Since it’s Halloween, here are a few quick Halloween-related weather stories–from this year and previous years.
Snow–Just in Time for Halloween
The first one is not directly related to Halloween, but it’s current. The snowstorm in the Rockies this week, which I talked about a few days ago (Massive Winter-Like Storm) produced incredible snowfall amounts–just in time for Halloween.
Check out Steve’s post on wxtalk.wordpress.com for some great pictures and details (Pictures from Western Winter Storm), including this one from Colorado Livin’:
Colorado snowfall in October 2009--image courtesy of Colorado Livin'
The “Perfect” Storm
The so-called perfect storm (information about its lack of perfection is included in Weather Whys) is also sometimes called the “Halloween Storm” since it occurred in late October (1991).
Here’s a link to AccuWeather.com video that highlights the storm: Weather History.
Halloween Blizzard of 1991
Indirectly related to the Perfect Storm was the Halloween Blizzard of 1991, in which tremendous snowfall occurred in the Midwest and northern Plains. Nearly three feet of snow accumulated in some areas (see map below).
Snowfall from 1991 Halloween blizzard
The CIMSS Satellite blog recently posted a loop that shows the snow as it melted (Halloween Blizzard of 1991).
Halloween Flood
A record-breaking flood occurred in Wichita, Kansas, around Halloween (it was a multi-day event, including October 31) of 1998. The local weather service has an account of the storm (Halloween Flood of ’98), including this image showing cumulative rainfall totals:
NOAA image showing rainfall totals from Halloween Flood of 1998
Flooding This Halloween
Unfortunately, flooding is a serious threat this Halloween as well, with watching and warnings extending from Illinois and eastern Iowa southward to eastern Texas and Louisiana.
NOAA watching and warnings on October 31, 2009 (12:30 a.m.)
Erik at MemphisWeather.net has the analysis of the weather situation for western Tennessee in his blog.
–Paul Yeager
Cloudy and Cool 
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