46 years ago: The blizzard called ‘the greatest disaster in Ohio history’

Columbus and Central Ohio Weather

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — A white desert of snow piled up through Ohio 46 years ago, leaving vehicles stranded in frigid weather and more than 50 people dead during what would become known as the Great Blizzard of 1978.

A buildup of smaller snowstorms combined with low temperatures ahead of the great blizzard compounded the situation. Columbus already had a record snow cover of 17 inches from the earlier days in January. Yet the night of Jan. 25 brought a rise in temperatures to 41 degrees, along with rain.

After midnight passed on Jan. 26, low pressure surged into Ohio from the south, resulting in temperatures dropping sharply and turning the rain into snow. Wind gusts reached speeds of 69 mph in Columbus, 82 mph in Cleveland and 86 mph over Lake Erie, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

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Snowfall in Ohio reached nearly 20 inches in Novelty, Geauga County. State storm totals were between 5 and 15 inches. In Columbus, 50-70 mph wind gusts stacked the snow into huge drifts between 10 and 20 feet high in outlying areas, trapping some people in their homes for days.

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

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  (Courtesy Photo/Ohio History Connection, NWS Wilmington)

Then-Gov. James A. Rhodes declared a state of emergency, calling the blizzard “the greatest disaster in Ohio history,” as it wreaked havoc on highways and rural roads. The snow and accompanying weather left around 6,000 drivers stranded. The Ohio National Guard had helicopters and trucks moving around the state to provide rescues and supplies, Thomas and Jeanne Schmidlin wrote in their book “Thunder in the Heartland.”

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Of the 51 recorded deaths from the storm, around half of them died stranded in their cars. The storm left around 175,000 Ohioans without power for days, and schools and businesses shut down for up to a week in the aftermath.

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