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Westport Snowfall Totals Come Up Short As Storm Fizzles Out

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. – Fairfield County residents who expected to wake up to two feet of snow were probably surprised when they looked out the window Tuesday morning.

A snowy scene in Stamford Tuesday morning, where snowfall was much lower than predicted.

A snowy scene in Stamford Tuesday morning, where snowfall was much lower than predicted.

Photo Credit: Frank MacEachern

What had been billed as a blizzard was expected to bring snowfall totals of 20 to 30 inches as the storm hit Monday and continued into Tuesday. 

Although the snow continues to come down, the overnight totals were impressive but much lower than predicted: 

  • 5 inches in Bridgeport and Norwalk; 
  • 5.3 inches in Fairfield
  • 6 inches in Ridgefield
  • 6.5 inches in Danbury 
  • 9 inches in Darien, and 
  • 11.8 inches in New Canaan.

What went wrong in the forecast? The storm tracked farther east than expected and was less powerful than believed, according to a local forecaster. 

“The bands are dissipating too far east. Western Connecticut is getting spared from heavy snow,” said Gary Lessor, assistant to the director of meteorological studies and the Weather Center at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.

Though some parts of Connecticut and eastern New England have seen much higher levels of snow, the storm did not move quite as meteorologists expected. 

“The trough was supposed to turn negative. The alignment of upper level energy didn’t quite materialize,” Lessor said.

The snow that has fallen has been very light and fine, which was expected, Lessor said. The snow was not expected to be very heavy or wet. A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect until 6 p.m. Tuesday with falling and blowing snow. 

“The rest of the day we’ll continue to see some snow, probably another 3 to 5 inches, but all in all it has not materialized into the ‘Blizzard of 2015,’” he said.

The snow is expected to slowly dissipate as we head toward the afternoon. It will take a long time before it finally stops, Lessor said.

“We’ll see some snow showers and some flurries. It will be a slow process,” he said.

Lessor has said that the area can expect to see some minor snowfall Thursday night, as well as Sunday night heading into Monday, but neither is predicted to be as severe as this storm was thought to be.

He also said that next month will bring very cold weather, with February temperatures averaging about 10 degrees lower than the norm. Read more about the expected big chill here in the Daily Voice.

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