Cold wave of 1978

The cold wave of 1978 was a weather event that occurred in the eastern United States. Beginning in December 1977 and lasting until March, it produced one of the coldest winters on record in all states east of the Rockies except Maine.

Timeline

December

During December 1977, a cold wave started around the eastern United States. This cold wave heavily hit Michigan and Ohio, whose average winter temperature was to be the second lowest in recorded history, rivaled only by an even colder wave that hit the previous winter.^[1]

January

Like most cold waves of the 1970s, temperatures in January dropped to extreme lows. Wind chills across the plains fell to between −70 and −80 °F (−56.7 and −62.2 °C). Severe cold pounded from the Plains states to the Eastern seaboard, where frequent frontal storms caused record snowfall and extreme blizzards,^[2] which caused some areas to be declared with a state of emergency. Schools and business were closed when pipelines froze over, and severe driving conditions took place. Blowing snow meant that roads could not be cleared, and hundreds of automobile accidents were believed caused by the blizzard conditions.^[3] Tanks had to be used to remove stranded vehicles on some highways.

Insulation by the very heavy northeastern snow led to major damage to major roads by potholes, as liquid water was able to erode the tar more effectively.^[4]

February

In February, Ohio,^[5] Indiana,^[6] Illinois^[7] Kentucky,^[8] and West Virginia^[9] saw their coldest February since record-keeping began. Severe cold still covered areas from the Northeast and Midwest. Schools began to close because of the extreme cold. Homeless people had a hard time finding shelter, causing some deaths. Snow and blowing wind created dangerous wind chills. Due to blowing snow, ice, and severe cold, semi trucks had their deliveries delayed. Some locations saw a record-long period of below 0 °F (−17.8 °C) weather.

March

The severe cold wave ameliorated only slightly in March, and as late as March 25 a severe storm with freezing rain brought down powerlines in Illinois, hindering rescue efforts by shutting down telephone communications.^[3] April, when average or even above average temperatures occurred for the first time since November 1977, saw the real end of the cold wave, but snow melting and flooding caused damage to some locations. Sioux Falls saw its second coldest winter on record during the previous months. The severe eastern winter was sufficient to make 1978 the eleventh coolest calendar year for the contiguous US since 1895, and the coolest since 1929.^[10]

References

↑ "Winter 1977: Statewide Cold Wave". Ohio Historical Society. Retrieved 2008-09-25.
↑ Wagner, A. James; ‘Weather and Circulation of January 1978: Cold with Record Snowfall in the Midwest and Northeast; Mild and Wet in the West’; Monthly Weather Review; 106 (1978); pp. 579-585
1 2 Chagnon jr, Stanley A. and Chagnon, David; ‘Record Winter Storms in Illinois, 1977-78’; Report of Investigation 88; Illinois Department of Registration and Education
↑ Hershfield; David M.; ‘Freeze-Thaw Cycles, Potholes and the Winter of 1977-78’; Monthly Weather Review; 107 (1979); pp. 1003-1007
↑ Ohio ranked monthly temperatures
↑ Indiana ranked monthly temperatures
↑ Illinois ranked monthly temperatures
↑ Kentucky ranked monthly temperatures
↑ West Virginia ranked monthly temperatures
↑ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Contiguous US Average Annual Mean Temperature

External links

NOAA weather data on Sioux Falls, South Dakota for the 1970s

Cold wave

Cold waves in North America	Winter of 1886–87 1888 Northwest United States cold wave Great Freeze Great Blue Norther of November 11, 1911 1912 United States cold wave 1936 North American cold wave Cold wave of January 1977 Cold wave of 1978 Cold Sunday Winter 1985 cold wave 1994 North American cold wave 2007 Western United States freeze Early 2014 North American cold wave November 2014 North American cold wave 2015 Valentine's Day blizzard Siberian Express

Cold waves in Europe	Great Frost of 1683–84 Great Frost of 1709 Winter of 1894–95 in the United Kingdom Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom Winter of 1962–63 in the United Kingdom Winter of 1990–91 in Western Europe 2006 European cold wave Winter of 2009–10 in Europe Winter of 2009–10 in Great Britain and Ireland Winter of 2010–11 in Great Britain and Ireland Early 2012 European cold wave

Other cold waves	White Earthquake Winter storms of 2009–10 in East Asia North Indian Cold Wave (2011) Indian cold wave (2012) 2013 extreme weather events January 2016 East Asia cold wave

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