Winter Storm Damon fizzled out over the Northeast after a second pulse of atmospheric energy arrived from the west breathing new life into this extremely slow-moving nor'easter.
(MORE: Science Behind Naming Winter Storms)
Areas hard-hit by Superstorm Sandy two years ago were among the first to face Damon's fury, as Tuesday morning's high tide brought minor to moderate coastal flooding to the Jersey Shore and parts of Long Island. In some areas, tides reached their highest levels since Sandy, but impacts were far less damaging this time around.
Rainfall added to the flood woes near the coast Tuesday, while ice slickened roads farther inland. On Wednesday, the biggest impact was snow, with more than 12 inches falling in many locations.
(MORE: Damon Snarls Northeast Travel)
Winter Storm Damon Setup
Low pressure formed along the western end of an old stalled frontal boundary off the Mid-Atlantic coast. It is finally heading north through New England after stalling out near Long Island Tuesday into Wednesday.
A second batch of upper-atmospheric energy arrived from the west on Wednesday, injecting fresh energy into this storm and forcing the low to lift a bit farther north into New England.
This second surge of energy reinvigorated the storm's precipitation shield, leading to an increase in snowfall Thursday in parts of the interior Northeast and southeast Canada.
One challenge that existed with this system, as with most Northeast coastal storms, has been the availability and location of cold air.
Despite the passage of a cold front through the Northeast last weekend, the path of this coastal low dislodged the cold air (translation: air below freezing near the surface) from a significant swath of the Northeast, especially New England, causing snow and ice to change over to rain in many areas Tuesday night.
However, on Tuesday morning, before the cold air was dislodged, up to a quarter of an inch of freezing rain was reported in Milford, New Jersey and Allamuchy, New Jersey where power lines came down. Icy conditions were also found in parts of Massachusetts where numerous car accidents occurred.
(MORE:Expert Analysis|Winter Storm Central)
The heaviest rain has already ended across the region, but showers will be found in northern and eastern Maine, including Caribou.
Tuesday's rainfall set daily records in, among other places, New York City (2.54 inches at Central Park); Providence, Rhode Island (2.74 inches); and Boston (2.90 inches).
On the western flank of the storm, rain changed over to snowas cold air aloft chilled the column of air north and west of the I-95 corridor. Lingering pockets of snow continuded to develop, especially southeast of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario where some lake effect enhancement added to the snowfall.
Top reported snowfall totals as of 10 a.m. Thursday include 27.5 inches in Jamesville, New York (near Syracuse); 26.2 inches in Tully, New York; 18 inches near Carrabassett Valley, Maine; 19.5 inches in Orwell, Vermont; 19 inches in Killington, Vermont; 13 inches in Lake Placid, New York, and Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire; 16.9 inches in Savoy, Massachusetts; and 7 inches in Laporte, Pennsylvania.
A pulse of strong winds, with some gusts from 40 to 60 mph, surged northward ahead of the developing low pressure system. This zone of strong winds has lifted from New England into Canada. These winds produced scattered power outages and knocked down tree limbs and weaker trees.
Top reported gusts Tuesday afternoon included 62 mph in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, and 61 mph in Scituate and Falmouth, Massachusetts.
Earlier, while it was located offshore, the low pressure system strengthened and generated a solid fetch of easterly winds blowing onshore across the Mid-Atlantic region. This piled ocean water toward shore, resulting in water levels of 2 to 3 feet above normal astronomical tide.
This resulted in some coastal flooding over the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where a stretch of Highway 12 was affected Monday.
Little Egg Inlet, New Jersey, reached major flood stage at high tide Tuesday morning, reaching its second highest level on record behind only Sandy. The Tuesday morning high tide resulted in minor to moderate coastal flooding along much of the Jersey Shore as well as portions of southern Long Island.
zpostcode
Recruit
weather
mreligion
Yellowpages
sport
constellation
shopping
name
game
directory
literature
Word
tour
furnish
Lottery
tftnews
lyrics
News
digital
car
dir
Edu
Finance
