March 19, 2015
The winter of 2015 has been one for the books in New England. The worst storms hit Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, but records were set in Amherst and on campus, too. And adding insult to injury was the relentless cold; February, in fact, was the coldest month in the region on record, according to the local paper.
“It has definitely been the toughest winter that I can remember in my 36 years at Amherst College,” said Bob Shea, grounds supervisor. “With multiple snowstorms and virtually no melting, we have not had much room to stockpile the snow on campus.” As a result, he and his crew have been working overtime to keep campus roads and walkways clear and safe, he added.
Now, with the coldest season officially in the rear-view mirror, we present winter 2015, by the numbers.
11.2˚ The average February temperature. It was the coldest February in 180 years of record-keeping. Fun fact: Amherst is the only weather station in western Massachusetts with more than 100 years of official records (starting in 1893) and unofficial records dating back to 1835.
200 Number of tons of salt used on Amherst College roads and walkways.
5,000 Number of gallons of liquid deicer used on College roads and walkways.
72 Snowfall total, in inches, for winter 2015.
54 Snowfall total for the stormiest weeks from January 24th (winter storm Juno) through the end of February.
4 The miles of campus sidewalks that are cleared after each storm.
1,200+ Our best estimate of the tons of snow removed from sidewalks this winter.
