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What exactly is a blizzard, anyway?

A blizzard isn’t necessarily about how much snow falls, but how high the wind is and low the visibility is.
Couple having a snowball fight

Given that people were gallivanting around the city in shorts and flip flops on Tuesday, you might be wondering how exactly it’s possible that areas of the state will be under a blizzard warning Wednesday.

And given that the metro area is only expected to see a few inches of snow, why would we receive that designation anyway?

A blizzard isn’t necessarily about how much snow falls, but how high the wind is and low the visibility is.

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According to the National Weather Service, in order for a storm to be called a blizzard, winds or gusts must be 35 mph or higher. There must be blowing snow or considerable falling snow that causes visibility to be less than a quarter of a mile. These conditions must last three or more hours to be considered a blizzard.

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