A strong cold front moved east across Northeast Ohio late on December 31st.  Cold north to northwest winds behind the front caused lake effect snow showers to develop by midnight on the 1st.  Intermittent snow showers were then reported for several days.  This activity finally diminished during the afternoon hours of January 5th.   Moderate to heavy snow was reported at times with snowfall rates approaching two inches per hour with the most intense bands.  On January 1st and 2nd, the heaviest snow fell over northern Geauga and inland Ashtabula Counties.  An upper level disturbance moved across the region late on the 2nd and early on the 3rd.  This caused winds to become more northerly resulting in snow showers spreading west across Lake and eastern Cuyahoga Counties.  Heavy snow was reported across Cleveland's eastern suburbs on the 3rd.  By late on the 3rd and early on the 4th, heavy lake snow showers began to affect the northern portions of Summit, Portage and Trumbull Counties.  Drier air finally began to move into the area on January 5th causing the snow showers to dissipate late in the day.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 2nd and 3rd.  These winds combined with the snow caused near whiteout conditions at times.  Snowfall amounts varied considerably across Northeast Ohio during this event.  Totals ranged from just a few inches over western Cuyahoga County to over five feet across inland Ashtabula County.  Travel was severely hampered during this event and hundreds of accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in GEAUGA, OHIO
From 01-JAN-10 08:00:00 to 02-JAN-10 18:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 125.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Lake effect snow showers began in Geauga County just after daybreak on January 1st.  Moderate to heavy snow was reported at times from midday through the late evening hours of the 1st.  Snow showers continued on the 2nd but most of the snow was light.  At least six inches of snow was reported over much of northern Geauga County by late evening on the 1st.  Another couple inches fell from the early morning hours of the 2nd through the evening of the 2nd.  Snowfall totals on the 1st and 2nd ranged from just a couple inches in the southern part of the county to 6 to 10 inches in the north.  A peak total of 10.5 inches was measured near Montville.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 2nd which caused considerable blowing and drifting.  Travel was hampered during this event and a few accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in TRUMBULL, OHIO
From 03-JAN-10 00:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 200.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Occasional lake effect snow showers affected Trumbull County on January 1st and 2nd.  Most of this snow was light with only small accumulations reported.  The snow showers began to increase in intensity and coverage during the morning hours of January 3rd.  Periods of moderate to heavy snow were reported from midday on the  3rd through the morning hours of the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through the morning of the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  During this event, the heaviest snow fell on the northern portion on the county.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across Trumbull County on the 3rd and 4th ranged from just a couple of inches at the southern end of the county to over a foot in the north.  A peak two day total of 14.0 inches was reported at Mesopotamia in the northwest corner of the county.  A spotter in Kinsman measured 10.5 inches of snow on the 3rd and 4th.  Travel was hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in ASHTABULA, OHIO
From 01-JAN-10 09:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 600.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Lake effect snow showers began in Ashtabula County during the morning of January 1st.  Moderate to heavy snow showers then continued through the afternoon hours of the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through midday on the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  Some of the heaviest snow fell during the afternoon of the 3rd with snowfall rates approaching two inches per hour at times.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 2nd and 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across inland Ashtabula County varied considerably during this five day event.  Locations near the southern border of the county generally saw between 12 and 15 inches of snow with remainder of the county generally seeing between 15 and 30 inches of snow.  Peak totals in the county were found over the east-central portion of the county.  A spotter near Pierpont measured an event total of 61.3 inches.  Nearly 30 inches of that total fell from the early morning hours of the third through daybreak on the 4th.  Drifts as much as 8 feet tall were reported in the county.  Travel was severely hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in LAKE, OHIO
From 03-JAN-10 12:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 400.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Occasional lake effect snow showers affected Lake County on January 1st and 2nd.  Most of this snow was light with only small accumulations reported.  The snow showers began to increase in intensity and coverage around midday on January 3rd.  Periods of moderate to heavy snow were reported from the evening of the 3rd through the morning hours of the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through midday on the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  Most of the heavy snow fell across the eastern half of the county where snowfall rates at times exceeded an inch per hour.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 30 mph on the 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across Lake County on the 3rd and 4th ranged from just a few inches in the western portion of the county to more than a foot in the east.  A peak two day total of 13.3 inches was reported at Madison.  Travel was hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in ASHTABULA LAKESHORE, OHIO
