Lakeshore Flood — Northern Erie, New York

2021-12-11 · Northern Erie, New York

Event narrative

The seiche on Lake Erie flooded Canalside in downtown Buffalo. This included parking lots for the ongoing hockey game at Key Bank Arena. Dozens of vehicles were inundated with water.

Wider weather episode

Two Pacific shortwave troughs promoted the formation and deepening of a surface low that tracked from the Great Plains, across southern Lake Michigan, and eventually to near James Bay while deepening below 980 mb. This pushed a strong cold front crossed our region. A strong isallobaric couplet with large pressure rises and a low-level jet of 75 knots just a few thousand feet off the ground supported a high wind event. Selected peak wind gusts included 57 mph in Wyoming, 68 mph in Fredonia, 71 mph at the Buffalo Waterfront, 66 mph at Buffalo-Niagara International Airport, 70 mph at Batavia, 66 mph at Fort Drum, 65 mph in Harrisburg, 59 mph in York. 63 mph in Brockport, 60 mph at Rochester Airport, 74 mph at Niagara Falls Airport, 65 mph at Clifton Springs, 61 mph in Medina, 61 mph in Pultneyville, and 71 mph in Warsaw. Strong surface high pressure over the southern Plains amplified the pressure gradient such that a lake seiche did occur on Lake Erie with a smaller one evident on Lake Ontario, as well. The water level in downtown Buffalo rose to 10.6 feet above low water datum.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 988590. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.