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2007–08 North American winter
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Radar Dec 1 Storm.gif A winter storm impacting the western United States on December 1, 2007 December 22 – March 20 December 1 – February 28 2007 18 total 6 total 0 total November 29, 2007 April 13, 2008 February 2008 North American winter storm February 5–8, 2008 991 4 fatalities Unknown (2008 USD) 135 total $2.08 billion (2008 USD) Weather of 2007
The 2007–08 North American winter was near-average in terms of winter weather, influenced by an ongoing La Niña event. The Weather Prediction Center (WPC) tracked a total of 18 significant winter weather events during the season. A large portion of the Northern United States saw large amounts of snowfall, a theme that would be repeated somewhat the following winter. 6 events were rated on the Regional Snowfall Index (RSI), though none managed to be rated above a Category 3 "Major" ranking.
While there is no well-agreed-upon date used to indicate the start of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, there are two definitions of winter which may be used. Based on the astronomical definition, winter begins at the winter solstice, which in 2007 occurred on December 22, and ends at the March equinox, which in 2008 occurred on March 20.Earth's Seasons: Equinoxes, Solstices, Perihelion, and Aphelion, 2000-2025 http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/EarthSeasons.php United States Naval Observatory March 27, 2015 August 15, 2015 Washington, D.C. PHP https://web.archive.org/web/20150831000837/http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/EarthSeasons.php August 31, 2015 dead mdy Based on the meteorological definition, the first day of winter is December 1 and the last day February 28.Meteorological vs. Astronomical Seasons https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/news/meteorological-versus-astronomical-summer%E2%80%94what%E2%80%99s-difference National Centers for Environmental Information National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA/NWS) July 3, 2015 Both definitions involve a period of approximately three months, with some variability.
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Seasonal forecasts
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US temp outlook winter 2007–08 NOAA.jpg
Temperature outlook
US precip outlook winter 2007–08 NOAA.jpg
Precipitation outlook
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On October 18, 2007, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Climate Prediction Center issued its U.S. Winter Outlook.U.S. Winter Outlook Calls For Variability, According To NOAA https://www.reliableplant.com/Read/9156/noaa-issues-final-winter-outlook-for-2007-'08-season Reliableplant November 20, 2008 February 27, 2026 Citing the ongoing La Niña event, above-average temperatures were expected to be likely in the south-central United States. Precipitation was forecast to be below average within the southern portion of the U.S. near the Gulf Coast, while above-normal precipitation was expected in regions such as the Pacific Northwest and Ohio Valley. Equal chances for near, above- or below-average temperatures were expected to prevail across the rest of the U.S. through the winter.
Seasonal summary
Events
Late November West Coast cyclone
0 2007 Late 2007 West Coast cyclone 2007-12-03 2000Z.jpg 952 6 November 29 December 5, 2007 18 1180
On December 1, a large storm off the Pacific Coast brought heavy snow to portions of British Columbia, including the South Coast and Vancouver Island, with amounts in higher elevations exceeding 16 in cm and significant accumulations also for Metro Vancouver.Canada hit with snow from coast to coast, CTV, Dec. 2, 2007. Another large storm called a Pineapple Express brought torrential rains to the same areas on December 3 with very strong winds across portions of Oregon and Washington states, freezing rain into valley areas of central British Columbia, and heavy snow of up to 2 ft m across mountainous areas. The heavy rains caused a mudslide inside Stanley Park which closed its seawall which had just recently re-opened in November after it was heavily damaged during a major wind storm in December 2006.Mudslide closes Vancouver's Stanley Park seawall https://web.archive.org/web/20230419111846/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/mudslide-closes-vancouver-s-stanley-park-seawall-1.663695 April 19, 2023 , CBC, December 3, 2007.Storm Summary Message