The Great Blizzard Of 2011 Dumped 16 Inches Of Snow On Indiana
By Tori Jane|Published February 04, 2021
×
Tori Jane
Author
Tori Jane is a storm chaser, writer, photographer, and the village idiot - in that order. When she's not out and about dancing with the meanest storms on planet Earth for funsies she can be found wandering, shooting landscapes, writing, editing photos, and otherwise up to no good. Legend has it that she can also be occasionally spotted typing up short bios in the third person, but those rumors are unsubstantiated.
Here in the Hoosier state, we are definitely no strangers to crazy winter weather. Year after year, decade after decade, we’re treated to a winter wonderland of our very own. We find ways to make it fun: for example, ice skating is popular in the winter. But, as we all know, some years get a little crazy with the whole “snowfall” thing. Worse still, some years bring blizzards, and 2011 was a particularly nasty one for the fluffy white stuff. It would eventually be known as one of the worst storms in Indiana history.
The 2011 super-blizzard, also known as the 2011 Groundhog Day Blizzard, took place from January 31st to February 2nd, 2011, across northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana.
It accumulated, but overall, it was quite mild compared to what was coming. Mother Nature was, however, about to ramp it up.
Advertisement
Midday on February 1st, a low-pressure system began pushing north. The result was an explosion of wind, snow, and ice that would last for the entire night and into the next day.
The intense part of the storm would be brief, but fierce. In many places, visibility dropped to near-zero, if not zero. Numerous accidents occurred across the area, as even seasoned Midwesterners weren't prepared for the onslaught of freezing roads.
The storm was strong and, thanks to some energetic updrafts peppered throughout the system, an interesting and uncommon phenomenon known as "thundersnow" occurred. It was snowing, yes, but the snow was accompanied by lightning strikes and rolling thunder. It seemed apocalyptic.
In total, snowfall levels across northwestern Indiana and parts of Chicago were recorded as being around one to two feet in depth. Lake effect accounted for higher totals surrounding Lake Michigan.
In Indiana, Lake County and Porter County saw the grandest snowfall totals. Winds reached up to 70 miles per hour in many locations, with short gusts that were even stronger. Indianapolis dealt with a half-inch of ice on top of everything else, adding complications to the recovery process.
Unfortunately, some Hoosiers didn't make it through the storm.
