Conditions in downtown Waterbury during Thursday’s snowstorm were blizzard-like, but the wind didn’t last for a long enough period of time to meet the definition of a blizzard. Andrew Larson / Republican-American
The snowstorm Thursday wasn’t a blizzard, even if it felt like one.
Meteorologist John Bagioni, of Fax-Alert Weather Service in Burlington, said most areas of the state experienced blizzard conditions.
In downtown Waterbury, there were periods of horizontal snow in the late afternoon.
The National Weather Service defines a blizzard as a storm that produces blowing snow with winds in excess of 35 mph and visibility of less than a quarter-mile for three hours straight.
On Thursday, there were wind gusts of 45 mph during the peak the of the storm.
However, blizzard conditions did not last for three hours in any one location, so the storm was not a blizzard, Bagioni concluded.
