20 photos that sum up the ferocity of winter 2017-18
ByKevin Byrne, AccuWeather senior editor
Published Mar 27, 2018 2:45 PM EDT
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Updated Jul 1, 2019 5:12 PM EDT
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From bomb cyclones to massive ice sheets, the 2017-2018 winter season featured many disruptive weather events. Here's a look back.
Storms packed a punch from coast to coast this winter.
Whether it was multiple storms undergoing bombogenesis off the East Coast or heavy rain triggering rivers of mud and rocks in Montecito, California, this past winter had no shortage of disruptive weather.
<section><h2>20 photos that highlight the severity of the 2017-2018 winter season</h2><p><p><em>A man tries to push a vehicle as the driver works the car out of a snowbank near the entrance to a furniture store during a snowstorm, Wednesday, March 7, 2018, in Butler, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)</em></p><p><br></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><h2>Record snowfall buries Erie, Pennsylvania</h2><p><p><em>A man rides on his bicycle as fresh snow falls, Friday, Dec. 29, 2017, in Erie, Pa. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)</em></p><p><br></p><p>Erie, Pennsylvania smashed its seasonal snowfall record. The city received more than 190 inches, breaking the old record of 126 inches set in 1978. A large chunk of that total occurred in late December. The city received 120.9 inches of snow in the month. </p></p></section><section><p><p><em>An Erie, Pennsylvania, resident begins digging snow off the street following a record snowfall in December. (Instagram photo/brounsley)</em></p><p><br></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><h3>Deep freeze grips Northeast</h3><p><p><em>In this Jan. 7, 2018, file photo, fishing trawlers sit on the frozen harbor of Lake Montauk surrounded by thin sheets of ice in Montauk, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File)</em></p><p><br></p><p>A piercing cold blast marked the shift from 2017 to 2018 in the eastern United States. At least 30 states experienced below zero temperatures on New Year's Day morning. </p></p></section><section><p><p><em>People pose for photographs in front of a frozen water fountain at Bryant Park, Thursday, Dec. 28, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)</em></p></p></section><section><h3>Series of thresher shark strandings reported in Cape Cod</h3><p><p><em>This thresher shark, about 14 feet in length, was found in Brewster, Massachusetts, on Dec. 29. (Photo/Atlantic White Shark Conservancy)</em></p><p><br></p><p>An unusually high number of thresher shark strandings occurred in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in late December and early January.</p><p><br></p><p>While shark strandings on Cape Code are not unusual, some researchers believe the<span style="color: rgb(31, 56, 77);"> changing water temperature associated with the deep freeze forced these sharks to begin to migrate south abruptly.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span class="ql-cursor"></span>However, due the unique landscape of Cape Cod, it likely acted as a trap and stopped the sharks' southward movement when they entered the shallow waters of Cape Cod Bay.</p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p>The cold snap reached as far south as South Florida stunning iguanas and causing them to fall from their perches in trees.</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><em>Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials said iguanas can become immobilized or sluggish when temperatures hit between 40 and 50 degrees. Iguanas all over the state were falling out of trees after becoming too cold in early January. Seen here "IGGY" the baby Iguana is kept warm by being wrapped in a blanket and even putting gloves on him at the SawGrass Recreation Park located in Everglades National Park on January 5, 2018 in Weston, Florida. Hoo-Me.com / MediaPunch/IPX</em></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p><em> Boston firefighter wades through floodwaters from Boston Harbor on Long Wharf in Boston, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)</em></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><h3>Deadly mudslides strike Southern California</h3><p><p><em>In this Jan. 13, 2018, file photo, crews work on clearing Highway 101 in the aftermath of a mudslide in Montecito, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)</em></p><p><br></p><p>A powerful storm hit Southern California in early January. The storm brought heavy rain which triggered flooding and deadly mudslides in burn scar areas from large wildfires that had been buring several weeks earlier. </p><p><br></p><p>The hardest hit area was the city of Montecito in Santa Barbara County. </p></p></section><section><p><p><em>(Photo/Santa Barbara County Fire) </em></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>(Photo/Santa Barbara County Fire) </em></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>(Photo/Santa Barbara County Fire) </em></p></p></section><section><h3>Potent hailstorm slams Sacramento</h3><p><p><em>A car sends hail stones flying as it drives through a sudden hail storm that passed through the area Monday, Feb. 26, 2018, in Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)</em></p><p><br></p><p>Several inches of hail coated the city of Sacramento, California, and surrounding areas on Feb. 26. </p><p><br></p><p>Sacramento Fire crews asked drivers to avoid some roads across the city after vehicles became stuck in the deep ice. </p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>Vehicles stuck in ice just north of West El Camino, California. (Photo/Sacramento Fire)</em></p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>A large wave crashes into a seawall in Winthrop, Mass., Saturday, March 3, 2018, a day after a nor'easter pounded the Atlantic coast. