Snow Storms in the Burlingon Vermont area

It's Finally Snowing. It was a long night for Highway dispatcher Ray Burke and the rest of the Agency of Transportation road crews Saturday. A small but pesky snowstorm had many snowplows on the road overnight. It also had many cars off the road, as some drivers were not prepared for the slick roads. ^popular

LOCAL: 2001 very dry, warm in 2001 as Vermont faced deep snows, a searing drought and a cascade of records for high and low temperatures. Averaged out over the year, the Vermont weather was warmer and much drier than normal. Within that trend came July frosts, April dust, May snow and December heat. The weather of 2001 could fill a new chapter in the Vermont Weather Book, the David Ludlum bible of state weather lore in which Cate made his 1985 observations on Green Mountain weather. ... Vermonters rang in the New Year knee-deep in snow and watched as the snow grew even deeper as the season wore on. ... The biggest storm of the winter, the third largest snowstorm on record in Burlington, struck Town Meeting Day. The storm dumped 22.9 inches of snow on the city. Most communities held their annual town meetings anyway. ... snowstorms struck every few days ... The drought worsened as summer wore on. River levels in the Winooski and other Vermont waterways fell to record lows.

Weather Jan 30 - Feb 1: Bare Ground & 40; 10 inches of snow; rain, sleet On January 30th the temperature in Burlington Vermont rose to 40 degress and the much of the ground was bare-thawing ground. But that changed, as reported by the Burlington Free Press: A statewide snowstorm snarled traffic Thursday and threatened to make matters worse with ice for this morning's commute. Six to 10 inches of snow were forecast by early this morning, when sleet and freezing rain were expected to develop, National Weather Service forecasters said. Sleet, ice or rain is expected to continue until this evening before colder weather, wind and snow flurries announce the storm's departure tonight. A parking ban went into effect Thursday in all of Burlington and was to remain in place today. The ban means no parking along city streets or in municipal parking lots between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. Violators face towing and a $75 parking ticket.

Winter that wasn't ends with a flurry Spring blew in Wednesday looking more like winter than much of winter did. When the season typically associated with blooming flowers and greening trees arrived at 2:16 p.m., there was cold and there was snow. ... This winter was remarkable in several respects. There wasn't much snow; before Wednesday's storm, a meager 46 inches had fallen this season. Also, it was warm by the standards of a robust Vermont winter; the average temperature was 28.7 degrees, 7.8 degrees above the normal of 20.9. This winter also set records for warmest average high and low temperatures. ... A typical winter has 26 days when the temperature falls to zero degrees or below. The latest the temperature has ever fallen to zero was March 29, in 1974 and 1923, Hanson said. ... Mazza's company also provides road salt to other outfits, and there's been a huge decrease in demand there, too, he said. Last year, All Seasons sold about 5,000 tons of salt, Mazza said; this year, that number fell to about 1,500 tons.

Summer of crazy weather ends As if on cue, weeks of chilly, wet weather abruptly became hot and humid on June 21, the start of astronomical summer. That's pretty much the way the weather stayed all summer. Monday, the first day of astronomical autumn, the weather is predicted to abruptly turn cooler, and stay that way for the rest of the week, forecasters said. The weather didn't exactly behave during the summer, what with the occasional severe thunderstorms, dry spells, heat waves and the odd smog alert. Given Vermont's temperamental climate, few are expecting the weather to behave itself this fall and winter, either. The experts can't even agree on what's going to happen. The Old Farmer's Almanac tells us to expect a lot of snow this winter, while the National Weather Service predicts another warm winter. Click here to read more.

The weekend Nor'Easter saved its best for last, dumping heavy snow across Vermont and New York late Sunday night into Monday morning. 4-8" of snow has already fallen as of early Monday morning, and an additional 2-6" is on the way before the snow departs the area from west to east as Monday progresses. That means storm totals will range from 6-12", with a few higher totals certainly possible. Several inches of snow fell Saturday night and Sunday, followed by a period of sleet and freezing rain. The heaviest snow developed Sunday night, and will wind down during the day Monday, with the Green Mountains the last place to see the snow shut off. Many area schools are closed or delayed Monday, and travel will remain difficult this morning. Police advise you to reduce your speed on the roads, and increase your following distance between your car and the one in front of you. Click here to read more.

Vermont's first snow storm packed a mix of snow and freezing rain that sent cars sliding Sunday while utility crews scrambled to restore electricity for thousands of people who lost power throughout New England and upstate New York as ice-laden tree limbs crashed down on power lines. Snow and rain fell on parts of Vermont on Saturday night and early Sunday and Green Mountain Power, the state's second-largest utility, prepared for outages Sunday night. GMP called in crews from neighboring states. ... Today's forecast for the Burlington area calls for snow this morning with an additional 2 to 4 inches accumulating. The snow will taper off in the afternoon with temperatures in the mid 30s. and brisk winds up to 30 mph. Snow showers are predicted Tuesday through Thursday. ... The storm was expected to dump up to eight inches of snow over Sunday night

The season's first winter storm deposited so much snow so fast on the state's roads Monday morning that crews had a hard time keeping up. "Heart attack snow," Dick Hosking, the District 5 administrator for the state Transportation Agency, called the wet, heavy snow. Snowfall intensified from about 3:30 a.m. to 7 a.m., according to the National Weather Service in South Burlington. The dense snow quickly piled up and began to freeze as it hit pavement, Hosking said. Morning traffic compacted the snow further making it even more icy, Burlington Public Works director Steve Goodkind said. The freezing snow even seemed to be soaking up the snow as it fell. Burlington road crews had prepared for freezing rain, and light accumulation, Goodkind said. ... As of 12:30 p.m. Monday, snowfall ranged between 2 and almost 12 inches across the state, according to the National Weather Service. Westford had 11.5 inches, while nine inches fell in Smugglers Notch. In Burlington, 11 inches had fallen in two days.

