January 2016 United States blizzard

January 2016 United States blizzard

Category 5 "Extreme" (RSI/NOAA: 20.14)
The intensifying extratropical cyclone responsible for the blizzard over the Northeastern United States, at 2:15 a.m. EST (07:15 UTC) on January 23, 2016
Type	Extratropical cyclone Nor'easter Winter storm Ice storm Blizzard Tornado outbreak
Formed	January 19, 2016 (2016-01-19)
Dissipated	January 29, 2016 (2016-01-29)
Highest winds	57 mph (92 km/h) at Assateague Island, Maryland
Highest gust	85 mph (135 km/h)
Lowest pressure	983 mb (29.03 inHg)
Tornadoes confirmed	6 on January 21
Max. rating1	EF2 tornado
Duration of tornado outbreak2	2 hours, 42 minutes
Largest hail	2.75 in (7.0 cm) in diameter in Wilmer, Louisiana
Maximum snowfall or ice accretion	Snow – 42 in (110 cm) on Glengary, West Virginia Ice – At least 0.75 in (19 mm) in western North Carolina
Fatalities	55
Damage	$500 million – $3 billion in economic losses
Power outages	631,000+ people affected
Areas affected	Pacific Northwest, Great Plains, South Central United States, Eastern United States (especially the Mid-Atlantic states), Atlantic Canada, British Isles, Finland
Part of the 2015–16 North American winter 1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale 2Time from first tornado to last tornado

The January 2016 United States blizzard produced up to 3 ft (91 cm) of snow in parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States during January 22–24, 2016. A weather system, evolving from a shortwave trough that formed in the Pacific Northwest on January 19, consolidated into a defined low-pressure area on January 21 over Texas. Meteorologists indicated that a resultant storm could produce more than 2 ft (61 cm) of snow across a wide swath of the Mid-Atlantic region and could "paralyze the eastern third of the nation", and regarded it as a "potentially historic blizzard".^[1][2] Winter weather expert Paul Kocin described the blizzard as "kind of a top-10 snowstorm".^[3]

On January 20–22, the governors of eleven states and the mayor of Washington, D.C., declared a state of emergency in anticipation of significant snowfall and blizzard conditions. Approximately 103 million people were affected by the storm, with 33 million people placed under blizzard warnings. More than 13,000 flights were cancelled in relation to the storm, with effects rippling internationally. Thousands of National Guardsmen were placed on standby, and states deployed millions of gallons of brine and thousands of tons of road salt to lessen the storm's effect on roadways. A travel ban was instituted for New York City and Newark, New Jersey, for January 23–24. The storm was given various unofficial names, including Winter Storm Jonas, Blizzard of 2016, and Snowzilla.

Seven states observed snowfall in excess of 30 in (76 cm), with accumulations peaking at 42 in (110 cm) in Glengary, West Virginia. Ice- and snow-covered roads led to hundreds of incidents across the affected region, several of which resulted in deaths and injuries. At least 55 people were killed in storm-related incidents: Twelve in Virginia; nine in Pennsylvania; six each in New Jersey, New York, and North Carolina; four in South Carolina; three each in Maryland and Washington, D.C.; and one each in Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Ohio. Total economic losses are estimated between $500 million and $3 billion. The storm ranked as a Category 5 "extreme" event for the Northeast on the Regional Snowfall Index, and a Category 4 event for the Southeast.^[4][5] It is the most recent winter storm to rank as a Category 5 winter storm, and the first to do so since the 2011 Groundhog Day blizzard.