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Surprise Snowfall for New England Sets up a Rare White Halloween

Written by Team Morecast

 

A vigorous upper level low spent much of the week over the Southwest US, coating portions of west Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and the Front Range with heavy snow and ice. Sections of western Oklahoma saw ice accumulations up to 1.5 inches (38 mm), felling numerous trees and large branches still also bearing their leaves. Widespread power outages have left more than 300,000 households in the dark with some not likely to be restored until the end of next week. Needless to say, this wintry mess has severely complicated the early voting process in these states.

 

 


The winter storm finally vacated the Southwest in the mid- to late week, taking the remnants of Hurricane Zeta with it. The infusion of tropical moisture resulted in widespread heavy rains from the Ohio Valley to southern New England. Rainfall of 1.5-3 inches (38-75 mm) was common across these regions. In most areas, it was a welcome, soaking rainfall, however minor flooding was reported in a few areas.

 

 

Cold air over the Northeast states combined with the moisture to produce heavy, wet snow from Thursday night into Friday. However, the transition from rain to snow occurred much more quickly and further south than expected. The result was significant snow accumulation even along the Urban Corridor from Boston to Providence, Rhode Island and Hartford, Connecticut. Boston’s Logan International Airport reported 4.3 inches (10.9 cm) of accumulation on Friday, shattering the previous record of single-day snow accumulation in October. It was the biggest snowfall since mid-December 2019. In fact, it was as much as snow as was tallied throughout all of January, February, and March!  Locations further inland saw totals upwards of six inches (15 cm). Subfreezing temps overnight Friday should ensure a rare White Halloween across much of southern New England!

Hurricane Zeta Leaves Widespread Damage, Millions Without Power in the Southeast

Written by Team Morecast

 

Hurricane Zeta sprinted across the Southeast late Wednesday into Thursday, leaving a swath of downed trees and powerlines. More than two million lost power from Louisiana through the Carolinas, and many will remain in the dark through next week. The direct death toll stands at six as of Thursday night.

 

 

 

Zeta made landfall as a strong Category Two hurricane on Wednesday afternoon near Cocodrie, Louisiana. It was nearly a Category Three hurricane after experiencing an unexpected surge of intensification just prior to landfall. Within an hour or two of landfall, Zeta rolled directly over the New Orleans metro, the strongest hurricane on record to do so. The fast forward motion allowed the storm to cover a much wider area before the typical weakening due to interaction with dry land. From New Orleans on Wednesday evening, the storm reached Atlanta on Thursday morning and the Mid-Atlantic coast by Thursday evening. Merging with a larger upper level system to the north also extended the damaging wind threat.

 

 

Winds gusted 80-120 mph (130-190 kph) near the landfall point in southeastern Louisiana and adjacent Mississippi and Alabama. Gusts of 50-70 mph (80-110 kph) covered a much more extensive area from the mid-South through the Carolinas, plenty enough to knock down trees and powerlines and lead to numerous power outages. Rainfall was relatively limited by the fast forward speed of the storm. However, many communities near the coast were inundated by a storm surge as high as 9-10 feet (3 m). One of the fatalities was a man who drowned after being caught by the surge while taking video of the waves.

Late-Season Zeta Will Be a Hurricane for the Gulf Coast, Then a Snow Storm for New England!

Written by Team Morecast

 

Tropical Storm Zeta is accelerating over the central Gulf of Mexico. Intensification is expected and Zeta will likely be a hurricane as it approaches southeastern Louisiana on Wednesday. Zeta will bring heavy rain, damaging winds, and a dangerous storm surge to sections of the central Gulf coast that have already been battered by multiple storms this season. After landfall, Zeta will transition to an extratropical system. It will encounter enough cold air over New England to result in the first significant snow of the season!

 

 

Zeta is the 27th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, one shy of the record. It struck the Yucatan peninsula on Monday as a hurricane, the third of the season to hit the Mexican state of Quintano Roo, a new record. Zeta weakened back to tropical storm status after interacting with land. However, satellite imagery shows Zeta is intensifying as of Tuesday night. Zeta is accelerating and will approach southeast Louisiana by mid-afternoon. It’s likely to be the 11th named storm to make landfall in the continental U.S., shattering the previous record. The rapid speed of the storm could decrease the threat for flash flooding due to rainfall. However, damaging winds and storm surge could be enhanced. Gusts as high as 90 mph (145 kph) will level many trees and powerlines, leading to widespread power outages. Surge flooding as high as 6-8 feet (2.5 m) will pummel the coast from far southeast Louisiana to southern Mississippi and Alabama, a potentially deadly hazard for those who failed to heed evacuation orders. Conditions will improve in this region by Wednesday night as the storm pulls rapidly away.

 

 

The remnant circulation will merge with a northern jet system over the Northeast U.S. later this week. Tropical moisture will spread across the Mid-Atlantic and New England, leading to some minor flooding. However, over higher elevations the precipitation will fall as wet snow, leading to significant accumulations of up to 3-6 inches (7-15 cm) in some spots (see map above). A few flakes may even fly closer to the big cities along the coast by Friday as the system moves offshore. Hurricanes transitioning to winter storms are quite rare, but not unheard of. The infamous Superstorm Sandy, which started as a hurricane in late October 2012, dumped snows up to 2-3 feet (60-90 cm) in the central Appalachians! Zeta won’t muster that kind of accumulation, but a few inches of wet snow could still result in travel disruptions for interior New England on Friday.

Hurricane Delta Slams Into Coastal Louisiana With Dangerous Surge and High Winds

Written by Team Morecast

 

For the second time in less than two months, southwestern Louisiana has seen a punishing blow from a landfalling hurricane. Delta is not nearly as strong as Hurricane Laura was at landfall in late Augusta. Nevertheless, Delta is bringing destructive winds and widespread flooding to a region still recovering from earlier storms. Indeed, Delta made landfall only 13 miles (21 km) from Laura’s landfall point six weeks ago.

 

 

 

Hurricane Delta, the 25th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, struck the Yucatan Peninsula earlier this week. Delta weakened due to that interaction with land but quickly regained major hurricane status over the southern Gulf of Mexico. Fortunately, increasing shear and cooling ocean temperatures led to weakening as it approached Louisiana. However, Delta was still a dangerous Category Two hurricane with sustained winds to 100 mph (160 kph) at landfall. Delta has continued to move quickly north since this evening’s landfall, weakening steadily, but gusty winds and flooding rainfall will remain threats.

 

 

Radar estimates and ground reports indicate widespread rainfall of 12-18 inches (300-450 mm) has fallen over central and southwest Louisiana (see map above), leading to major flooding. A storm surge of up to ten feet (three meters) also inundated areas closer to the coast on Friday with many communities still underwater as of early Saturday morning. Winds have gusted as high as 100 mph (160 kph) as well, leading to numerous trees and powerlines down. The region is relatively sparsely populated. Nevertheless, nearly a half-million power outages have been reported from southwest Texas through Louisiana and southwest Mississippi.