BUFFALO, N.Y. — After a slow start to the month for snowfall, this December will rank within the top three for most snow for the month in Buffalo.
December of 2022 is officially the third snowiest December on record for the city of Buffalo with a final snowfall tally of 64.7 inches. The bulk of the snow fell during the second half of the month between two major events: a lake effect snow event from Dec. 16 through 18 and the Blizzard of 2022 from Dec. 23 to 27.
In fact, from Dec. 1 through 15, only an inch of snow was accounted for at the Buffalo Airport. Snowfall records and measurements of the Buffalo area are taken at the National Weather Service Office in Buffalo at the Buffalo Airport.
Back two those two snow events, the lake effect snow event from Dec. 16 through 18 brought about a foot of snow to the city, upwards of two feet for surrounding areas like the Southtowns.
But over 80% of that 60+ inch of snow fell over Christmas weekend during the Blizzard of 2022. A total of 51.9 inches of snow fell over the course of five days in Buffalo, the bullseye of that event. A new daily snowfall record was set on Dec. 23, 2022 in Buffalo with 22.3 inches of snow falling at the Buffalo Airport that day.
The Blizzard of 2022 follows another lake effect event from just a month prior that dumped 3 to 7 feet of snow on Western New York. That helped this past November also climb into the record books. November of 2022 ranks as the second snowiest on record for the month in Buffalo.
So for those keeping score, this winter is off to a snowy start with over 100 inches of snow already falling this season. Officially, 101.6 inches of snow has fallen at the Buffalo Airport since Nov. 1.