December's Weather- 1st-2nd: Lake Effect snow in western New York in a narrow area dumped up to 3' of snow. The snow was so heavy that the New York State Thruway, a major highway, was forced to shut down stranding hundreds of drivers.
- 4th: Heavy snow reduced the visibility to 1/2 a mile in Chicagoand Champaign, IL. had 8" of snow.
- 6th: A Canadian high pressure system pushed a blast of winter weather through the Southeast, leaving people shivering as far south as Florida.
- 6th-7th: Up to a foot of snow fell across northern and eastern Maine knocking power out to hundreds of homes and businesses, closing scores of schools and made for treacherous travel conditions.
- 7th: Cattaraugus County, NY had up to 40" of Lake Effect Snow. More than two feet of Lake Effect snow fell in northwestern Pennsylvania, causing traffic problems and school closures. North Carolina mountains got up to a foot and a half of snow. Record cold in Florida: Vero Beach 31, Naples 39, and Ft. Lauderdale 40.
- 8th: Snowflakes fell in northern Louisiana, southern Mississippi and southern Arkansas. More Record lows in Florida: Tallahassee 21, Naples 39, Ft. Lauderdale 39, W. Palm Beach 37. Also, Augusta, GA 17 & Columbia, SC 16.
- 9th: Syracuse, N.Y. had 44.3" of snow over the past five days.
- 11th: I-90 closed across southwest MN from SD border to near Blue Earth due to heavy snow. Plows were pulled off the roads in many places die to the snow, high winds and subzero temperatures.
- 12th: Metrodome roof collapses from heavy snow.
- 12th: Some Midwest cities totaled 2 feet of snow.
- 14th: Aumsville, OR (near Salem) struck by tornado, but only minor damage.
- 17th:-20th: Storms and torrential rain over 6" caused flooding and mudslides in southern California and in the mountains more than 15ft of snow. Los Angeles had 6.95" of rain since late last week which is around 45% of their average annual rainfall.
- 15th: Record cold in Florida: Jacksonville 21, Vero Beach 29, and Key West 46. Coldest morning for the date since 1962 in Mobile and Pensacola. 2 people were killed on icy roads in Northeastern Mississippi.
- 18th-19th: Over 13" of rain during the last 48 hours in the southern Sierra Nevada (Nature Pt. Near Bass Lake). Elevation is 5,150 feet. Several feet of snow in the higher Sierra mountains. 7 people died in weather-related road accidents in Utah.
- 20th: Almost a foot of snow for parts of Cape Cod with strong winds resulted in many power outages.
- 21st: Rain in San Juan, PR made it the wettest year on record in San Juan, PR. 88.66" of rain. Records in the San Juan area go back to 1898. Temperatures into the 80s in Texas with several cities setting records. 4 homes were washed away by flooding in N. Arizona after heavy rains.
- 25th: Several inches of snow in NE Georgia made for difficult travel. Atlanta had their first white Christmas since 1882. At least 46 states had snow this Christmas. More than 50% of Lower 48 had snow cover Christmas morning.
- 26th: Several cities in northern Florida had snow flurries and grains.
- 26th-27th: A blizzard hit along the coast from New Jersey to New England. 18-24 inches of snow was common with wind gusts up to 65 mph. Airports in and around New York City were closed stranding thousands.
- 27th-28th: Overnight temperatures were below freezing for many areas of the Gulf Coast.
- 28th: 40s in the Florida Keys! Close to 20 record lows were set across Mississippi, Georgia and Florida.
- 29th: December was the second snowiest month on record for Syracuse, N.Y., with a total of 72.7 inches. Heavy snow and wind in Spokane, WA area left nearly 5,000 customers without power as a combination of heavy snow and wind brought down tree limbs and lines. Winds gusted to 105 mph at Mammoth Mountain Summit, California.
- 30th: A storm with winds gusting to 94 miles per hour blasted the Golden State Freeway corridor in northwest Los Angeles County and 60-mph gusts lashed the San Gabriel Valley.
- 31st: Severe weather brought tornadoes to Arkansas and Missouri resulting in widespread damage and 7 deaths.
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