Though the flakes stopped falling more than a week ago after NYC’s biggest snowfall in five years, the storm is still hanging around–both in our memories and on our sidewalks. January’s blizzard basically launched the NYC Winter Olympics: competitive slush puddle jumping, snowbank hurdling, and the delicate art of not wiping out at the corner. And if you were hoping the leftovers would melt, like, yesterday…don’t hold your breath.
This week didn’t exactly start on a hopeful note.
Staten Island Chuck and Punxsutawney Phil, our favorite furry meteorologists, came to an agreement[/trackLink] that winter is sticking around for six more weeks. Naturally, the announcement had New Yorkers staring at the city’s towering snowbanks like: you’ve got to be kidding me…
Even Dunkirk Dave–a lesser-known but long-running prognosticating groundhog in Western New York–predicting an early spring isn’t enough to outweigh NYC’s actual forecast.
According to [trackLink link_url="https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/new-york/10021/daily-weather-forecast/349727"]AccuWeather, after a stretch of highs barely cracking the 30s, temperatures are expected to dip to 29ºF this Friday, February 6, and plunge to 18ºF and 17ºF over the weekend. That kind of cold doesn’t just preserve snow–it almost just makes it feel like it’s multiplying.
AccuWeather senior meteorologist Dan Pydynowski says there isn’t any major snowfall on the horizon this week. We could see light flurries Tuesday night (February 3) into early Wednesday (February 4) and again Friday afternoon into the evening (February 6), but nothing significant.
The real problem is the temperature. With air this cold, last week’s snow has little chance to melt. As Pydynowski explains, “We’re not going to see any kind of rapid melting or thawing anytime soon. Maybe just a little bit of slow melting each afternoon.”
Any tiny daytime progress is erased by nights that plunge well below freezing. Even sunny days haven’t helped much. Pydynowski added:
It’s been so cold that even these days where it’s sunny, it’s been tough to get any kind of substantial melting with these air temperatures being so cold. It’s been a real struggle.
Translation: the NYC Winter Olympics are far from over.
Between frozen sidewalks, lingering snowbanks, and streets that still feel like obstacle courses, the city’s post-blizzard aftermath is sticking around. Even NYC’s snow shoveling rules–and the threat of a $250 fine–weren’t enough to clear every path.
So for now, consider your winter boots permanent fixtures, your commute an extreme sport, and every sidewalk a trust exercise. NYC may be tough, but this snow is tougher–and it’s clearly not clocking out anytime soon.