Snowstorm in New York City

 
It fell too fast, says Mayor Bloomberg

When I left my Upper West Side apartment in New York City on the Sunday after Christmas Day, I noticed snowflakes lightly sprinkling the sidewalk. Throughout the day the snow continued, soon sticking and building into mounds of white.

After dinner that night I put on layers of clothes and took a walk to Central Park. It was covered in waves of white!

The snow was above my knees, forcing me to lift my legs high as I walked. Plus, the weather had transformed into windy, hard sleet. After a few minutes, I had enough and headed back home. That night the hard snow returned and didn’t end until morning.

The next day—Monday—transportation had almost completely stopped. A city that runs on subways, buses, and cabs had come to a standstill. Some were stuck in subway trains for up to 15 hours! A short trip on foot took at least an extra 30 minutes or more. Streets were mostly deserted and blanketed with snow.

I trampled through the park to go sledding, except once again I didn't stay for long because of the freezing weather. I returned home to a cup of hot cocoa.

By Tuesday the snow was being cleared by trucks with plows that piled the frozen, dirty ice into large clumps along the sides of the roads and sidewalks. As you walk down the block, you feel as if you are surrounded by dingy white walls.

The snow had reached its ugly stage. The fluffy white became a mix of dirt and mucky blacks and browns.

“It’s Slush City," said one woman picking her way along the treacherous sidewalk. Huge puddles of blackish icy water clogged most street corners. To keep from being soaked, you have to be either really good at leaping or be wearing a great pair of tall boots.

Wednesday was like Tuesday, though the snow was even dirtier. Cleared roads meant transportation had improved, though. People were returning to work.

The sixth largest snowstorm on record left about 20 inches of snow on New York. Although it will not go down in history as the worst storm on record, it may go down as one of the worst cleanups. It took three days to clear the streets and get people back to work—something almost unheard of in the city.

Says Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has been blamed for the slow cleanup, “It fell too fast.”

—Fred Hechinger

PHOTO: On December 28, 2010, a street in the Sunset Park section of the Brooklyn neighborhood of New York remains unplowed two days after snow fell across every corner of the city. The city has cleaned up from big storms before with ease, but this blizzard became unlike anything New Yorkers had seen in decades. (Photo: Seth Wenig/AP Images)

Midwest Socked by Snowstorm

After digging out, snow can be a lot of fun!

Just a week before Christmas, my community was hammered by a major snowstorm. We got about two feet of snow—24 inches! Unless you’ve gotten that much snow at once, you have NO idea what that’s like.

Add high winds to a snowstorm and you end up with chaos. There were drifts upwards of four feet high, and once the snow plows go through shoving all the snow off the streets, it’s not uncommon to see five foot high snow piles here and there. There’s a huge—and I mean HUGE—pile of snow in the corner of the parking lot at my school. It’s at least 10 to 12 feet tall.

As if snow and wind weren’t enough, we had sub-zero temps too! It was so cold that just to walk to the mailbox and back, my Mom would make me wear snow pants and a scarf.

When Dad came back in from snow blowing the driveway, he had ice in his moustache. I had to go out to help him, and when I came in I had a bit of frostbite on my cheek. Not Good!

The temperature was minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit without the wind chill factored in. Super Brrrrr! With the wind chill, it was about minus 35 degrees Fahrenheit. I would literally start shivering if I stood inside by a window too long.

Once the snow stops coming, we Midwesterners have plenty of fun, though. Between building snowmen and sledding, show shoeing and snowmobiling, it’s hard to decide what to do first.

There are lots of places to go to enjoy winter, too. I like snow shoeing, but this year, I want to learn how to drive a snowmobile. Needless to say, once the snow is off the roads, it’s time to crank it up and have fun!

—Amanda O’Toole

PHOTO: Winter in Wisconsin. (Photo Courtesy Amanda O'Toole)

More Snow Coming!

The Snowstorm of the Century to be followed by another.

The current 30 inches of snow that has socked in Washington, D.C., is the most snow that I’ve ever seen! My neighborhood is covered in a smooth layered white blanket. The trees look like they are dressed in dangling crystals—except for the two unfortunate trees that fell into the street!

 Icicles are everywhere, hanging on tree branches and the rain gutters around the house, glittering like shiny glass in the lazy winter sun. I can’t see our pool in the backyard because everything is covered with an even level of white icy powder. On the picnic table, a huge pile of fluffy snow stands tall like Abraham Lincoln’s hat, only pure white.

And guess what? More snow is coming. According to weather reports this morning, 6 to 10 inches more snow is on the way Tuesday.

I went out for a walk in the snow with my dad this weekend. I was dressed thickly from head to toe. Since snow gets into my boots, my mom used duct tape to seal in the warmth and keep me dry.

The snow looked like cotton candy, which is as light as feather. Walking through the drifts, I soon realized, was like walking with weights on my feet! At one point I felt like I was climbing Mt. McKinley, especially when nobody had been out before us, so we didn’t have any tracks to follow.

I won a race with my dad on the snow-covered street, and I jumped backward and landed IN the snow on my back. My hat got my all icy and wet!

 I took a tape measure with me on our walk so that I could measure the depth. I measured the snow on the street, on the sidewalk, on the lawn, everywhere I could get to. Most of the area was about 20 inches, way above my knees!