https://web.archive.org/web/20131218022252/http://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/discussions/nfdscc5.html December 18, 2013 , Hydrometeorological Prediction Center Camp Springs, MD, December 31, 2007.Winter weather stretching from sea to sea https://web.archive.org/web/20230419111846/https://www.ctvnews.ca/winter-weather-stretching-from-sea-to-sea-1.266137 April 19, 2023 , CTV, Dec. 3, 2007. Extensive flooding was reported across many areas of Washington and Oregon after heavy rains with amounts of up to 10 in mm were reported. Coast Guard helicopters had to evacuate and saved over 100 residents who were trapped by the high water levels. Snowmelt was also caused floods to Washington.Frazier, Joseph B., Guard Evacuates Flooded Oregon Town https://web.archive.org/web/20071207220615/http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=3952465 December 7, 2007 , Associated Press via ABC News, Dec 4, 2007. The town of Vernonia, Oregon was completely cut off by the water and mudslides. Wind gusts locally exceeded 100 mph km/h on with the highest gust registered at 129 mi/h km/h on recorded in Bay City, Oregon. Over 100,000 customers from northern California to Washington lost electricity while 40,000 lost power in British Columbia. In addition, Amtrak service between Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, British Columbia was disrupted for at least two days.Banerjee, Sidhartha, Le pays reprend contact avec la dure réalité hivernale https://web.archive.org/web/20080206082525/http://www.canoe.com/infos/quebeccanada/archives/2007/12/20071203-200434.html February 6, 2008 , Canadian Press via Canoe.ca, December 3, 2007.Copters rescue people from roofs as storm pounds Northwest https://web.archive.org/web/20080321083424/http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/weather/12/03/storms.northwest.ap/index.html March 21, 2008 , CNN, December 4, 2007.
The storm was responsible for at least 10 deaths, including five in a single vehicle crash near Prince George, British Columbia where there was snow-covered roads.5 die in crash near Prince George, B.C. https://web.archive.org/web/20230419111849/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/5-die-in-crash-near-prince-george-b-c-1.668121 April 19, 2023 , CBC, December 3, 2007. Three people were killed in Washington and two in Oregon.Washington and Oregon Residents Fight to Save Homes From Muddy Waters, Associated Press via Fox News, December 5, 2007.Sistek, Scott, Two die as area rivers approach record flood levels https://web.archive.org/web/20080511173947/http://www.komotv.com/news/12035646.html May 11, 2008 , KOMO-TV, Dec 2, 2007 From the perspective of Chicago, the storm was viewed as an Alberta clipper with the potential for heavy snowfall. During the evening of December 2, the storm was reported to have a central pressure of 949 mb, pressures associated with a Category 3 hurricane.Skilling, Tom, Area braces for biggest snow of season to date https://web.archive.org/web/20080109104419/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/weather/chi-mxaweathertop120407dec04,0,1941013.story January 9, 2008 , Chicago Tribune December 4, 2007.
Early December winter storm
3.035 StormOriginDecember2007.jpg 976 44 November 29 December 5, 2007 16
Early December 2007 North American winter storm
Areas of the Middle Plains and the lower Great Lakes including Des Moines, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit and Toronto received a significant wintry mix of precipitation before changing to rain and thunderstorms on December 1 and 2. Des Moines International Airport was shut down for several hours due to the icing conditions on runways and an American Airlines flight with 44 passengers slipped out of a taxiway while another skidded out of a runway at Madison, Wisconsin's Dane County Regional Airport.Fatal storm spreads ice, snow across Northeast, Associated Press via NBC News, Dec. 4, 2007. Numerous passengers were stranded for several hours at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport where 400 flights were canceled on December 1 alone.Romo, Rafael, and Mary Kay Kleist December Rolls In With Sloppy Winter Storm https://web.archive.org/web/20071203024018/http://cbs2chicago.com/local/snowstorm.freezing.rain.2.600042.html December 3, 2007 , CBS Chicago, Dec 2, 2007. About 140,000 customers in Illinois alone lost power.Midwest Storm Cancels Hundreds of Flights, Kills 7 https://web.archive.org/web/20071203173807/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,314533,00.html December 3, 2007 , Associated Press via Fox News Channel, December 2, 2007.
