In 1978, Ohio Was Hit With The Worst Blizzard In History
By April Dray|Published January 04, 2020
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April Dray
Author
April is the Ohio staff writer for Only in Your State. She is an Ohio native with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. With more than 10 years of writing experience and a background in news reporting for Ohio newspapers, she's published pieces in multiple print and online publications. When she's not on deadline or chasing after her toddler, she's hunting for hidden gems in Ohio or getting lost in a good book.
Maybe you have fond memories of the frequent school closings. Maybe you recall having to shovel yourself out of your house. This particular snow storm was dire for many parts of the country, and is commonly referred to as the largest blizzard in both Ohio and American history. Thousands of people were stranded, power outages were widespread, snow drifts covered cars—even the National Guard was called in.
While the snow was already hitting other states days before, it began falling in northern Ohio on January 26, 1978, accompanied by extreme winds and low pressure.
The states that were hit hardest by the massive snow storm included Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and southeastern Wisconsin.
Pictured is the surface map on the morning of January 26, 1978. A subtropical jet stream and a polar jet stream merged and created explosive cyclogenesis. The rain quickly turned to snow.
During this time, the third lowest non-tropical atmospheric pressure ever recorded in the mainland United States occurred as the storm passed over parts of Michigan.
The snow drifts continued on that Friday (January 27), burying cars, road signs and even some smaller buildings and homes. Gusts of winds even reached up to 80 mph.
In addition to the massive power outages and damages, more than 50 people in Ohio died in the blizzard.
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Thousands of people were stranded in their cars and traffic was at a complete standstill. Several people were lost simply because they were buried beneath the snow in their vehicles.