Northern Erie storm history

A prolonged, crippling, and in some places historic lake effect event took place across the Northwest Pennsylvania snowbelt to end November and start December in 2024. The event ramped up overnight November 28th and 29th as a band of very heavy snow with snow rates up to 3 inches…

Lake Erie water levels remained above normal with near record levels for October and November 2019. Lake levels were on average 3 feet above normal for both months. A powerful storm system moved over Lake Erie on October 31 into November 1 which was produced storm force winds acr…

An historic lake effect snow storm impacted Erie County on December 24th through the 27th. A 24 hour Pennsylvania snowfall record of 50.8 inches is believed to have been set during the period from 7 am on the 25th through 7 am on the 26th at Erie International Airport. The airpor…

Snow began during the morning hours of the 7th, and continued for the next day and a half. During the afternoon of the 7th, snow was light to moderate with some occasional periods of heavy snow. By evening between 3.0 and 6.0 inches already fell across the area. The snow lightene…

A surface trough developed over the Great Lakes on February 20th and lingered into February 21st before surface high pressure worked into the region. The trough focused cold, west-northwest flow across the partially unfrozen waters of Lake Erie, allowing for lake effect snow into…

Deepening low pressure tracked into the upper Ohio Valley the morning of February 16th, before the low pressure transferred to off the east coast that afternoon and evening. This allowed for a period of rain changing to accumulating wet snow as the low pressure lifted into the Oh…

A trough of surface low pressure was draped west to east across the southern Great Lakes January 14th and 15th, with cold west-northwest winds wrapping around this trough and over Lake Erie. This set the stage for a period of moderate to heavy lake effect snow into Erie County. T…

While the heaviest snow with this event focused inland from Lake Erie and just south of the Erie County lakeshore, periods of moderate to heavy snow showers and squalls along with wind gusts up to 30 MPH led to travel impacts and moderate snow accumulations closer to the lake. Th…

As low pressure intensified over Upstate New York early on January 1st it pulled cold air in behind it, allowing rain to transition to snow. This initial snow behind the low pressure resulted in only light accumulations across northern Erie County. This low pressure exited off th…

A 58 MPH wind gust was measured at 1128 PM at Erie International Airport. Some downed trees and powerlines were reported in the area.

Following a cold frontal passage the evening of December 11th, a period of west-southwesterly winds directed moderate to heavy lake effect snow in Erie County from early in the morning December 12th through the afternoon hours. Wind gusts of 30 to 40 MPH led to blowing and drifti…

An arctic cold front blasted through Northwest Pennsylvania during the early morning hours of December 5th, accompanied by a band of moderate to heavy snow showers and gusty winds up to 40 MPH. Lake effect snow quickly developed into the morning of the 5th as winds shifted more n…

After a brief break in the lake effect during much of the day and into the night of November 30th, lake effect returned by early in the morning December 1st as winds shifted out of the west-northwest, directing lake effect bands back onshore across Erie County. Lake effect snow, …

A weak clipper moved across the Ohio Valley on January 19th bringing light snow to the region. As the clipper progressed east into the 20th it intensified off the East Coast as cold air poured into the region. The light snow with the clipper on January 19th was enhanced by moistu…

Cold southwesterly winds shifted westerly during the daytime hours on January 16th, briefly shifting an intense lake effect snow band impacting western New York south into northern Erie County, Pennsylvania. This event was short-lived with snow shifting north and back into New Yo…

At 7:06 PM, Erie International Airport measured a 69 MPH wind gust. These wind gusts caused downed trees and power-lines across the county with over 3000 customers losing power.

Shortly before 11:00 AM, winds caused roof damage to a building along East 12th street in Erie, closing the road for several hours. At around the same time, multiple large trees were uprooted near the intersection of Cabot Avenue and Halley Street in Lawrence Park. During the aft…

Unseasonably cold air flowed over the relatively mild waters of Lake Erie behind a cold front, setting off a significant lake effect snow event beginning November 27th. With initially southwest winds the heaviest snow stayed out over Lake Erie on the 27th, though some accumulatio…

An Arctic cold front swept through the area around 4 AM December 23rd. Low pressure along this front tracked over Lake Erie early in the morning on December 23rd and rapidly intensified through the day while slowly lifting northeast across Ontario. With the frontal passage rain c…

Wind chills plunged below 0 around 8 AM December 23rd and did not warm above 0 until midday December 26th. A minimum wind chill of -30 degrees was reported at 2:51 PM December 23rd at Erie International Airport. Warming centers were opened in Erie and Mill Village in response to …

A cold front moved through late in the evening November 19th and swung the winds around from southwest to west-northwest. This pushed an intense lake effect snow band that was out over Lake Erie inland into northwestern Pennsylvania. The steadiest and heaviest snowfall occurred f…

Southwesterly winds were initially carrying an intense band of lake effect snow towards Buffalo, NY, but briefly shifted more westerly during the afternoon and early evening hours of November 18th. This pushed heavy snow onshore into northern Erie County Pennsylvania for several …

Cold air spilled into the region and across Lake Erie on November 16th, allowing lake effect snow to develop in a west to east band into Erie County. This band was initially light and mixed with rain at times, limiting accumulations through most of the afternoon. More appreciable…

A wintry mix of sleet and freezing rain developed during the evening hours on February 17th and continued for several hours before changing to snow. Snow continued steadily through much of the night before tapering to more intermittent lake effect snow showers through the morning…

