On June 30, 2000, Warner Brothers released "The Perfect Storm" starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, and others. The film takes place in 1991 aboard the fishing vessel "Andrea Gail" as it endures a harrowing ordeal off the New England coast during a major storm. The film was a success, generating over $180,000,000 during its lifespan. The movie is based on the 1997 book of the same name written by Sebastian Junger.
Both the movie and the book are based on the true events of the sinking of the "Andrea Gail" which occurred from a collision of a hurricane and a cold front that created "The Perfect Storm of 1991". This storm was created by the remnants of Hurricane Grace being absorbed into a strong cold front to create a more significant storm that spanned the east coast. For days in late October 1991 strong winds, high surf, and coastal flooding caused major damage in the eastern United States.
As the Perfect Storm raged in the east, out in the Midwest another "Perfect Storm" was wreaking havoc on Halloween. A band of heavy snow and ice crippled much of the Midwest from Kansas to Minnesota, with Nebraska and Iowa feeling the punch. It was the storm that "canceled Halloween" in Omaha.
In this installment of This Week in Weather History, we look back at the extraordinary week of U.S. weather in October 1991 to look at the series of events that canceled Halloween in Omaha.
WEATHER SET-UP
It began with a hurricane.
Hurricane Grace developed in the Atlantic northeast of the Bahamas where it strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane by Oct. 27. Grace remained generally over the open Atlantic as it weakened into an extratropical cyclone as it moved northeast near Bermuda.
Hurricane Grace collided with a cold front moving off the eastern United States. Attached to this cold front was a low-pressure system that formed near Nova Scotia. This low-pressure system was blocked from moving north by a strong high-pressure system over eastern Canada, so it moved southeast into the Atlantic and eventually curved westward towards New England. As the low pressure absorbed the warmth and moisture from Hurricane Grace, it rapidly strengthened into a powerful cyclone centered off the New England coast.
By Oct. 30, the low-pressure achieved its maximum strength. Across the east coast of the U.S. and Canada, winds upwards of 60 mph buffeted the region, causing tree damage. The strong winds also threw high surf and waves into the coasts, causing damage to beachfront properties and caused flooding in low-lying areas. The low-pressure would gain the nickname the "Perfect Storm" or the "No-name Storm" for its hurricane-like qualities despite technically not being one.
After Halloween, the low-pressure system weakened as it moved north finally into Nova Scotia. The Perfect Storm of 1991 left 13 dead, six from the "Andrea Gail" which was the source for the aforementioned book and movie.
So, what does the Perfect Storm have to do with Omaha? In a sense, the perfect storm created the conditions across the central U.S. for the Halloween ice storm in Omaha.
As mentioned above, the Perfect Storm was blocked from moving north by a large high-pressure system in eastern Canada. This high pressure also blocked storm systems from moving across the eastern U.S. A cold front was advancing across the Great Plains on Oct. 28 but stalled out near the Mississippi River as the high pressure blocked it from moving east. Likewise, the perfect storm over the Atlantic also blocked its movement from going south. Thus, the cold front was stuck over the central U.S.
As it was stuck, an area of low pressure formed over eastern Texas. As it could not move east, the storm system had to move almost due north across Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota. This is a rare path for a storm system to take, but its track would bring a major snow and ice storm to the central U.S. from Kansas to Canada.
THE STORM
Warnings of the incoming winter storm began as early as Oct. 29 and were ramped up on Oct. 30. Forecasters called for six to ten inches of snow across eastern Nebraska, with the possibility of ice in southeast Nebraska. Halloween plans were moved around, crews began to treat the roads, and power companies braced for power outages. It had almost never snowed on Halloween in Omaha, the last major snowstorm occurred in 1941.
Mixed precipitation in the form of sleet and freezing rain began to overspread eastern Nebraska and western Iowa beginning in the very early morning hours of Oct. 31. By the afternoon, Omaha had seen sleet and freezing rain for much of the day. To the south, freezing rain had begun to cause ice problems south and east of the metro. Northwest of Omaha, snowfall had been continuous with 5" of snow reported in Fremont by 2 p.m.
Due to the ongoing winter weather, trick-or-treating was canceled across Omaha and delayed to another day.
The sleet/freezing rain finally changed over to snow by the overnight hours on Oct. 31. As the snow fell, the winds increased to around 30 mph blowing the snow around. This near-blizzard caused power lines and trees encased in ice to break, and the power outages swept across Nebraska and Iowa. By the afternoon of Nov. 1, the snow had ended across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.
THE AFTERMATH
By the time the snow was over on Nov. 1, the damage was immense across Nebraska and Iowa. Depending on where one lived, the storm impacts were varied.
Across northeast Nebraska, over 10" of snow fell in many places, marking it as the snowiest October storm in many locations. The heavy wet snow brought down trees across Columbus and Norfolk, knocking power out in many locations. It was not unlike the effects of the October 1997 snowstorm in Omaha. The highest snow total in northeast Nebraska was in Clarkson in Colfax County, where 15" of snow fell.
Further to the south and east was where the worst impacts of the ice storm were felt. From southeast Nebraska into southwest Iowa, ice accumulation of over 1" snapped tree branches and knocked out power. Cities like Tecumseh, Syracuse, Nebraska City, and Plattsmouth dealt with widespread tree damage alongside power being out. In southwest Iowa, towns like Glenwood, Shenandoah, Sidney, Red Oak, and Atlantic also dealt with the ice. One eyewitness in Atlantic said the tree branches came down so fast it sounded like "thunder and fireworks going off across town".
In Omaha, the ice was the major issue rather than snow. At one point or another, 80,000 customers were without power. As that number is just concerned with meters, it is likely between 100,000-200,000 Omaha residents were without power at some point. Most in the metro had power restored within 24 hours, but in hard-hit Bellevue, it took a day or two to gain power. In Plattsmouth, 75% of power was knocked out, with most of it being restored within three days.
The mayor of Omaha at the time postponed trick-or-treating from Thursday (Oct. 31) to Sunday (Nov. 3). Despite the moved date, trick-or-treating was just as busy as it would've been on Halloween. By Sunday, much of the power was restored, and the snow on the ground added an extra haunting yet serene sight to Omaha hit by the storm on Halloween.
While Omaha was affected by the storm significantly, further north the snow dumped on Minnesota. In Duluth, 36" of snow fell over a four-day window which by that time was the largest snowstorm in the city's history. In the Twin Cities, 28.4" of snow fell in that same window, shattering records. Across much of Minnesota, the Halloween storm paralyzed the area.
