By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – The Buffalo area has been in the grip of dangerous winds chills for a couple of days now. Single digit temperatures combined with sustained winds in the 20 to 30 mile per hour range are to blame.
It hasn't been this cold in Buffalo in a couple of years. National Weather Service Meteorologist Bob Hamilton says there's a big area of arctic high pressure over the nation's mid-section. And that's affecting our region in two ways. First, it's feeding in extremely cold air. And secondly, it's kicking up our wind speeds.
Now, when the temperature is 20 to 30 degrees, Hamilton says the winds aren't as noticeable. But with temperatures falling to around zero, well, let's just say we are noticing it. In a big way.
I'm scraping some ice from the windshield of my car. And even though I've spent less than two minutes exposed to the cold, my ear lobes are starting to tingle. Now, to avoid the dreaded hat hair, I'm not wearing any protective covering on my head. And that's something Dr. David Ellis of the Erie County Medical Center says is not wise in these temperatures.
Well, I'm now back inside recording in the warmth of our studio. And just to demonstrate how serious this can be, Eillis says the emergency room at ECMC has already treated cases of frostbite and hypothermia during this cold spell. He says the very young and the elderly are most at risk.
So, how long will the extreme cold last? Well, the winds will subside to under ten miles per hour tonight, providing some relief. But Meteorologist Bob Hamilton says the wintry pattern we're now in will continue.
And maybe that's for the best. It's Winterfest in Buffalo this weekend, featuring ice skating, horse-drawn hayrides and even a chili cook-off. And it will certainly be winterlike for Winterfest this year.
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