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January 31 – February 2, 2015 North American blizzard
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The January 31 – February 2, 2015 North American blizzard was a major winter storm that plowed through the majority of the United States, dumping as much as 2 feet (24 in) of new snowfall across a path from Iowa to New England, as well as blizzard conditions in early February 2015. It came less than a week after another crippling blizzard which impacted the Northeast with 2–3 feet of snow. It was the first of many intense winter storms to occur in the nation during the month of February, partly in due to an ongoing cold wave that was beginning to take shape shortly after the storm subsided.
![]() Satellite image of the large winter storm moving off the East Coast early on February 2. Snow from the system can be seen on the left. | |
Type | Extratropical cyclone Winter storm Ice storm Nor'easter Blizzard |
---|---|
Formed | January 29, 2015 (2015-01-29) |
Dissipated | February 3, 2015 (2015-02-03) |
Lowest pressure | 978 mb (28.88 inHg) |
Maximum snowfall or ice accretion | Snow – 24.1 inches (61 cm) in Lunenburg, Massachusetts[1] Ice – 0.32 inches (8.1 mm) in North Bergen, New Jersey[1] |
Fatalities | 15 fatalities |
Areas affected | High Plains, Ohio Valley, Central United States, New England |
Part of the 2014–15 North American winter |
Ahead of the storm, residents mainly in the Midwest prepared for potential whiteout or even blizzard conditions. The storm dropped as much as 19 inches (48 cm) in the city of Chicago, Illinois, making it their fifth heaviest snowstorm on record. Up to 15 people were killed by the blizzard, and it knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of people.