Lake-effect snowstorm to finally wind down after burying cities from Michigan to New York in feet of snow

BUFFALO, N.Y. – The first significant lake-effect snowstorm of the season, which buried cities from Michigan to New York under 3-5 feet of snow, will finally begin to wind down on Tuesday after the relentless rounds of winter weather paralyzed travel as people tried to get home after the busy Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

On Monday afternoon, Interstate 94 was shut down between Hartford and Watervliet in Michigan after state police said more than a dozen vehicles were involved in a crash and 15 others slid off the road in the same area.

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Michigan State Police (MSP) said they were investigating the crash, which involved 14 passenger vehicles and three semi-trucks. At least one driver suffered critical injuries.

“Driving too fast for conditions (is) believed to be a factor, with heavy blowing snow producing whiteout conditions,” MSP Fifth District officials said on X.

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In a Monday evening update, state police said I-94 had been reopened in both directions and thanked people for their patience while they investigated.

FOX Weather Storm Tracker Brandon Copic captured video of the crash, as seen below.

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Long-duration lake-effect snowstorm slowly coming to an end

Tuesday is now the fifth and final day of the long-duration lake-effect snowstorm that has been dumping snow across the Great Lakes region since last week.

More than 5 feet of snow has been reported in communities downwind of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie in New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio, while more than 3 feet of snow was reported in communities downwind of Lake Michigan and Lake Superior in Michigan.

The snow in Michigan on Monday is what likely led to the multi-vehicle crash mentioned above, while the snow at the end of last week forced officials to shut down a more than 80-mile stretch of Interstate 90 in New York and Pennsylvania.

The extreme weather led to low visibility due to snowfall rates reaching up to 4 inches per hour, which overwhelmed crews working around the clock to try to keep highways and roads clear of as much snow and ice as possible.

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Travel across the region remained treacherous as the bands of heavy snow continued to flow into the U.S. from off the Great Lakes. Drivers were being urged to stay home, if possible, to allow crews to work, or to keep speeds slow and keep plenty of distance between vehicles for safety reasons.

The dangerous travel conditions continued for days, and FOX Weather Storm Tracker Brandon Copic witnessed numerous vehicles struggling to make it through the snow as it was falling.

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“Honestly, it’s just chaos out here,” he said over the weekend from Erie, Pennsylvania. “The trucks are going on roads they shouldn’t be going because the highways are closed, and that just leads to more cars getting stranded.” 

Copic said he spent hours on Friday trying to help drivers who became stuck in the snow, and he shared drone video showing the stranded vehicles on Pennsylvania’s Route 5 near the border with New York state that showed cars and trucks stuck in the snow.

States of emergency were also declared in three states – New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio – because of the ongoing situation, and National Guard troops had been called up to help out with storm response efforts.

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And it wasn’t only the snow that was making headlines over the weekend.

There have been numerous reports of rare thundersnow, and waterspouts were even spotted forming over Lake Erie.

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A video shared by Copic showed lightning flashing during the lake-effect snowstorm in Blasdell, New York, and loud rumbles of thunder could be heard in another video shared from the Buffalo, New York, area.

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More dramatic video showed the waterspouts forming over Lake Erie, but thankfully, no damage or injuries were reported.

Similar to thunderstorms, thundersnow requires a significant amount of atmospheric instability, and in areas where this phenomenon occurs, snowfall rates can be exceptionally heavy.

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Bands of lake-effect snow are expected to continue to flow in off of Lake Erie, but the FOX Forecast Center says they won’t be as intense as what was just experienced over the past several days. Still, snowfall rates of an inch per hour are possible across portions of Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties in New York state.

Snow totals will be higher as you go up in elevation, while less snow is expected along the immediate shoreline, including the I-90 corridor and in the Erie, Pennsylvania, metro.

Bands of lake-effect snow are also expected to continue to form off of Lake Superior and Lake Michigan through Tuesday afternoon.

Those bands could once again impact travel on I-94.

The FOX Forecast Center said that once an Alberta Clipper begins to move into the region, the snow event will likely come to an end.

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How much snow fell during the lake-effect snowstorm?

Check out the graphics below to see the highest snow totals from the lake-effect snowstorm.

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