Portions of Wisconsin, Minnesota and northern Ontario received several inches of snow while the mountain regions of Colorado received as much as four feet of snow (120 cm), resulting in the postponement of the men's Super-G alpine skiing event in Beaver Creek, Colorado, where 15 in cm was reported.Snow forces postponement of men's super-G https://web.archive.org/web/20080213051156/http://www.tsn.ca/skiing/news_story/?ID=224095&hubname=skiing February 13, 2008 , Associated Press via The Sports Network, December 1, 2007.Silverton Mountain Get's [sic] Pounded with 48" of New Snow in Last 18 Hours https://web.archive.org/web/20110708075016/http://www.boardtheworld.com/templates/btw/page/page_html_standard.php?secID=99&riID=1999 July 8, 2011 , BoardTheWorld.com, December 1, 2007Nicholson, Kieran, After 44 inches of snow, near-summer returns https://web.archive.org/web/20110524034238/http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_7623298 May 24, 2011 , The Denver Post, December 3, 2007.
The storm was responsible for at least 16 deaths including three in Quebec, one in New York, one in Maine, one in Indiana, three in Wisconsin, two in Illinois, three in Michigan, one in Utah, and one in Colorado.7 dead as Midwest storm disrupts transportation https://web.archive.org/web/20080315214538/http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/12/02/winter.weather.ap/index.html March 15, 2008 , CNN, December 2, 2007Storms Slam Northeast, Northwest https://web.archive.org/web/20080220064713/http://www.accuweather.com/news-top-headline.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&date=2007-12-03&month=12&day=1&year=2007 February 20, 2008 , AccuWeather, December 3, 2007.
Mid-December winter storms
Mid-December 2007 North American winter storms
thumb|right|200px|Extensive tree damage was common across most of Oklahoma, including the Tulsa region during the December 9–10 ice storm (Courtesy of NWS Tulsa, Oklahoma)
A series of winter storms impacted widespread areas of North America over a nine-day period. From December 8 to December 11, another major ice storm impacted the midsection of the United States from Texas, northeast through the Midwest, through the Mid-Atlantic States, and into southern New England. At least 38 people were killed by the ice storms, including 23 in Oklahoma, four in Kansas, three in Missouri, and one in Nebraska. Most of the fatalities were the result of traffic accidents caused by the icy weather, including four people in a single accident on Interstate 40 west of Okemah, Oklahoma. The storm caused the largest power outage in Oklahoma history, where 600,000 homes and businesses lost power, while 350,000 customers were also without power in other states, including 100,000 in both Missouri and Kansas, and scattered power outages in Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois. Overall, over 1.5 million customers lost power throughout the Central United States with some being without electricity for over one week. The storms caused widespread school and flight cancellations with Chicago O'Hare International Airport cancelling at least 560 flights, while Tulsa International Airport was forced to halt flights on the 10th after losing power for 10 hours.Ice coats nation's midsection, Associated Press via NBC News, Dec. 10, 2007.More icy weather headed for Midwest https://web.archive.org/web/20071211115256/http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/weather/12/10/winter.ice.storm.ap/index.html December 11, 2007 , CNN, Dec. 10, 2007.
The energy of the second ice storm produced significant snows over the northeastern part of the US and the Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario on December 13 and dumped as much as 12 in cm of snow in parts of New England and New York state.Rell Criticized For Storm Response https://web.archive.org/web/20071216071217/http://www.wfsb.com/news/14855677/detail.html December 16, 2007 , WFSB, December 14, 2007.
