The Storm of 1998

A major storm and flood event struck northern New England and New York during the first two weeks of January 1998. Heavy rains associated with a warm moist air mass collided with a layer of cold air (Figure 3), producing ice accumulations in excess of three inches (Figure 4). The heavy rainfall, exceeding four inches in some areas, combined with runoff from the melting snow pack to produce record flooding. There were more than 80 hours of freezing rain, which nearly doubled the annual average. The freezing rain coated all outdoor surfaces and landforms with 3-4 inches of ice (Figure 4). It destroyed the electric power infrastructure, toppled trees, collapsed outdoor canopies, and threatened many lives.

Tens of thousands of trees were downed or severely damaged (Figure 5 &6). Agricultural losses exceeded one million dollars as farmers were unable to electronically milk their cows. Areas in Maine, New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire were declared federal disaster areas. Despite the severity of the storm, there were only seven fatalities in the Northeastern United States.

More than three million people in four states and two Canadian provinces were without electricity. Figures 8 and 9 map transmission lost throughout Quebec. In Maine, 80% of the state’s population lost electricity for more than two weeks. Without electricity residents were forced to find alternative ways of heating their homes, pumping water, traveling, and communicating.

With such extreme weathering a record crest was observed on the Black River at Watertown, NY. The river crested two feet above any previous record. Flooding exasperated relief efforts by forcing the evacuation of more than 1,000 homes and necessitating numerous road closures. Conservative damage estimates from this storm approach one-half billion dollars in the U.S.

On January 4 a strong arctic high pressure system from Ontario and Quebec pushed into New England. Temperatures behind the front ranged from well below 0˚F over portions of Quebec to the low 20’s across northern New York and Maine. The front stalled and excessive freezing occurred during the next four days. On the east side of this low a strong, southerly wind originated from the Gulf of Mexico. The Atlantic Ocean pumped unseasonably warm moist air into the Northeast. The rainfall of January 7-9 was the most in recorded history across western and central New York for this time of year. The entire region had between 2.5 and 4 inches in a 48-hour period. Another inch or more of freezing rain fell during the ensuing 24-hours as the unseasonably warm and moist air continued to be lifted over the frontal boundary. Rainfall accelerated the melting of the snow pack across northern New York and Vermont and in the Tug Hill Plateau. However, the ground was completely bare prior to the main event in many sections in western New York. The rain, therefore, fell on saturated but unfrozen ground across the west. This was still enough to create significant flooding and to send rivers and creeks into flood. The situation was even more critical east of Lake Ontario in the Black River Basin where snowmelt aggravated the problem. The Black River rose to all-time record levels.