Top 10 Worst Thanksgiving Storms
DETROIT (WWJ) - This Thanksgiving, there will be an estimated 42.5 million people traveling across the United States. With a history of tumultuous weather ranging from tornados to snow and dust storms, MyWeather is reminding travelers to keep the weather top of mind when making their holiday plans this week.
Travelers nationwide will be hoping for blue skies and clear roads during a season known for some of the worst weather, and traffic, in history.
Here are ten of the worst Thanksgiving storms on record:
2001 -- A tornado outbreak occurred across the southeastern U.S. early on Thanksgiving morning in Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas. Three of the twisters were classified F4 on the Fujita scale. Hundreds of homes and buildings were destroyed and 13 people lost their lives.
1993 -- Texas experienced a Thanksgiving Day "Blue Northerner," the local name for a cold front that occurs during the winter, bringing a characteristic blue-black color to the sky. The Thanksgiving football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins was played in sleet and icy conditions that led to a slip of Leon Lett during the last seconds of the game, giving Miami the win.
1991 -- Travelers heading home after the holiday were impacted by a dust storm in drought-stricken Coalinga, California on Interstate 5. Winds gusting at nearly 40 mph swept dust over the highway limiting visibility and creating a mile-long chain reaction of collisions. Seventeen people were killed and 150 were injured in the storm.
1989 -- New York City's Thanksgiving Day parade took place in four inches of snow leaving a few floats unable to withstand the weather.
1987 -- Northern New England was hit with heavy snow as 18 inches coated New Hampshire and up to 20 inches fell in Maine.
1983 -- Following two weeks of high winds in the Pacific Northwest, Thanksgiving Day saw peak gusts of 62 mph in Seattle, Washington and Astoria, Oregon. The storm downed trees and power lines throughout the region.
1983 -- Also in 1983, Denver was hit with 20 inches of snow. The system was one of the biggest storms to ever hit a major U.S. city on Thanksgiving.
1975 -- Chicago had more than eight inches of snow at Midway Airport on Thanksgiving, severely impacting holiday travel. Despite its famously harsh winters, records show that Chicago has only had 11 white Thanksgivings since 1884.
1971 -- New York State saw some of the heaviest November snowfalls on record as more than 22 inches fell in Albany. Other areas across the Empire State saw up to 30 inches of snow.
1950 -- Also known as "The Great Thanksgiving Storm of 1950," most of eastern Ohio had 20 to 30 inches of snow and winds of over 40 mph. In the face of the storm, the Ohio State v. Michigan football game took place as scheduled on Saturday. The "Snow Bowl" was played in five degree weather with the Wolverines defeating the Buckeyes 9-3 in a game that saw 45 collective punts.
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