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NYC May Be Hit With Scattered Snow Showers, Gusty Winds & Snow Squalls Today
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 8, 2020
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 8, 2020
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The New York City Emergency Management Department has issued a hazardous travel advisory through Wednesday evening. According to the National Weather Service, there is the potential for "scattered snow showers and gusty winds that may reduce visibility and create hazardous travel" throughout today. But here's the most important part: "Snow squalls are also possible." That's right, get your phones at the ready, because it's decorative snow squall season, and you don't want to miss out on capturing the timelapse video that will make you the talk of your Instagram feed.
For those who are still confused by the weather phenomenon, snow squalls are short-lived, quick intense bursts of snow accompanied by strong gusty winds, often resulting in a total lack of visibility outside. They usually don't last longer than 30 minutes to an hour (sometime they're as short as 15 minutes), and sometimes are accompanied by storms. You can see a video below of a snow squall moving into Rochester earlier today.
We were last hit with a snow squall in mid-December, which resulted in tons of fantastic videos of the city being suddenly enveloped in a shroud of ghostly white (as in the video below). And if your grandchildren have forgotten the magnificent NYC snow squall of January 2019, make sure they experience our definitive oral history of that event here.
The advisory is in effect from 12 p.m. today through midnight, with sustained winds 15 to 25 MPH, and gusts up to 50 MPH.
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Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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