A prolonged winter storm occurred from very early February 3rd through early February 4th, 2022 as multiple waves of low pressure tracked along a slow moving cold front. Rain changed to snow shortly before midnight February 3rd as temperatures fell below freezing. Snow continued …

Several bands of lake effect snow developed over the eastern basin of Lake Erie on January 25 and remained fairly unorganized as they pushed into western New York. Some colder air moved into the region during the evening hours and convergence over the lake allowed these bands to …

Snow began during the evening hours of January 16, quickly increasing in intensity during the overnight hours. Many locations woke up to a foot or more of snow on the morning of January 17, causing impassable roads across the area. Lake enhanced snowfall continued across the area…

A tree fell on a car driving on Old French Road during the afternoon hours of the 11th. The driver was not injured. Winds gusted as high as 64 mph, which was recorded at Erie International Airport at 4:43 pm. Winds through the afternoon caused numerous trees to fall across the ar…

Downed trees in 4500 block of Hannon Road in Harborcreek Township.

Three rounds of snow moved through Northwest Pennsylvania on February 15 and 16. The first round on the morning of the 15th brought a quick inch of snow to the region. A second round of snow entered during the afternoon and evening hours, bringing an additional 2 to 5 inches of s…

A surface trough over the eastern Great Lakes region allowed for light lake effect snow showers to develop during the late afternoon on January 17th. As colder air aloft and better surface convergence developed over eastern Lake Erie, lake effect snow became more organized into a…

Snow quickly entered Northwest Pennsylvania during the late afternoon hours on the 24th. By the evening hours, snowfall rates increased to one inch per hour as more organized snow bands moved through the region on the northwest side of the low pressure system. After midnight on t…

Several trees reported down in the Erie area. Several power outages also reported. The highest measured wind gust was 52 mph at Erie International Airport.

A strong cold front swept east across Lake Erie behind a departing low pressure system during the early morning hours of the 13th. Strong west winds up to 45 knots developed over Lake Erie on Monday. These winds, along with high lake water levels and waves of 10 to 15 feet, suppo…

Low pressure over the Ohio Valley deepened as it moved northeastward towards upstate New York producing strong westerly gales on Lake Erie for Thursday with 30 to 40 mph winds and gusts up to 50 mph. High wave action with onshore flow produced some minor lakeshore erosion and flo…

Low pressure over northern Lower Michigan on the afternoon of January 18th moved east through the Great Lakes region and extended a cold front through Northwest Pennsylvania during the evening hours. With the front, scattered snow showers moved over the region, bringing light acc…

KERI ASOS reported 61 mph peak wind gust. Was not raining at the time.

On November 10, weak low pressure developed across the Upper Midwest, extending a cold front from the Rockies towards the Upper Great Lakes. As the cold front progressed eastward across the Ohio Valley, a secondary low pressure system developed along the front in the Tennessee Va…

Erie International Airport reported a 58 mph wind gust at 1:35 pm local time. Wind gusts of 55 to 60 mph were also reported by local weather spotters and weather stations. Numerous trees, power lines, and power poles were reported down across the entire area. A travel ban for tra…

Extremely cold weather settled over the area on January 30 and 31, bringing the coldest temperatures that the region had seen in four or five years. Low temperatures at Erie International Airport reached -4F on January 30, tying a record low for that date. The low temperature on …

A clipper system entered the Great Lakes region on the evening of January 26 and settled just north of Lake Erie by the morning of the 27th, bringing snow into northwest Pennsylvania. As the low departed the region, cold air surged over Lake Erie, allowing for lake effect snow to…

A weak area of low pressure moved through the Great Lakes region on the morning of January 26, allowing for a single band of lake effect snow to push back onshore in Erie County, PA. This low brought some additional moisture to the region, allowing for this band to flare back up …

An area of low pressure over Lake Huron on the evening of January 24, moved east of the Great Lakes region. Arctic air and westerly flow behind the system settled in over the Lake Erie basin and allowed for lake effect snow showers to develop over northwest Pennsylvania late on t…

Snow spread into northwestern Pennsylvania during the early afternoon hours of January 19, as low pressure moved into the Ohio Valley region. Snow was very light to start with minor accumulations by the evening hours. The most intense part of the winter storm was during the overn…

An automated weather station at Erie International Airport measured a wind gust of 55 mph. Several trees were reported downed and many were without power into the morning of the 1st.

An area of low pressure moved through the eastern Great Lakes on the evening of November 9. Cold air wrapping behind the system allowed for rain to change over to snow and for lake effect snow showers to develop over an open Lake Erie. Snow began late on the 9th and continued thr…

High winds downed several trees, large limbs and power lines across Millcreek Township. The high winds also caused flooding on Presque Isle forcing roads to be closed. A semi truck was blown over on Interstate 90 near Erie.

An area of low pressure moved across the Upper Ohio Valley early on March 7th. The low quickly shifted off the East Coast and the slowly drifted east on the 8th. Moisture wrapping around this low pressure system caused lake effect snow bands to develop over northwestern Pennsylva…

An area of deepening low pressure moved up the Ohio Valley on March 1st. The low moved across the southeastern corner of Ohio during the afternoon hours. A large area of precipitation fell to the north of the low track. The precipitation initially began as rain but changed to sno…