The last few weeks in Syracuse haven’t just been cold — they’ve been historically cold.

As of Monday, this month marks the coldest February in the city of Syracuse since 1902.

Syracuse has set record-breaking cold low and high temperatures for several days this month, and the city is on track to record its coldest February yet based on average temperature, said Kelly Stevens, a research associate for the Center for Policy Research in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, in an email.

“This has been an abnormally cold and snowy February,” Stevens said. “What is interesting though is December and January had lower snowfall totals than normal, but we have since surpassed average values with consistent snow this month.”

While Syracuse had a low of minus 17 degrees Fahrenheit on Feb. 16, a record temperature for that day specifically, the coldest February temperature in history for the area was minus 26 degrees Fahrenheit on Feb. 18, 1979, said Dave Longley, chief meteorologist for Syracuse’s News Channel 9, in an email.

But it hasn’t just been the record-breaking temperatures contributing to the harsh conditions. In February alone, Syracuse has accumulated approximately 48.5 inches of snow, compared to 41.4 inches last year and 36.4 inches in 2013, Longley said.

“Probably the biggest thing is the fact that we have not had any semblance of thaw,” Longley said. “The winter was cold, but benign snow-wise through January.”

Longley said that the past three weeks have been “relentless” with snow and cold, adding that Syracuse has had at least a trace of snow every day so far this month and on 33 of the past 34 days.

Since July 1, 2014, Syracuse has accumulated approximately 95 inches of snow, which is one inch above normal for this time of the year, Stevens said. However, this time last year Syracuse had accumulated about 100 inches of snow in the same time frame — six inches above the average snowfall for the area.

In addition, the current conditions could have an affect on the weather a few months into the future.

“If (Lake Ontario) freezes over, we could see a lower than normal lake temperature through the spring and summer, similar to last year, which could pull our temperatures down a touch over the summer,” Stevens said.

However, Stevens added that if Lake Ontario freezes, it would more likely affect areas closer to the lake and have a smaller effect on the city of Syracuse.

For the last five years, criminal incidents reported to the Department of Public Safety have always increased from January to February. But, the weather could have an affect on that trend, said Tony Callisto, senior vice president for safety and chief law enforcement officer at Syracuse University.

“Certainly this is a colder winter, so here we are in February, you’re probably not going to see the same spike that you did last year in February, because it is colder now than it was in January,” he said. “And that trend is not stopping. It looks like next week, Monday is going to be another single digit day or minus day. The weather certainly does impact the offenses that occur.”

-Staff writer Alfred Ng contributed reporting to this article.

Published on February 23, 2015 at 12:01 am

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