snow fell, over how wide an area and on how many people, region by region: the area and the population above four snowfall thresholds set for each region, weighted against that region’s own history. A storm is scored in each region it reached, on a scale from 1, notable, to 5, extreme.
In the Storm Events record
The Storm Events Database holds winter weather only from 1996, so this storm has no episodes there.
More
The snowstorm of February 11 to 17, 1950The snowstorm of December 4 to 9, 1950Snow nowEvery winter storm filed
Sources
NOAA NCEI Regional Snowfall Index, and the Storm Events Database for the episodes.