FREE ESSAY ON BLIZZARD OF 77

BLIZZARD OF 77

While many other cities have blinding storms and teeth chattering cold- some even get more
snow-Buffalo has been stuck for more than two decades for being the nations snow capitol.
The Blizzard of 77 ripped through Western New York and southern Ontario, and left a path
of destruction much like one that a tornado or hurricane would leave. People were killed,
people were stranded, the National Guard was called, but for those who survived it; it
was one of the most exciting times of their lives.
My family had been living in Buffalo for decades, stemming back from my great-great
grandmother. In 1975 my dad moved my mother and my 5 brothers and sisters to Crane Ridge,
a small area about 20 minutes outside of Buffalo in the middle of ski country and right
across the highway from the areas biggest ski resort. The house sat back in a wooded area
as did the rest of the neighborhood and the terrain was hilly. They were not strangers to
harsh winters in fact they welcomed them with open arms. It gave the kids something to
do, and my parents a chance to ride around on their snowmobile; house to house. Little
did they know that the whole area of New York was in for a big surprise.
In 1976, Buffalo was recording record lows. The temperature for the month of October was
the lowest it had been in 50 years and November wasn't good either. In addition to the
extreme cold, snowfall in November totaled 31.3 inches, in December 60.7. Even though
Buffalo is used to having cold weather, this was something no one was ready for. Because
of this unusually cold Weather Lake Erie began to freeze over very early, and by mid
December the surface of the lake was completely covered with a layer of ice. What this
meant is that from that moment on, every bit of snow that fell on the surface stayed
there and did not evaporate or melt. Because of the cold, the snow stayed light and
fluffy, and was given no chance to thaw out. On top of all this blistery weather, snow
had been falling every single day since November 29th, which by far was a record. 
On comes January 26, following 28 straight days of snow, the weathermen forecast a big
storm to hit the area, but one that should be tolerable. They predict heavy squalls, and
blowing snow, this wasn't out of the ordinary at all. 
The 27th of January, low pressure crossed lake Erie and moved to James Bay. It then
became stalled east of James Bay. The system then actually moved back west over James Bay
before finally moving into the Canadian Maritimes.
January 28th, known as "the day". At 5am snow began trickling. The snow falling at this
time wasn't significant, but the 33 inches of snow already on the ground from the past
two months of sustained snow was easy to build on. 8am, the snow started blowing a little
harder and semi whiteout conditions that were predicted began. As winds freshened from
the south ahead of a strong cold front about two inches of fresh snow fell on the
compacted 33-inch base. 
During the morning, the temperature rose rapidly from five degrees at midnight to 26
degrees at 11am. For anyone that knows anything about storms, frequent fluctuation of
temperature is not a good sign. At 11:35am the front passed through the Buffalo
International Airport. In a short time, the visibility went from 3/4 of a mile to 0 and
the wind shifted and increased to southwest at 29mph, with gusts up to 49mph. The
temperature fell 26 degrees to 0 in a little under four hours.
At this time Buffalo knew it was in for a storm of biblical proportions, the pattern was
unlike anything ever saw before. But the worst part about it was that the day had started
with all normalcies. Parents went to work and kids went to school, by noon emergency
notices were sent throughout Western New York. Any children that could be picked up and
brought home was suppose to be. Schools promptly shut down, and some businesses sent home
their employees as well.
At the Evans household there was only my mother, fearing the worst she called my dad at
10am and told him to pick up the kids and come home immediately. Newman (my dad) did just
that. He told me that on the way home he saw an actual sign that hangs over the highway,
made of thick tubular steel broken and laying on the road like a little piece of peanut
brittle. My parents expected the worst. Meanwhile, the kids on the other hand were
ecstatic; they wanted the snow to just keep piling up. In talking to my sister she told
me that her and my other brothers and sisters sat by the windows and watched for what
seemed like hours.
Outside, street crews were working profusely to get the snow off the streets as it came.
But to no avail, what they cleared would just pile right back up. In some cases the
blowing and drifting made it seem like the snow was falling at an unimaginable rate of 22
inches an hour!
The blizzard reached its worst severity during the late afternoon, as winds at the
Buffalo Airport averaged 54 miles an hour with gusts clocked at up to 75 miles per hour.
Wind chills reached a blistering fifty to sixty degrees below zero. Blizzard or near
Blizzard conditions prevailed on and off for the next three days. Ending finally at
midday February 1st. Winds reached daily peaks of 58, 52, 54, and 48mph from the 29th
through the first.
The storm got so bad, that on the 29th the Buffalo Courier Express, an old traditional
newspaper, did not print their daily newspaper for the first time in one hundred and
forty three years. The Federal Government also issued a declaration of emergency, which
allowed the Federal Government to come in and provide what ever was needed to restore
normalcy to the area. By the 30th, Federal officials had taken over all snow removal
operations and had support by the nearly 600 National Guardsmen called in to assist with
help.
When the sun finally came out on February 1st, its cold light revealed a scene of
incredible desolation in the Buffalo area and in Western New York. The city and much of
the surrounding counties banned all traffic for several days. The Army was called in from
Ft. Bragg, N.C. to augment the National Guard. ?
The storms toll was felt by all. Factories and industries were closed for over a week. At
the Buffalo Zoo, over 20 animals were dead because of the storm. About 8 others escaped
from their enclosures, via the natural 20-foot drifts and were wandering around the
streets. Mail was suspended for a week, and the Sabres hockey games and the Braves
basketball games were all postponed. 
People were found frozen to death trapped inside cars and in the snow. In some cases
people were trapped inside their cars for almost 12 hours. 9 people died in cars. 30
people in all perished in the storm. Hundreds of others were injured, some severely. 6
houses were completely demolished, and the city roads and sidewalks were torn up as well
from the cold. When all was said and done, this gigantic event cost the city of Buffalo
$300 million dollars. ?
Still to this day the Blizzard of 77 is the only winter storm to warrant the label of
National Disaster area. President Carter declared the whole Western New York area a
National Disaster Area, which meant even more national help. ?
Little will be forgotten about the Blizzard of 77. It wasn't all bad though, the city
realized that it had to be ready for such severe storms and the following year they
beefed up their plowing equipment from 25 plows to 44. Salt houses were built all around
the city, and the storm news technology was updated on a yearly basis. A lot was learned
by this storm. Because of it, cities across the nation keep a better eye on developing
weather systems, plus they found it necessary to beef up their snow moving equipment too.
Currently, Buffalo has the nations third biggest fleet of snow moving devices, and will
never be surprised by such a huge storm again.
In the words of Erno Rossi, "It was like you were looking out from the inside of a milk
bottle". He later went on to write the book "The White Death", a book solely about the
Blizzard of 77.
For most people, remembering the storm will be easy. Instead of remembering the bad parts
and the tragedy of it, they will remember the comradery of it. Between household to house
hold, families had to stick together, share each others surplus' and help each other out
in the times of scarcity. My family included; many people made the best of their time
off, and the abundance of snow. I can't tell you how many stories I've heard about how my
brothers and sisters would sled from the top of the roof all the way down to the bottom
of the hill, on a 40-inch cushion of snow.
I regret not being around for that grand scale event. It sounded like a time of fun and
of course NO SCHOOL! All I have to bank on are the recollections from my family, and to
me there are no better stories then the ones they share about "The White Death", the
Blizzard of 1977.