Heavy Snow — Tolland, Connecticut

1996-12-07 to 1996-12-08 · Tolland, Connecticut

Wider weather episode

A low pressure system centered over Georgia at 7 AM on December 7th moved rapidly northeast across North Carolina. The intensifying system then moved about parallel to the Mid-Atlantic coast with its center reaching Plymouth County in southeastern Massachusetts during the early morning hours on December 8th. This storm brought heavy, wet snow and resulted in widespread power outages. There had been another heavy, wet snow event the day before, too. A total of 225,000 electric customers lost power statewide, including 100,000 in central Connecticut and 95,000 in the eastern part of the state. Power remained out for several days, despite the efforts of dozens of electric company repair crews, many from out-of-state. Many roads remained unplowed until the utility companies could clear away fallen wires.A firefighter died instantly while on duty in Somers when he came in contact with a 23,000 volt power line that had been knocked down by the heavy snow. Route 44 was closed for 15 hours due to a fallen power line. Up to 22 shelters were opened across the region and many residents left their unheated and darkened homes. Many vehicles and homes were damaged by falling tree limbs and damage was estimated in the millions of dollars.Some snowfall totals included: Union, 16.5 inches; Unionville, 11.3 inches; Farmington and Avon, 10 inches; Glastonbury and Tolland, 9 inches; Wethersfield, 8.8 inches; East Granby, 8.5 inches; and Putnam, 7 inches.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5584299. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.