The "Blizzard" of 2015

I guess this one will be mostly remembered here for images like these, as things came to a virtual standstill on the usually crowded Queens Blvd. as the storm got going last night:

Blizzard Watch Now in Effect for New York City

The National Weather Service has just upgraded its forecast to a Blizzard Watch for the New York City area, with the storm beginning Monday and continuing maybe into Tuesday night. This forecast is reminding me of the Blizzard of 1996, when the city received about two feet of snow over two days.

Blizzard of 1996

Central Park after the blizzard of Jan. 7-8, 1996

Dumping more than 20 inches of snow in Central Park, the blizzard of Jan. 7-8, 1996, marked the second biggest snowstorm in New York City history. With winds gusting to more than 50 miles an hour, the powerful nor'easter caused widespread power outages, scores of fatalities and $1 billion in damages from Washington, D.C. to Boston.

Thousands of travelers were stranded at City airports, bus terminals, and highway rest stops as transportation ground to a halt. On Jan. 8, New York City public and parochial schools were ordered closed, several Broadway shows canceled performances, and the New York Stock Exchange had a short day.

Dozens of deaths were attributed to the storm, including a Connecticut man and two New Jersey men who suffered heart attacks while shoveling snow.

As 26,528 tons of salt was spread on City roads, snow was hauled to designated vacant lots and parking areas or dumped into the East and Hudson Rivers. By the end of the 1995-1996 winter season, New York City had experienced 16 snowstorms and recorded more than 89 inches of snow.

Act One of Arctic Plunge

The messy storm that's pulling away from the area today is most likely the Opening Act of what is forecast to be a memorable and rather nasty run of bitter cold and snowy weather for the New York City area over the next few weeks.

That news might be as comforting to some as this scene in Forest Hills this morning: