Some East Coast residents woke up Wednesday morning to find snowflakes on their palm trees. Tallahassee residents reported seeing snow for the first time in 28 years thanks to a brutal winter storm that’s strengthened into a crippling “bomb cyclone” affecting the entire coast up to Maine.
A bomb cyclone, also labeled a “winter hurricane,” are formed when a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass and the pressure drops rapidly, creating extremely high winds and heavy snow in a short period of time.
Brief, but exciting weather event
But no need for panic; the snow in Tallahassee only lasted a few minutes and barely measured a tenth of an inch before the sunshine returned. Florida once again seemed to have experienced a near-miss. Heavier snow shifted toward southern Georgia and was responsible for more than 100 car accidents.
Credit: WCNC Meteorologist and FL native, Sarah Fortner (Twitter: @SarahFortnerWX)
Charleston, South Carolina received five inches of snow as residents giddily posted photos of snow on their palm trees to social media. Parts of New England will receive the worst of the storm today with parts of New York City receiving up to 12 inches, and Boston expecting 12-18 inches of snow and up to 75 mph wind gusts.
Credit: Wade Jamison, Facebook
