When most people think about the record-breaking bad weather, we think back to times when the photos were black and white and the cars blanketed in snow were ones only seen in antique car shows today. But, in Maine, the record breaking weather is actually pretty recent. Only a few years ago, we saw a massive blizzard. As we fight our way through another winter in Maine, we thought it was worth remembering the winter of 2015, when the snow was constant, the temps were frigid and the photos were incredible.
The “Blizzard of 2015” shut down some major metro areas in the Northeast and covered Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New York in more than two feet of snow.
gsfc / Flickr
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) uses the Regaional Snowfall Index (RSI) to determine the strength of a blizzard.
Aimee LeBlanc / Flickr
The January 2015 storm that hit Maine was a was 6.16, which makes it a Category 3.
imagematters1 / Flickr
The storm ranked 26th out of the 423 northeastern snowstorms the organization has analyzed since 1900.
Corey Templeton / Flickr
The entire storm caused about 5 million people to see over 20 inches of snow and 15 million to see more than 10 inches of new snow.
Andrea / Flickr
The high winds created periods of complete whiteout, which meant anyone outside was in danger of losing any sense of direction.
Corey Templeton / Flickr
Maine snowfall was about 27 inches in Lewiston, 26 inches in Sanford and 27.4 inches in the East End of Portland.
Don Shall / Flickr
Residents were told to stay indoors and warned against driving, but those who did reported not knowing whether they were on the road or if they had run off of it.
Corey Templeton / Flickr
But, as Mainers do, we found alternate ways of getting around for the two days that the blizzard bore down on us.
Corey Templeton / Flickr
Once the snow stopped, we were left in a bit of a winter wonderland.
Paul Noble Photography / Flickr
Another storm hit just a few days later, but the snow left in the wake of the blizzard gave us a good reminder of what winter in Vacationland can be.
Jedi Skittles / Flickr
If you love Maine in the winter, click here for a collection of some pretty epic frozen photos taken in the state.
gsfc / Flickr
Aimee LeBlanc / Flickr
imagematters1 / Flickr
Corey Templeton / Flickr
Andrea / Flickr
Don Shall / Flickr
Paul Noble Photography / Flickr
Jedi Skittles / Flickr
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.