I was so excited, but my dad was not so sure. After our walk, he had to shovel our driveway. It took him five hours and he made two massive snow walls along the path. They looked like chunky marshmallows that towered over me!

Not everything about a big snow storm like this one is fun and games, though. Roads were mostly shut down and those attempting to drive were getting into multiple accidents.

More than 100,000 people in Maryland and 50,000 in Virginia are out of power right now. One of our friends called us while driving to a hotel because their power was out so they could not cook and the house was cold. They said that every building they passed was pitch black—only the Marriott hotel had light!

Dad was disappointed that he would miss the Super Bowl party with his friends. Mom started to worry about the milk running out. I was not so happy that my school would be closed again Monday. I miss my friends at school, although I had lots of fun having snow ball fights with my little brother and my new friends.

— Alexandra Zhang

PHOTO: Kid Reporter Alexandra Zhang measures the snow fall in her yard in the Washington, D.C., metro area. (Photo Courtesy Alexandra Zhang)

Snowed In!

D.C. digs out from under record snow fall.

Snow is beautiful and sparkling, light and fluffy, like a cloud falling to the ground. That is, until it really starts to stack up like it did here in Washington, D.C., this weekend.

As residents of the nation’s capital, my family and I are used to managing three inches of snow on the ground. No big deal. Right now, however, 30 inches of snowfall has blocked the roads, parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks. This is the largest single storm total in the past 88 years!

Over the last few days, the "Blizzard of 2010" has given me the opportunity to make some fascinating observations about nature—including human nature. Snowstorms can bring out some strange and unexpected behaviors in people. And it started with the pre-storm mania...

The Worst of Times

For example, on Thursday last week, the day before the start of the snow, the supermarkets were jam-packed. There wasn't a single square inch of floorspace in our local grocery story that was not covered by anxious shoppers, struggling to grab what they needed and get out.

As always, there were certain items in high demand: the ever-popular toilet paper, milk, eggs...and oddly, ground beef! This particular item, which may have been headed for chili pots around the metro area, was being snatched up right and left.

By the time we got to the meat display, only one package remained. My mom was holding it in her hands as a burly man with wild eyes emerged from the mass of people around us. He was clearly contemplating a snatch and run. We were relieved when instead he stalked away, a hungry and frustrated look on his face.

A Challenging Business

The snowstorm made doing everyday things really challenging. For example, Saturday morning my dad and I had to shovel for almost half an hour before we could clear a little spot for our dog, Tess, to do her business. She took one hop into the un-cleared snow and sunk down so deep that only the top of her head poked out!

And the snow kept barreling down. I had to re-dig the path while my dad was off shoveling the back deck. He also had to cut up a tree that had fallen across our driveway.

I will say this for snow: It sure helps build your arm strength. Unfortunately, it also kills your back!

The Best of Times

Although the storm may have brought out some unpleasant qualities in people (the would-be meat snatcher?), I have also seen examples of compassion and generosity.

One of our neighbors owns a snow blower, and has been helping us keep our long drive way clear. We invited neighbors without power to come and stay with us. Yet another neighbor is allowing me to use his computer to post my report since he is the only one around who still has a functioning internet connection.

One last observation about this weekend; most people in my area didn’t get to watch the Super Bowl! As I listened to the radio, I heard how about more and more people were losing power in their houses, and how some might not get power back for days.

Our family lost satellite coverage for our TV, but my Dad’s smart thinking saved the day. He climbed onto the roof of our house and threw one hard-packed snowball at the satellite dish, causing most of the snow to tumble out. We watched the Superbowl!

So what does the future hold for those of us in the D.C. metro area this week? More snow! Four to five inches are predicted for tomorrow. I’ll keep the shovel handy.

—Nick Berray

PHOTO: Kid Reporter Nick Berray and his dog on the back deck before it was shoveled clear. (Photo Courtesy Nick Berray)

Halloween Snowstorm

Weather plays a trick on Colorado’s treat seeking goblins.

The end of October is a time for fall leaves, fun costumes, and candy. But this year in Colorado, the year’s most colorful month turned pure white with about three feet of snow—an early blast from winter, still weeks away. Now, instead of costumes, people are pulling out their snow gear.

This morning, I scrambled through my closet to find snow boots that would still fit. I’m excited to see snow so early, but hope it won’t interfere with trick-or-treating on the night of Halloween.

Outside, the pumpkins are hidden in the snow. My dog wanted to come out with me.  He’s a Pomeranian, which is a small fluffy breed. His orange furry body was almost lost in the white stuff. He went back inside pretty quickly.

Thursday was a snow day in my school. According to my language arts teacher, it’s the first snow day in five years! Everyone is excited about the short break from school. News reports say this is the biggest storm since 1997 and may be one of the earliest big storms ever. One expert said storms like this only come every 10 years or so.

Playing in the snow is great, but my favorite part is coming back inside to a warm cup of hot cocoa. Now if I can just figure out how to make snow boots and a winter coat work with a Halloween costume.

—Kayla Gough

Photo: Kid Reporter Gayla Gough outside her home in eastern Colorado only two days before Halloween. (Photo Courtesy Kayla Gough)