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)</em></p><p><br></p><p>After springlike warmth enveloped the Northeast for a time in late February, March roared in like a lion, as four separate Nor'easters battered the region.</p><p><br></p><p>The storms dropped heavy snow throughout the Northeast and lashed coastal areas of the mid-Atlantic and New England with fierce winds, which helped cause beach erosion and significant flooding.</p></p></section><section><p><p><em>A house in Mamakating, New York, is surrounded by ice and fast-moving water on all sides due to an ice jam. (Facebook Photo/New York State Police)</em></p><p><br></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>This aerial image shows a flooded football field at Elkhart Central High School in Elkhart, Indiana. (Photo/Twitter user @ryujas1)</em></p><p><br></p><p><br></p></p></section><section><p><p>This aerial image shows the flooded Ohio River in Cincinnati on Monday, Feb. 26, 2018. The National Weather Service said the river crested Sunday, Feb. 26, to its highest point since 1997. (DroneBase via AP)</p><p><br></p><p><br></p><p>Several days of heavy rain, along with significant snowmelt, caused several rivers in the Midwest<span style="color: rgb(31, 56, 77);"> to reach or approach major flood stage this week.</span></p><p><br></p><p><span style="color: rgb(31, 56, 77);"> This resulted in evacuations, water rescues, road closures and state of emergency declarations. </span></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>Hunter Weaver, a utility worker with PotomacEdison out of West Virginia, inspects downed lines as a crew works on restoring power along Molly Stark Drive ahead of a winter storm, Wednesday, March 7, 2018, in Morristown, N.J.</em></p></p></section><section><h3></h3><p><p><em>Cassie Peterson trudges through wind-driven snow during the latest winter storm, Tuesday, March 13, 2018, in Portland, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)</em></p></p></section><section><p><p><em>Brian Farrell, of Walpole, Mass., left, enters his home Thursday, March 8, 2018, after a tree fell on the house and a car, right, in Walpole. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)</em></p></p></section>
A piercing cold blast marked the shift from 2017 to 2018 in the eastern United States. At least 30 states experienced below-normal temperatures on New Year's Day morning.
In California, the state endured a distinctly dry weather pattern from November through early February, once again raising drought concerns in the state.
"Not only did the state lack significant rainfall, but more importantly, the snowpack across the Sierra Nevada was also in record-low territory," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Jordan Root.
However, a pattern change in late February brought the storm track across California, which led to rounds of rain and mountain snow for the state, according to Root.
Other parts of the winter were notable for a distinct lack of cold air.
Periods of unusually warm weather lingered throughout the eastern U.S. in February. In Florida, several major cities set new average record highs for the month.
Tampa, Florida, set a new average February high of 74.2 degrees Fahrenheit, breaking the old record of 70.1 from 1949. Other cities that set new average February records include Orlando, Jacksonville, Tallahassee and Miami.
In the Northeast, cities such as Philadelphia and New York City approached 80 F on Feb. 21.
While some in the Northeast may have thought the surge of warmth in late February was a sign that winter was over, they would learn quickly that it wasn't.
Three consecutive nor'easters bombarded the region from March 2-14. While the frequency of the storms may have seemed unusual, it's actually not uncommon for multiple nor'easters to strike in succession over a period of a few weeks.
A vehicle parked on Abbott Avenue is engulfed by snowdrifts during a snowstorm that hit the New Jersey Shore, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2018, in Ocean Grove, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Even after the seasons transitioned from winter to spring, a fourth nor'easter unleashed more snow on the region on March 21.
Four back-to-back nor’easters in a month are not unprecedented, according to AccuWeather Chief Operating Officer and Expert Meteorologist Evan Myers. We’ve experienced barrages of snowstorms like this year’s onslaught of nor’easters within the past decade, he explained.
“Here in the AccuWeather global headquarters, it’s our goal to get out information, especially on these snowstorms, as quickly and as accurately as possible,” said AccuWeather Chief Operating Officer and Expert Meteorologist Evan Myers.
While other sources forecast 12-18 inches of snow ahead of the most recent nor’easter in New York City, AccuWeather accurately predicted that 6-10 inches of snow would fall. In the end, 8 inches of snow fell in Central Park. That amount of snow is a once-in-22-years event for mid- to late-March.
Months before the set of back-to-back March storms pummeled the northeastern U.S. with snow, a team of the most talented expert operational meteorologists in the world warned that a snowier-than-average March loomed.
In a March poll, 68 percent of AccuWeather readers voted that they were done with winter storms and ready for spring warmth. Twenty-six percent of people did, however, weigh in that they loved the snow and wished it would keep on coming. Regardless of the poll outcome, spring arrived on Tuesday, March 20, and it's only a matter of time before warmer weather is here to stay.
