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Burlington Saw Three Top-10 Snow Storms in 2003
By Brent Hallenbeck
Free Press Staff Writer
Driveway and sidewalk shovelers just recovering from achy-breaky backs suffered the previous weekend had a nice treat waiting for them Monday morning -- an even bigger, snowier storm than the last one.
This one, which began Sunday , buried Vermont under one of the state's largest recorded snowfalls. The 18.8 inches measured at Burlington International Airport as of 6 p.m. Monday made the storm the eighth largest, ahead of the ninth-ranked 18.3 inches received Dec. 6 and 7 and the 10th-ranked 17.8 inches from Jan. 4 and 5.
Folks who like to reminisce about those old-fashioned Vermont snowstorms should be talking about these new-fashioned ones. Three of the top 10 storms came this year. No other decade has more than two in the top 10.
"We're on quite a roll," said Brooke Taber, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service at the airport. "This is very unusual to have two heavy snowfalls across northern Vermont basically within a week of each other."
The nor'easter delayed flights and shut down stores during the holiday shopping season. Schools closed across Vermont, with many administrators making the call as early as Sunday night. State office workers were told to come in late to work. Car owners scurried for off-street parking to make room for snow plows. Cancellations ranged from recycling pickup in Burlington to the city's adult volleyball and basketball games.
Playing in the snow
The snow inconvenienced many. Others thought it was a blast.
Katie Smith, 7, and Haley Newman, 9, stood before a snowdrift so high they couldn't reach its top on their own Monday afternoon. Katie's father, Russ Smith, had propped a tall wooden ladder against it, angled into the snow to serve as a staircase to the top.
They were waiting to launch their carefully calculated snowball attack.
"We're gonna nail them!" Katie Smith said with a smile, referring to her brother Brian Smith, 9, and Haley's brother Jeff Newman, 11. Both were inside the Smith home in South Burlington, bundling up in their snow gear.
"We made a bunch of snowballs and have them hidden, and we're going to get the boys with them," Katie said. The girls planned the attack as well as the getaway-sliding down the hill on sleds perched at the top.
When Brian emerged, the giggling girls sprang into action. "Get him!" Katie shouted. After a quick pummeling, Brian and Jeff retaliated. Although it was hard to determine a victor, all four children's flushed faces had grins by the end.
Moving it
About 35 senior citizens and disabled residents received aid from Operation Snow Shovel's 15 volunteers. The program, part of the Community and Economic Development Office, brings volunteers with shovels ready to help dig out individuals otherwise unable to do so.
"The seniors are really patient," said Trish Tchume, program coordinator for AmeriCorps VISTA First Response and Operation Snow Shovel. "They're just so grateful that someone's willing to help."
Few snow-related injuries were reported at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington. The emergency room treated one or two minor injuries from car accidents as well as a few patients who fell on slick pavement or off roofs while shoveling snow, spokesman Mike Noble said. He said one person was treated for chest pains suffered while removing snow.
Travelers at Burlington International Airport were met by dreaded words on the arrival/departure boards -- "delayed," "canceled" and the ominous "delay subject to change," with no indication if the change would be for better or worse. A quarter or so of the flights listed on the boards Monday afternoon were labeled "on time."
Jim Beach's flight was not among them. His parents, Ken and Lois Beach, drove four hours from their home in Sherbrooke, Quebec -- a drive that normally takes less than three hours -- to meet their son's plane at 1:30 p.m. They were still waiting two hours later. They sat near the entrance to the gates and read books to kill time.
Jim Beach is a reverse snowbird. He lives in St. Augustine, Fla., and is heading north to ski.
"He said he'd like to come up and see some snow," Ken Beach said. "so he's getting his wish."
This month is only half over but already ranks as the fifth snowiest December on record, according to Taber, with more than 38 inches of snow. The snowiest December came in 1970, when 56.7 inches fell.
The bad news is it's still fall. Winter starts Monday.
The good news is that today should be sunny with temperatures in the low 30s, Taber said.
The other bad news is that another storm is moving in for Wednesday and Thursday. That storm is likely to start with rain across Vermont on Wednesday, with some freezing rain possible, followed by snow on Thursday.
"It's going to be big, significant, strong, all those adjectives," Taber said, offering no rest for the weather-weary.
Staff writer Victoria Welch contributed to this report. Contact Brent Hallenbeck at 660-1844 or bhallenb@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com
Big digs
The storm that hit Vermont late Sunday and early Monday joined the list of top 10 snowstorms recorded by the National Weather Service in South Burlington. If that refrain sounds familiar, it's because the previous addition to the list came just over a week ago.
- 29.8 inches, Dec. 25-28, 1969
- 24.7 inches, Jan. 13-14, 1934
- 22.9 inches, March 5-6, 2001
- 22.4 inches, March 13-14, 1993
- 20.0 inches, Nov. 25, 1900
- 19.7 inches, Jan. 25-28, 1986
- 19.1 inches, March 16-17, 1937
- 18.8 inches, Dec. 14-15, 2003 (as of 6 p.m. Monday)
- 18.3 inches, Dec. 6-7, 2003
- 17.8 inches, Jan. 4-5, 2003
Source: National Weather Service
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