Exercise caution with winter storms. Although the first day of winter was just a few days ago, we've experienced plenty of wintery weather since the beginning of November. As we head toward the coldest days of the year, here's some advice to heed should a storm come our way. First, know the difference between a watch and a warning. A winter storm watch means a winter storm is possible in your area. A warning means a winter storm is headed for your area. A blizzard warning means strong winds, blinding wind-driven snow, and dangerous wind chill is expected. If a winter storm watch is issued, listen to NOAA Weather Radio, local radio and TV as well as cable TV stations, such as The Weather Channel, for further updates. ^popular Click here to read more.

The Burlington area could get between 10 and 16 inches, while southern Vermont can expect 14 to 20 inches when the snow stops falling, said Brooke Taber, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in South Burlington. Northern Vermont is farther from the source of the moisture and is expected to see 6-10 inches, Taber said. Forecasts initially predicted the snow would miss much of northwestern Vermont, but the storm's track Friday was farther north than originally expected, Taber said. Winds could pick up this afternoon, causing blowing and drifting snow. The Vermont snow was part of a powerful storm moving up the East Coast dumped a dangerous mix of freezing rain and snow across much of the Northeast on Friday, snarling traffic and giving thousands of schoolchildren an early start on the weekend. The nor'easter -- characterized by northeast winds of 15 mph to 20 mph -- was expected to bring up to 2 feet of snow....

A major nor'easter blasted much of Vermont late Friday and Saturday, dumping up to 26 inches of snow, forcing the cancellation of some flights and making routine activities such as driving and walking treacherous. ... County felt the full weight of this storm because a low-pressure system moved farther north than other recent snows, which blanketed southern Vermont but left much of northern Vermont with a bad case of snow envy. Snow fell Saturday in heavy bands across much of Chittenden County, said Eric Evenson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in South Burlington. ... At Burlington International Airport, nearly 18 inches had fallen before the snow began tapering off at 5 p.m., Evenson said. At one point, he said, 8 inches fell in two hours. Records fell, too. The nor'easter produced Burlington's second-largest one-day snowfall, third-largest January snowfall and a tie for the eighth-largest snowfall on record, Evenson said. ^popular

Burlington got 18 inches of snow last night, the 7th biggest snowstorm ever, topping out last weekends, which was the 8th biggest. Vermonters started the week with a big snowstorm, adding to the already greater-than-usual snow totals so far this year. ... Not everyone was so happy with the weather. Many had to spend Monday digging out of the snow. ... Most schools in the state are closed, and many businesses either closed or delayed their opening. State government delayed its opening until 10 a.m. to give employees time to dig out and for road crews to clear the highways. As the snow continued to fall in the Champlain Valley Monday morning, Burlington and Plattsburgh, N.Y., police officials encouraged citizens to avoid driving if possible. ... It was hard to drive anywhere, but even harder to fly. Things began moving a little better at the Burlington Airport later in the day, but only one flight got out Monday morning. Crews worked feverishly to de-ice planes and clear runways. ^popular Click here to read more.

Burlington Saw Three Top-10 Snow Storms in 2003. 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." ^popular Click here to read more.

December's is third snowiest month in more than 120 years. 30,000 Vermonters awoke in cold houses Thursday, their electricity knocked out and their cars mired in snow and encrusted in ice following this month's fourth monster storm. Freezing rain, rain, street flooding, wet snow, wind and even thunder characterized the storm. The combination of rain and soggy snow compacted into stubborn layers of ice that thwarted repeated efforts by plow truck drivers to clear highways. One spin-out on Interstate 89 in South Burlington on Thursday morning sent a Cabot woman to the hospital. The storm that ended Thursday dumped 10.2 inches of snow at the National Weather Service in South Burlington. Since Dec. 6, Vermont has also experienced two large snowstorms and one drenching rainfall. In Burlington, 48.5 inches of snow has fallen so far in December making it the third snowiest month in more than 120 years of records at the National Weather Service in South Burlington. The top three snowiest months were all in December -- 1970, 1969 and 2003.

It's cold, it's cloudy, it's damp. The weather is so bad here, according to a new book called "Cities Ranked and Rated" that Burlington has made a rare appearance on a "worst of" list. The book by Bert Sperling and Peter Sander says that Burlington has the fifth worst climate in the nation. Only Benton Harbor, Mich., and three eastern New England communities are worse. The negative review is a departure for Burlington, which usually basks on many "best of" lists. Burlington's the 10th best city for women, (Ladies Home Journal); one of the top 10 cities to raise a family (Parenting Magazine); the fourth most enlightened town (Utne Reader); the best city for getting arrested, (Stuff magazine). ... "In Burlington, it's the humidity. ... Stuart Hall, who spent 36 years forecasting Vermont's snowstorms, cold snaps, drizzles and ice storms for WCAX-TV, said he finds Burlington's climate invigorating. "It doesn't get too monotonous because it changes so fast," Hall said. "I don't mind the cold at all."