Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - 20 years later, the memories of the "October Surprise" storm remain vivid - the thunder snow, the darkness, and the sound of trees crashing down.
But the storm left more than power outages and a massive cleanup. It changed the landscape across Western New York.
"We lost about 57,000 trees in one night across 18 communities," said Paul Maurer, who founded Re-Tree WNY just weeks after the storm.
Neighborhoods and parks were stripped of the tree canopy that once defined them.
"Trees were fully leafed. The snow was so heavy it pulled down branches and power lines. We had a situation that we called Arbor-geddon," Maurer added.
The goal was ambitious: Replace the trees that had been lost and help restore the landscape.
Through a partnership with municipalities, Re-Tree volunteers planted trees that were matched by municipalities. Together, they ultimately restored more than 60,000 trees.
Re-Tree plants, what is called, bare root trees - trees that are a lot easier to plant.
"It was 1-for-1," added Maurer. "We planted one and the towns or villages planted one. It doubled our efforts."
Re-Tree does plantings twice a year. The next one is Nov. 7.
You can get more information at Re-Tree, or from Buffalogreenfund.org.
"We lost about 57,000 trees in one night across 18 communities"
"We lost about 57,000 trees in one night across 18 communities"
