An area of strong low pressure passed to the north of Lake Erie during the evening hours of January 12th.  Cold northwest winds behind the low caused lake effect snow showers to develop just before midnight on the 13th. The precipitation began as a brief period of light freezing rain along the Lake Erie shoreline.  Snow showers then continued into the late evening hours of the 14th before finally dissipating.  The snow showers were very intense at times with visibilities near zero.  The snow was especially heavy during the morning and afternoon hours of the 14th.  Snowfall rates at times were between 1 and 2 inches per hour.  Snowfall totals over much of Erie and Crawford Counties ranged from 12 to 18 inches.  In Erie County, a peak total of 25.1 inches was measured at Franklin Center with 19.3 inches in the City of Erie.  Officially, 11.5 inches of snow was measured at Erie International Airport.  In Crawford County, a peak total of 20.9 inches was measured at Conneautville.  Winds gusted to as much as 30 mph during the early portion of this event.  Some blowing and drifting was reported.  Travel was severely hampered during this event.

Lake-Effect Snow in CRAWFORD, PENNSYLVANIA
From 12-JAN-12 23:00:00 to 14-JAN-12 21:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 150.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Cold northwest winds behind the low caused lake effect snow showers to develop just before midnight on the 13th. Snow showers then continued into the late evening hours of the 14th before finally dissipating. The snow showers were very intense at times with visibilities near zero. The snow was especially heavy during the morning and afternoon hours of the 14th. Snowfall rates at times were between 1 and 2 inches per hour.  In Crawford County, a peak total of 20.9 inches was measured at Conneautville. Winds gusted to as much as 30 mph during the early portion of this event. Some blowing and drifting was reported. Travel was severely hampered during this event.

Lake-Effect Snow in SOUTHERN ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA
From 12-JAN-12 23:00:00 to 14-JAN-12 21:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 150.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Cold northwest winds behind the low caused lake effect snow showers to develop just before midnight on the 13th.  Snow showers then continued into the late evening hours of the 14th before finally dissipating. The snow showers were very intense at times with visibilities near zero. The snow was especially heavy during the morning and afternoon hours of the 14th. Snowfall rates at times were between 1 and 2 inches per hour. Snowfall totals over much of Erie and Crawford Counties ranged from 12 to 18 inches. In Erie County, a peak total of 25.1 inches was measured at Franklin Center. Winds gusted to as much as 30 mph during the early portion of this event. Some blowing and drifting was reported. Travel was severely hampered during this event.

Lake-Effect Snow in NORTHERN ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA
From 12-JAN-12 23:00:00 to 14-JAN-12 18:00:00 (EST-5)
Property damage: 150.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Cold northwest winds behind the low caused lake effect snow showers to develop just before midnight on the 13th. The precipitation began as a brief period of light freezing rain along the Lake Erie shoreline. Snow showers then continued into the late evening hours of the 14th before finally dissipating. The snow showers were very intense at times with visibilities near zero. The snow was especially heavy during the morning and afternoon hours of the 14th. Snowfall rates at times were between 1 and 2 inches per hour. In northern Erie County, a peak total of 19.3 inches was measured in the City of Erie. Officially, 11.5 inches of snow was measured at Erie International Airport.  Winds gusted to as much as 30 mph during the early portion of this event. Some blowing and drifting was reported. Travel was severely hampered during this event.