Historic, Monumental Blizzard Smashes U.S.

Published in The Catalyst 

CC students across campus received phone calls from their family members last week telling them what life through the “Blizzard of 2011” was like. The storm, which slammed 30 states across our nation was the largest ever recorded in human history.  Student’s parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews all had the same thing to say. “We are experiencing something of catastrophic proportions- something we have never experienced before,” my aunt told me over the phone.

An estimated half-a-million businesses shut down as the monster blizzard stretching from New Mexico to Maine lay down sheets of Ice on the Plaines and Lower Midwest, turning to snow as it swept North.

The National Guard was deployed last Tuesday and remained on the ground for a week as reports of homeless people freezing to death soared.

In Missouri, over a foot of snow had fallen by midday Tuesday as days of stronger force approached. “A-lot of my friends in Monroe had over 20 inches. My family was totally snowed in,” said St. Louis native, sophomore Maggie Brockland.  For the first time ever, the state shut down interstate 70 between St. Louis and Kansas City. “This is something Missouri is simply not used to”, Maggie added. “It’s hard to make the argument that climate change isn’t playing a role”.   

Oklahoma City and Tulsa shut down as well. Tulsa’s newspaper shut down for the first time in 100 years. “The whole city has been dead since the storm hit. It’s been a week and they are still getting more snow,” said sophomore Alexa Thompson, who lives in Tulsa. “The University of Tulsa hasn’t had school all week. The kitchen and maintenance staff have been staying overnight in the cafeteria, surviving off campus food and heating.” The situation was even direr on the roads. Whiteout surroundings caused dozens of car accidents as the city had its worst snowfall in history.

 In Texas, thousands of people lost power during the frigid conditions. “My family had rolling blackouts and we never lose power,” said Austin native, sophomore Amanda Scott. “The electricity providers shut down power for selected circuits so while one town had power the one next to it had none. Then 15 minutes later they’ll switch and suddenly the one that didn’t have power was lit while the lights went out just a mile down the road.”  Utility company Oncour reported over 27,000 customers without power statewide, with nearly half of the outages in Dallas. Winds topped 70 miles per hour as snow pounded the state. “A lot of my friends are having snow days in Dallas for the first time in their lives” Amanda added. A catholic high school student in Austin was off for a snow day when his pickup truck by a train, killing him on impact. Authorities claimed visibility made driving conditions throughout Texas horrifying and deadly. 

6,000 flights were cancelled in Chicago as it recorded its second largest snowfall in history- 22 inches. “On the city’s main highway, Lakeshore Drive, the storm paralyzed traffic completely” said sophomore and Chicago native Gabrielle Kaminsky. “People were stuck in their cars for hours. Folks downtown braved the weather and brought them food and water.”  As car accidents and blackouts continued to plague the city, Chicago public schools called the first snow day in 12 years and both major airports shut down for days. The National Weather Service and the mayor of Chicago advised people to not leave their homes as all businesses that remained open were ordered to close. 70,000 people lost power within the city limits alone. At Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, a small section of roof flew off in the high winds.

The president pledged government would respond swiftly as more than a third of the nation was affected. Although no lives were risked to save those snowed in or without heat, many say they owe their lives to the National Guard’s hasty response. “We are dealing with millions of Americans cold and in need of assistance”.  

Over 20,000 flights were cancelled across the country last week. Over 40,000 stores closed down last Tuesday alone.

         The Storm also smashed into New York, Philadelphia, Boston and the cities surrounding states. Boston and New York, which each had their snowiest January's ever, have each been hit with over 65 inches in 2011 thus far. Sophomore Sara Bonder’s family, which has lived in Connecticut for 18 years, got the brunt of the storm. “My siblings have had nine snow days this year. The magnetite of the storm is both frightening and exciting, but it’s created such a standstill that schools are canceling midterms and my Mom can’t leave the house. Oddly enough, It kind of boring after awhile. They just made brownie batter and sat around all day,” Sara said. In the Boston area, hundreds of roofs have collapsed. “New England roofs are built with fragile materials used to create a V-shaped top to the house” said sophomore Kalia Ryan. “They are not meant to withstand six feet of snow”.

            The unthinkable enormity that will always define the Blizzard of 2011 is likely to make it in the history books. It truly speaks for itself. Sophomore Noah Gallo-Brown summed things up perfectly. “Nobody living has ever seen anything like this before. Missing the force of the storm here in Colorado Springs, who knows if we will ever see something like this ourselves.” While the disasters Climate Change has produced have been seen primarily in Asia and the Caribbean, massive droughts throughout Africa and North America have gone largely unnoticed in the Media. It wasn’t since Hurricane Katrina six years ago that America witnessed the power a storm of such brutal force can have on communities. “I hope we recover as a nation and learn from this catastrophe. It’s time governments and people started taking Climate Change more seriously. It may very well be the greatest threat to mankind today”, Noah concluded.