2011 Groundhog Day Blizzard, North America

Lake effect snow events started over Lake Ontario and Lake Michigan from northeasterly winds. Following the predominant jet pattern, the storm developed a very rapid forward trajectory and began to migrate toward the lower Great Lakes. The heaviest snow fell in a wide swath from central Oklahoma to Illinois, Indiana and the Ohio Valley. An official blizzard warning was issued in Southern Ontario for the first time since 1993, although the Canadian definition changed in 2009.
Areas affected