Post-New Year's Day storm complex
0 January 2008 North American Superstorm at peak intensity.jpg January 2008 North American Superstorm path.png 956 132 2008 January 2 January 7, 2008 16 129
January 2008 North American storm complex
Flights departing from San Francisco were grounded, while over 100 mi km of Interstate 80 was shut down in eastern California and western Nevada due to poor visibility and a 17-vehicle pile-up. Bay Area Rapid Transit was also disrupted with significant delays to service and was even interrupted between San Francisco and Daly City briefly due to fallen trees on the network's tracks.abc7news.com: 1/05/08
Strong winds knocked power lines down causing power outages for 1.2 million Californians,https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/05/us/05calif.html?hp The New York Times Ferocious Storm Punishes Northern California Jesse McKinley January 5, 2008 May 5, 2010 while several outages were reported in Washington and Oregon.https://www.cbsnews.com/news/three-dead-from-west-coast-storms/ CBS News Three Dead From West Coast Storms January 6, 2008 About 500 mi km of California power lines were damaged by the storm.https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=4094194 ABC News: Cold Waters Recede in Flooded Nev. Town ABC News
Early February storm complex
4.55 Snowfall amounts Wisconsin Feb 5-6.gif 991 16 February 5 February 8, 2008 4
2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak#Winter storm
The same low pressure systems that caused the tornado outbreak also spawned a significant snowstorm from the Central Plains to the western Great Lakes where winter storm warnings were issued. Between 10 and 15 in cm off of snow fell from eastern Iowa to southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, with local amounts ranging from 18 to 21 in cm off in southeastern Wisconsin. NWS Milwaukee/Sullivan
February 5–6, 2008 Major Winter Storm Southern Wisconsin
National Weather Service
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mkx/?n=020608_snow
February 11, 2008
April 26, 2008 NWS Quad Cities, Iowa/IL
Snowfall Reports from February 5th & 6th
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=dvn&storyid=12840&source=0
February 7, 2008
April 26, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080411083324/http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=dvn&storyid=12840&source=0 April 11, 2008 live In Michigan, up to 14 in cm of snow fell north of Grand Rapids. NWS Grand Rapids
Major Winter Storm Hits Central and Southern Lower Michigan
National Weather Service
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=grr&storyid=12856&source=0
February 7, 2008
April 26, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080411072616/http://www.crh.noaa.gov/crnews/display_story.php?wfo=grr&storyid=12856&source=0 April 11, 2008 live Environment Canada also issued freezing rain and winter storm warnings for Southern Ontario, where some areas north of Lake Erie received close to 1 in mm of freezing rain. CTV (Southwestern Ontario)
Winter storm and freezing rain warnings in effect for some areas
CTV
https://www.ctvnews.ca/kitchener/?id=752&PHPSESSID=1707c5b8e346900c8bff03bc68149661
February 6, 2008
April 26, 2008 CTV News
GTA hit by second snowstorm in less than 24 hours
CTV
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080206/to_storm_080206/20080206?hub=TopStories
https://web.archive.org/web/20080207091152/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080206/to_storm_080206/20080206?hub=TopStories
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February 7, 2008
February 6, 2008
April 26, 2008
Early March blizzard
0 2008 2008 North American Blizzard 2008-03-08 1640Z.jpg 984 28.5 March 5 March 10, 2008 17 789
North American blizzard of 2008
A significant blizzard struck most of southern and eastern North America from March 6 to March 10, 2008. It was most notable for a major winter storm event from Arkansas to Quebec. It also produced severe weather across the east coast of the United States with heavy rain, damaging winds and tornadoes, causing locally significant damage. The hardest hit areas by the wintry weather were from the Ohio Valley to southern Quebec where up to a half a meter of snow fell locally including the major cities of Columbus, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, and Ottawa, Ontario. For many areas across portions of the central United States, Ontario and Quebec, it was the worst winter storm in the past several years. BBC News Heavy storms dump snow on Midwest BBC https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7286009.stm March 9, 2008 The blizzard and its aftermath caused at least 17 deaths across four US states and three Canadian provinces, while hundreds others were injured mostly in weather-related accidents and tornadoes.
See also
Weather North America
Weather of 2008
References
External links
2007 Storm Summaries from the Weather Prediction Center
2008 Storm Summaries from the Weather Prediction Center
2006 North American winters 2007–08 2008–09
Winter
Winter
Category:North American winters