From 01-JAN-10 09:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 08:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 200.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Lake effect snow showers began in Ashtabula County during the morning of January 1st.  Snow showers then continued through the afternoon of the 4th before finally tapering off.  The snow showers that affected the Ashtabula County lakeshore on the 1st and 2nd were generally light.  Heavier snow finally arrived on the 3rd with periods of moderate to heavy reported through midday on the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through the morning of the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  Snowfall rates exceeded an inch per hour during the afternoon and evening hours of the 3rd.   Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on both the 2nd and 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across northern Ashtabula County during this five day event were generally between 12 and 20 inches.  Much of the total fell from late morning on the 3rd through midday on the 4th.  Most locations north of Interstate 90 saw between 6 and 10 inches of snow during that period.  A peak total for the event of 21.1 inches was measured near Conneaut. Travel was severely hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in CUYAHOGA, OHIO
From 03-JAN-10 00:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 600.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Occasional lake effect snow showers affected Cuyahoga County on January 1st and 2nd.  Most of this snow was light with only small accumulations reported.  The snow showers began to increase in intensity and coverage during the early morning hours of January 3rd.  Periods of moderate to heavy snow were reported from the evening of the 3rd through the morning hours of the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through midday on the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  On the 3rd, the heaviest snow fell on the southeast corner of the county with the Solon area the hardest hit.  By the 4th, the heaviest snow had shifted further west with locations such as Broadview Heights, Parma and North Royalton getting the most snow.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across Cuyahoga County on the 3rd and 4th ranged from just a few inches across the western suburbs to more than two feet across the eastern end of the county.  A peak two day total of 24.6 inches was reported at Solon.  Officially, 5.2 inches of snow was measured at Cleveland Hopkins International on the 3rd and 4th.  Travel was hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in SUMMIT, OHIO
From 03-JAN-10 00:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 400.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Occasional lake effect snow showers affected Summit County on January 1st and 2nd.  Most of this snow was light with only small accumulations reported.  The snow showers began to increase in intensity and coverage during the afternoon hours of January 3rd.  Periods of moderate to heavy snow were reported from the evening of the 3rd through the morning hours of the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through the morning of the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  During this event, the heaviest snow fell on the northern portion on the county with the Twinsburg and Sagamore Hills areas hardest hit.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across Summit County on the 3rd and 4th ranged from just a couple of inches at the southern end of the county to nearly 20 inches in the north.  A peak two day total of 19.0 inches was reported at Twinsburg with 16.8 inches at Sagamore Hills.  Travel was hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.

Lake-Effect Snow in GEAUGA, OHIO
From 03-JAN-10 00:00:00 to 05-JAN-10 15:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 750.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

After a brief lull on January 2nd, the lake effect snow activity picked up again early on the 3rd.  Periods of moderate to heavy snow were reported from the early morning hours of the 3rd through midday on the 4th.  From the evening of the 4th through midday on the 5th the snow shower activity was very scattered with most areas seeing only occasional light snow or flurries.  Snowfall rates at times approached two inches per hour during the afternoon and evening of the 3rd.  Northwest winds gusted to as much as 25 mph on the 3rd.  These strong winds resulted in considerable blowing and drifting along with visibilities near zero at times.  Snowfall totals across Geauga County on the 3rd and 4th ranged from just a few inches to more than two feet in a few areas.  A peak total of 26.6 inches was reported in Bainbridge Township on the 3rd and 4th.  Five day totals from January 1st through the 5th exceeded three feet at several locations.  A peak four day total of 39.4 inches was reported near Thompson with 39.3 inches measured in Bainbridge Township.  Other totals included: 38.3 inches at Montville: 36.2 inches in Hambden Township and 33.5 inches at Chagrin Falls.  Travel was severely hampered during this event and many accidents were reported.