Question about snow. (New York, Rochester, Syracuse: power lines, schools, earthquake)

[Njrover0216]

It starts snowing in December and doesnt stop until April. It stays and doesnt go away How much you get and when you get it depends on the Lake Effect. And do not think because you have gotten a foot of snow over night that school or work will be canceled...it is something that is adaptable up there!

[TughillTina]

Um, well I have lived in Colorado and Illinois and without a doubt upstate ny winters are the worst I have ever seen. So with that I recommend a few things-first make sure you invest in a generator. You do not want to be without one for hours and hours at a time when the wind is blowing and it's 20 below out. Look for an alternate heat source like wood if you can. Wood here is abundant and cheap compared to fuel oil and propane. Yes you need shovels and a snowblower or hire someone to plow because one way or another you will have to move snow around. Another thing its not always lake effect snow that falls, its ice storms too. They are a treat to deal with also. Lastly one thing people must be aware of that some don't care about and others have a problem with is lack of sunshine throughout the winter months. The lakes are cloud makers and during the winter it is steady. Oh and one more thing, the state and counties do take very good care of the roads but if you are driving in it your vehicle will be ate alive by the salt. Good luck

[Jeromeville]

TughillTina, by your name I assume you live on or near Tug Hill... which has the worst snow in the USA bar none... but Syracuse does not get anywhere near as much snow as Tug Hill does...

[bellafinzi]

Originally Posted by JohnK_Bville

I have a 2 wheel drive. You can get around without much difficulty without snow tires but once you throw a pair of Blizzacks on, wow.

You do need an Ice brush/scrapper for the car and a decent shovel (I use mine to clear the porch and deck). I don't own a snow blower I pay $220.00 for a plow service to keep the driveway clear (I have a long driveway). A roof rake is also a good idea, to clear the snow off the edges of your roof.

I moved here in 2005 from Las Vegas and really it was a pretty easy transition. The weather is nowhere near as bad as some make it out.

One problem that pops up a lot is the confusion about Oswego County / Tug Hill Plateau.

Outsiders confuse Oswego County for Syracuse. So when they do a broadcast in Boston or Atlanta about the snowstorms in Oswego County, instead of naming the small towns in Oswego, those reporters misleading use the Syracuse name...thus giving all of the Syracuse area a bad reputation for extreme snowfall. And as we all know, Oswego County can see a blizzard producing feet of snow, meanwhile Syracuse is experiencing a sunny day under bright clear skies.

Like I said before, Quebec City averages more snow than the Syracuse Airport (located in Cicero) and Montreal only averages 20 inches less snow than the Syracuse Airport. And if you live in the city or the south of the Thruway, you can average up to 15 to 20 inches less than the official snow totals recorded at the Syracuse airport.

Seems like the media and many enthusiastic locals love to blow the local weather out of proportion.

[TughillTina]

Yes I live right on the plateau BUT upstate ny again does have snow and cloudy months throughout the winter and it does snow ALOT! So I stand by what I say, these winters are not fun no matter where you are at. Ice storms happen too folks, power outages are also frequent so to the original poster I am just telling him what to expect and what to purchase. I do not sugar coat like others do.

[proulxfamily]

Again, that really is more local to you. Ice storms happen but not frequently and power outages are even more rare. I've lived in Syracuse and its direct suburbs my entire life. I won't pretend to remember how frequently there were outages before I was 15 - I'm sure it happened a few times. Past then, my power went out ONCE in Pompey - during THE Labor Day storm - once in Liverpool in 2003, ice storm - and twice in Manlius in the past 4 years. Each time, the outages lasted from 2-6 hours, mostly overnight.

The Tug Hill Plateau is so often pointed out, specifically, on the weather maps because you have SUCH severe weather. You get all the weather systems meeting, right on top of you. You also get every.single.storm that goes through Lake Ontario. ACK! LOL - you Tuggers are made of steel!

[jrice]

I agree about power outages during the winter time, prior to our moving west, and we are coming back within the next few months (partially for the weather) I can only remember 1 time the power going out in cold weather and that was the ice storm of 03

[proulxfamily]

Originally Posted by jrice

I agree about power outages during the winter time, prior to our moving west, and we are coming back within the next few months (partially for the weather) I can only remember 1 time the power going out in cold weather and that was the ice storm of 03

Good point, jrice. The 2003 ice storm was the only one in cold weather. The Labor Day storm was due to VERY rare tornado force winds - and we didn't actually get high winds in Pompey but the unit that ran our power did - we had a beach ball in the yard from a party that day and it never moved once, during the night - 6 hour outage. The 2 times in Manlius were in summer - high winds and lots of rain - 2 hour outage and in summer of this year, high winds that weren't terribly damaging and power was on in nearby Fayetteville - 6 hour outage... during that time, we were sleeping, then woke up, I made eggs on our gas stove, made a strong tea, and we picked up 6 bushels of walnuts that had blown down in our yard. It was an energized morning, at worst. LOL - no Sesame Street for the kids to watch while we got ready for the day and checked our email... oh DARN. The power outage was hardly a cause for concern.

The 2003 ice storm, however, was pretty heavy - and still only 6 hours. I remember it being 5am when it went out. I managed a store in Great Northern Mall at the time and had to be there at 9. It was the ONE day that the mall never opened... and it still wasn't TERRIBLE driving to work down Morgan Rd. Just slippery at that point.

[TughillTina]

Deborah Sturm Rausch
Numerous snow storms have already caused power outages in New York State this year, and with this week’s storms approaching, the NYS Consumer Protection Board (CPB) is reminding consumers to be careful about providing light, heat and energy in their homes should they lose power. The CPB advises consumers to exercise caution when burning candles, using generators, portable safety heaters and/or lanterns.

Moderator cut: Post original content only. Rephrase short articles; post links for long ones.


What is this???????????? Are they claiming that there is power outages in New York State in the winter???????????????????????????

[proulxfamily]

Originally Posted by TughillTina

What is this???????????? Are they claiming that there is power outages in New York State in the winter???????????????????????????

Of course there are power outages in New York state in the winter. I wasn't aware that anyone insisted otherwise.??

However, power outages are not rampant in the city of Syracuse or its suburbs in the winter time. That is the point being made in the previous posts.

There's a wild difference between NY State - Ronkonkoma and NY State - Syracuse and NY State - Malone. Your article is addressing the outages in New York STATE, not Syracuse specifically. Yes - Syracuse has winter power outages... but not frequently. Not even once per winter season, for most of us.