OSWEGO, NY – Old Man Winter blew off most of Oswego County.
“There was some body to the precipitation,” noted Bill Gregway, local observer for the National Weather Service. “But, it was all rain. You could see it trying to form snow, but it just didn’t get there.”
At Syracuse’s Hancock Airport (weather station), just a half inch of snow was reported. No snow was recorded in the Port City, Gregway added.
In some surrounding counties, the early season nor’easter dumped more than a foot of heavy, wet snow.
The storm began around 5 a.m. Tuesday, Gregway said.
“The winds blew pretty good all day,” he said.
They started out northerly between 10 to 25 mph. Later in the day they shifted to northwesterly to westerly with gusts exceeding 30 mph. On Tuesday night, the winds were mostly west-northwesterly with speeds reaching more than 35 mph.
Areas around the college and the lake reportedly had some gusts higher than 45 mph, Gregway said.
“The rain was pretty steady throughout the day and heavy at times. The temperature got down to 34 degrees; with the high winds it felt even colder,” Gregway said.
By 5 p.m. Tuesday, the area was soaked with 0.52-inch of rain. As the storm subsided at 10 p.m. the total edge up to .59-inch.
The rainfall was more intense over Fulton.
“We received 1.70 inches,” said John Florek.
The city’s water superintendent has recorded Fulton’s weather for decades.
“It was certainly wet, that’s for sure,” he said.
For the year, the city’s precipitation now stands at 37.98 inches through Oct. 28.
The norm is 34 inches; and last year at this time it was 30.64 inches.
It could be worse. As of Oct. 28, 1992, the total was at 45.59 inches and climbing.
“Cold air will blow over Lake Ontario’s warmer waters (Wednesday), so there’s a good chance some places will see lake effect snow. I think we’ll still be too warm to see any snow here,” Gregway said, jokingly adding, “Famous last words.”
The higher elevations around Central New York are the most probable areas that could see some snowfall today, he explained.
“The average precipitation for October is 3.77 inches,” Gregway said. “Right now Tuesday night) I’ve got 7.10 inches recorded for the month!”
The wettest October on record is 1955 – 10.10 inches. The driest is 1963 – 0.34-inch.
The temperature actually rose Tuesday night; it went from 34 at p.m. to 37 by 10 p.m.
The wind had shifted and was blowing more over the lake, which was 59.6 degrees.
“That warmed things up slightly, at least for us,” Gregway said. “Lake effect snow showers are likely Wednesday. It’s still pretty warm; so we’ll probably see snow mixed with rain if at all. Places like Fulton, Mexico and Pulaski will see more snow than we do.”
October has been no stranger to high winds, according to Gregway.
A thunderstorm on the 2nd saw winds gusting more than 20 mph. Winds were still around 20 mph on the 3rd.
There were gusts of more than 30 mph on the 21st and on the 24th wind speeds were greater than 25 mph.
Normal snowfall for October is 0.4-inch. So far this season, Gregway said he has only recorded a trace.
Tuesday’s storm was similar to the infamous storm of the winter of 1966, according to Gregway.
“This storm followed the same path as ’66. It was a coastal storm that came right up the Hudson River and went into Canada,” he said. “It was fast-moving and warmer than ’66. The storm moved very slowly in 1966, and, of course, it was a lot colder then.”
Things will start to improve Thursday, Gregway said.
“We’ll see some warmer weather Thursday. And, it will be even warmer, in the mid-50s, Friday for the trick-or-treaters,” he said.
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