A Tiny Break From Winter Siege For Some, But Misery Spreads And Break Ends Fast

The snow banks around my house in St. Albans,
Vermont are getting fairly high now, but
at least I was able to get out and shovel
the driveway today without instantaneously
freezing to death.  

It's amazing, when you're under a record breaking siege of cold and snow, what a slight relaxation in the misery can do for one's mind.  

I live in St. Albans, Vermont. I'm complaining a lot about this winter, but my area hasn't been hit nearly as hard this month with incredible winter weather as many other places.

Snowfall here in St. Albans has been heavier than normal this winter, but it's nothing like Boston and Maine.

But January was quite a bit colder than normal, and February will easily end up being one of the top three coldest on record in Vermont.

Yesterday, we had perhaps three inches of snow, and wind gusts over 40 mph took that snow, and the snow already on the ground, and heaped it into huge drifts on my driveway. Ugh.

But this morning, the sun came out, winds were light, and temperatures "soared" way into the 20s.

Never mind that high temperatures this time of year should be in the low 30s here this time of year, never mind that biting, subzero cold and winds will return tonight for an extended say (AGAIN!)

It was just a sense of relief to go out and shovel snow in the driveway and not in a grand rush because I'm freezing my tush off in subzero cold.

With temperatures in the 20s, I was able to carve away snow that was kind of in the way that I had left from previous storms because I didn't want to brave the elements.  I took off my hat and outer jacket midway through the shoveling,  because for once today I was getting warm from the exertion.

I let the dogs out, and instead of hurriedly doing their business and racing back to the door, they frolicked in the snow, rolled in the powder, chased snow balls, and playfully flicked pawfulls of powdery snow at each other.

The welcome break extends up and down the East Coast this Sunday after a rough Saturday of snow, ice, terrible roads, crashes and general misery. As of late morning, temperatures were above freezing all the way up to Boston.

It's unclear if Burlington, Vermont will make it above freezing this afternoon, which would snap a 27-day consecutive streak of subfreezing weather.

Of course, this is only a very temporary reprieve, and not much of one, quite frankly given how it's so brief, and temperatures aren't really above normal. As I said, we'll take anything we can get.

The weather isn't exactly gorgeous in the East everywhere, either. JFK Airport closed for a time this morning after early morning snow squalls swept through New York. It's above freezing there now and the were clearing the runways as of late morning, and delays are expected to continue all day.

In West Virginia, the brief spell of above freezing weather is prompting flood alerts, because water from melting snow and ice is sitting on roadways. The storm drains are clogged with ice.

The next Arctic blast was already in the Plains and Midwest late Sunday morning and is heading quick. Winter storms of snow and ice are blossoming along the perifery of the cold air. ]]

(Luckily for New England, the expectation, or a least hope, is that the cold front tonight will drop just flurries, and another Arctic front on Wednesday will just leave behind light snow and not spin up another nor'easter. It looks like no nor'easter Wednesday, but there's still a few questions about that.)

Today, winter storm warnings and watches, freezing rain advisories and winter weather advisories are up for a broad stretch from Colorado, through most of Texas, parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas and on into Mississippi.

The icy scene in Monterey, Tennessee yesterday.
Photo from Putnam County (Tenn.) EMS. Add caption

In Dallas Sunday morning, it was raining and temperatures were falling through the 40s. By tonight, sleet and freezing rain will plaster the Dallas area, and winter storm warnings are up as a result.

The roads will be almost impassable, and power failures are quite likely, especially just north of Dallas.

Just ask Tennessee how bad an ice storm can get. Parts of that state got two rounds of freezing rain in the past week, and some entire towns lost electricity as trees and power lines collapsed under the weight of heavy ice.  

To make matters worse, it finally got above freezing in much of Tennessee Saturday amid heavy rain.

The rain, the melting snow and ice, and the frozen ground not allowing anything to soak in all contributed to flooding in Tennessee and surrounding states.

It looks like the next winter storm building over Texas will largely miss Tennessee, but it will be extremely cold there this week, along with much of the rest of the eastern United States.

The overall weather pattern, with the big warm ridge in the western United States and the big frigid dip in the East appears like it's going to continue well into March, so expect lots more Arctic weather and bad winter storms for awhile.

This radio station transmitting tower collapsed
under the weight of ice during freezing rain
Saturday in Tennessee.  

There are some signs that the whole ridge-dip arrangement wants to shift a bit to the west. That's still a bit uncertain, and how it will affect actual conditions on the ground also have uncertainties.

The shift will mean the core of the coldest weather would shift a little bit away from the East Coast and toward the Midwest and Plains, though the East will probably remain cold going into March.

This little readjustment could also mean the storms on the East Coast might come closer to the coast, or even inland.

Again, no firm forecasts here, but this little shift could mean rain (and possible flooding) in eastern New England. It could also mean heavier snows in interior New England, including Vermont. (Most of the snow storms have given Vermont only glancing blows over the past month.)

Still, take heart. Even if the worst of the weather pattern keeps going for several more weeks, the sting of this awful weather will become a little less painful.

Spring is on our side. The chances of above freezing temperatures between cold snaps will continue to increase as the February and March sun grows stronger and stronger.

For instance, take this worst-case scenario. Last year, Burlington, Vermont had its coldest March on record, but the temperature still managed to get above freezing on 19 days that month.

That's not impressive, but it's better than how things are going now.  And we can always hope this March won't be as cold as last.

As we keep heading toward spring, the chances that rain, not more snow, could fall with storms as we go through March will also increase.  And if it does snow, at least it will start to melt almost right away after the storm is done, instead of just sitting there for weeks on end.

Early spring this year looks like it wil approach with frustrating reluctance. But as today's semi-OK weather on the East Coast, and here in St. Albans demonstrates, we'll all take hint of spring we can grab.