New Orleans was clad in white Tuesday as swirling snowflakes piled onto the city, finally tying a snowfall record set nearly 130 years ago.
In south-southeast New Orleans, a total of 10 inches had fallen as of 6:21 p.m. Tuesday. That double-digit figure is tied to a record set on Feb. 15, 1895, when 10 inches accumulated in Audubon Park due to a low-pressure system and rare freezing temperatures that created a winter storm, according to the National Weather Service.
Snow covers the roofs of New Orleans streetcars. 1895 Press Photo Snow Covers New Orleans Streetcars ORG XMIT: NOLA1604051601083068
Tuesday’s blizzard also shattered a record set on Christmas Day 1963, when 2.7 inches of snow was recorded at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, NWS forecaster Christopher Bannan said. As of early Tuesday afternoon, six inches were measured at Kenner Airport.
Over the past 15 years, measurable amounts of snow have fallen on the city, but rarely. Half an inch of dust covered the ground on Christmas Day 2004. Eight years later, snowflakes fell gently again, with an accumulation of two to three inches in Mandeville.
But Tuesday’s snowstorm, fueled by Arctic cold and a moisture-laden low-pressure system from the Gulf of Mexico, was surreal for New Orleans, where residents could be snowed in until Thursday, authorities said. municipal.
The tram lines were deserted. Miles of highways and bridges were forced to close. The students stayed at home. And in white jackets, people skied the icy neighborhood streets while others snowboarded down the embankment.
It was, for the most part, a day of fun and levity, one that officials say will precede a more difficult day with near-freezing temperatures and increasingly frigid conditions.
