Let It Snow!

by Kate Berube

Maria Rueb, 7, of Blue Point

Winter Storm Orlena blew into the northeast the evening of January 30th, lasting nearly two days and dumping just shy of 20 inches of snow on some parts of the Island.

Orlena was “a very long-lived system,” explained Long Island native and Meteorological Scientist Dr. Michael Ventrice of IBM’s The Weather Company. “You can trace it's energy source back to California's big storm January 28-29, which then it tracked across the Rockies, impacted the Plains, Midwest, and finally the eastern U.S.”

Sisters Sophia, 9, and Zoey Karlos, 7, of Bayport

That high energy was certainly felt here on the South Shore where winds raged and flooding surged along the coast. “When this storm moved towards the eastern seaboard, we observed a redevelopment of the low-pressure over the ocean. We call this "coastal development".” Dr. Ventrice added, “These are the types of storms that can be quite strong for the northeastern coastal area.”

Autumn Laura Pineyro, 2, of Bayport

To anyone shoveling out Tuesday morning, that was indeed the case here! Nonetheless, there’s nothing like a good old fashioned snow day (or two!) to bring out the joy in all of us, which was on full display in the array of winter wonderland snapshots submitted to the Gazette from our incredible community.

Tyler Smith kept cozy in his igloo Bayport

Do you want to build a snowman?