On This Day in 1969: "100-Hour Storm" Strikes New England | WeatherBug
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On This Day in 1969: "100-Hour Storm" Strikes New England

February 25, 2021
By WeatherBug's Chris Sayles
A storm that lasted for the better part of the work week began over 50 years ago today. The infamous “100-hour storm” of February 1969 would go down in the record books as one of the most devastating snowstorms to strike New England.

The storm would begin to enter the area on February 24, 1969, and it was downhill from there. From that point until February 28, the New England region would become the next in line for a dangerous bout of winter’s fury as heavy snow battered the region. Mt. Washington, N.H., would record over 8 feet of snow over the course of the storm.

As it pertains to the city of Boston, over 30 inches covered the streets and neighborhoods with heavy snow. What made this storm so devastating was that it was very slow moving which allowed for a steady accumulation rate. By February 28, 1969, the storm would conclude but not before numerous areas across the Northeast were pummeled with snowfall totals ranging greater than 30 inches. 

There’s little information available for this event, but this event is known for holding the record for the largest population in this region to receive over 30 inches of snow from a single storm. Over 2 million people were affected by 30 inches of snow, besting the 1993 “Storm of the Century” which only saw roughly 730,000 people receive 30 inches or more of snow. 

Source(s): weather.gov, climate.gov, wikipedia.org

Story Image: Snowfall amounts for the "100-Hour Snowstorm of 1969, which put down more than 30 inches of snow across a large part of the Northeast. (Map by NOAA Climate.gov, based on data provided by Mike Squires, NCEI.)