Much gnashing of teeth about the Blizzard That Allegedly Wasn't over the weekend--some in the morning paper suggest the event was a bit overblown, and that forecasters missed badly.
Wrong.
Add up the totals from Friday, Saturday and Sunday: you'll see the amounts are well within the forecast range, although the numbers trend lower the closer to the lake you are. Ask the folks in Jefferson County if they what was advertised. Forecaster Brian Gotter put together a graphic Monday on Today's TMJ4 comparing what was forecast to what Ma Nature delivered. I thought the amounts matched up nicely. See his stats at:
Remember this: the blizzard warning doesn't come from your local forecaster. It's from the National Weather Service. The Saturday night/Sunday morning snows weren't quite as bad as expected, and when they weren't, the NWS ratcheted the level down.
What DOES get overblown is the stuff around the forecasts--reporters in the snow, standing next to salt trucks, asking drivers how tough it is to get around. Hours of the obvious stated over and over for hours, all because WE CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF SEEING HOW MISERABLE WE MIGHT POSSIBLY HAVE IT. We'll pee and moan and write letters to the editor about t-v overhyping the storm, then stare mindlessly at the tube the next time there's a hint of a flake in the air. Remember: the media is a lot more democratic today than it was during the Bill Carlson era, when it TOLD you what was news. Now, it gives us what they know we'll WATCH.
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