CHICAGO (WBBM Newsradio) – Just a day after snow fell across the Chicago area, the city is marking the 59th anniversary of the Blizzard of 1967, the most powerful snowstorm in its history.
The storm struck Jan. 26 into Jan. 27, 1967, dumping a record 23 inches of snow on Chicago in just over 24 hours. Winds gusted past 50 miles per hour, creating snowdrifts as high as six feet and bringing transportation across the region to a standstill.
The blizzard followed a dramatic weather shift. Just two days earlier, Chicago reached an unseasonably warm 65 degrees. Forecasts initially called for only about four inches of snow, but the storm far exceeded expectations.
Roads and highways quickly became impassable as cars were abandoned and buses stalled. Thousands of vehicles were stranded, and entire neighborhoods were effectively cut off. Airports were shut down, rail service was disrupted, and emergency crews struggled to move through the city.
It took more than a week for Chicago to fully recover. The storm remains one of the most disruptive weather events in the city’s history and is often used as the benchmark against which major snowstorms are measured.
The anniversary comes as parts of the Chicago area recorded 6 to 10 inches of snow over the weekend, a reminder of how quickly winter weather can still impact the region – even if it falls far short of the Blizzard of ’67.