The December 2000 nor'easter was a significant winter storm that impacted the Mid-Atlantic and

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

regions of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

around the end of the month. It began as an

Alberta clipper An Alberta clipper, also known as an Alberta low, Alberta cyclone, Alberta lee cyclone, Canadian clipper, or simply clipper, is a fast-moving low-pressure system that originates in or near the Canadian province of Alberta just east of the Rocky ...

that moved southeastward through the central United States and weakened over the

Ohio Valley The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illinoi ...

. However, it redeveloped off the coast of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

and moved northward as it intensified. It moved into central

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

and eventually tracked northward into New England. The storm dropped heavy precipitation throughout the Northeast, especially in northern

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and eastern

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, where snowfall often exceeded . Even so, as it struck on a weekend, its effects were generally minor and mostly limited to travel delays, traffic accidents, and business closures.

Synoptic history

The storm developed as an

-type

low pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area, low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclement weather (such as cloudy, windy, with possible ...

that moved southeastward across the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

and

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

. Throughout

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, moderate snowfall accompanied the system. After weakening over the

, the storm redeveloped off the coast of

. In the days preceding the event, a cyclone over eastern Canada circulated cold air southward. Computer models indicated the potential for a major storm up to seven days in advance; however, initially, certain forecasts suggested that a separate storm over the southern U.S. would merge with the clipper. Instead, this feature moved out to sea.Kocin and Uccellini, p. 629 As the secondary storm began to intensify offshore, precipitation rapidly expanded and tracked northward towards southern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, eastern

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, largely in the form of freezing rain, ice, and snow. From 0200 UTC on December 30 to 1200 UTC, the cyclone intensified by 13

mbar The bar is a metric unit of pressure, but not part of the International System of Units (SI). It is defined as exactly equal to 100,000 Pa (100 kPa), or slightly less than the current average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea leve ...

, and continued to deepen for several more hours. Snowfall reached southern

between 0600 and 0800 UTC, and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

at around 1000 UTC.

Thundersnow Thundersnow, also known as a winter thunderstorm or a thundersnowstorm, is a kind of thunderstorm with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain. It is considered a rare and unusual phenomenon. It typically falls in regions of s ...

developed within heavy bands in some areas.Kocin and Uccellini, p. 630 The significant snow was characterized by a sharp western cutoff; for example, in Chester County, accumulations ranged from around 6 inches in the far eastern parts of the county to only an inch along its western border with Lancaster County. While located off the

coast, the storm stopped strengthening and slowly moved northward. The center was situated near central Long Island at 2100 UTC. Across eastern

and parts of eastern New England, snow mixed with and, in some cases, changed over to rain. The surface low had moved into eastern

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

by early on December 31. As it continued to head northeastward, a new center of low pressure developed near

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and moved towards coastal

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

.Kocin and Uccellini, p. 636 The storm system had abated by January 1.

Impact

The storm produced moderate to heavy snowfall from eastern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

through New Jersey, New York, and New England, extending as far north as Maine. As much as fell west of the New York City metropolitan region, which generally reported of snow, making it the biggest snowstorm at the time since the

North American blizzard of 1996 The North American blizzard of 1996 was a severe nor'easter that paralyzed the United States East Coast with up to of wind-driven snow from January 6 to January 8, 1996. This storm was a classic example of a nor'easter, but the storm would not ha ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

recorded little or no snowfall, while impacted Philadelphia. Eastern New York, especially the

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...

and

Catskill Mountains The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined as those areas c ...

, western Connecticut, western and central

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

and Maine also picked up heavy snowfall. Eastern New England received up to before dry air from the south reduced the duration of the snow. About 30 flights were canceled at the

Philadelphia International Airport Philadelphia International Airport is the primary airport serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The airport served 19.6 million passengers annually in 2021, making it the 21st busiest airport in the United States. The airport is located from t ...

, and the city declared a snow emergency.

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canceled Metroliner service along the northeast corridor from Washington, D.C. to New York City. Numerous businesses throughout eastern Pennsylvania closed on December 30, although because the storm struck on a weekend, the number of traffic accidents was fairly low. In New Jersey, increasing winds caused blowing and drifting of the snow and led to near-blizzard conditions. Behind the storm, very cold and gusty weather lingered.

New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

shut down bus service in northern portions of the state, and rail lines had 20-minute delays. Most injuries in the state were related to physical strain while shoveling,

snow blower A snow blower or snow thrower is a machine for removing snow from an area where it is problematic, such as a driveway, sidewalk, roadway, railroad track, ice rink, or runway. The commonly used term "snow blower" is a misnomer, as the snow is ...

accidents or slips and falls. As the snowfall was of a light nature, few trees limbs and electrical wires were downed by the storm. GPU Energy reported only around 5,500 power outages. A countywide state of emergency was declared in Sussex County, as vehicles were sliding off roadways. Several other traffic accidents and delays were reported throughout the state, and in Somerset County, a few roads were closed due to the snow. A Red Cross shelter was opened for residents of a Spotswood trailer park. In New York State, the heaviest snow peaked at in Platte Cove, Greene County. Despite 50 flight cancellations at the

Albany International Airport Albany International Airport is six miles (9 km) northwest of Albany, in Albany County, New York, United States. It is owned by the Albany County Airport Authority. ALB covers of land. It is an air port of entry in the town of Colon ...

and several traffic accidents, no major damage or injuries were reported. Although heavy snow fell in the state, no major damage was reported in Connecticut. In Massachusetts and Rhode Island, high winds, gusting to as high as buffeted the coast.

References

* {{United States winter storms Nor'easters 2000 meteorology 2000 natural disasters in the United States Natural disasters in New Jersey Natural disasters in New York (state) December 2000 events in the United States 2000 in New York (state) 2000 in New Jersey

Synoptic history

Impact

See also

References