Snowmageddon

Transmission towers and power lines in East Texas snow from the 2010 North American Blizzard

Snowmageddon, Snowpocalypse, and Snowzilla are portmanteaus of the word "snow" with "Armageddon", "Apocalypse", and "Godzilla" respectively. Snowmageddon and Snowpocalypse were used in the popular press in Canada during January 2009,[1] and was also used in January 2010 by The Guardian reporter Charlie Brooker to characterise the sensationalist reaction of television news to a period of snowfall across the UK.[2] The Washington Post, out of Washington, D.C., ran an online poll asking for reader feedback prior to the February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard on February 4, 2010,[3] and several blogs, including the Washington Post's own blog, followed that up by using either "Snowmageddon" or "Snowpocalypse" before, during, and after the storm hit.[4]

The Washington Post also popularized the term "kaisersnoze" (see Keyser Söze) in response to the February snowstorms.[5]

During the evening preceding the first blizzard hitting Washington, D.C., most of the United States federal government closed, and press coverage continued to characterize the storm using either "Snowmageddon", "Snowpocalypse", or both.[6]

The term "Snowpocalypse" was used in the Pacific Northwest to refer to a snowstorm in December 2008.[7][8]

The 2008 children's book Winter Blast by Chris Wright, uses the term "snowmageddon" in the storyline of the book.[9]

Examples

• The Great Blizzard of '93
• North American blizzard of 2009 (Snowpocalypse[10])
• February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard (Snowmageddon[10])
• February 9–10, 2010 North American blizzard (Snowmageddon: Snoverkill)
• February 25–27, 2010 North American blizzard (Snowicane)
• December 2010 North American blizzard
• January 31 – February 2, 2011 North American blizzard
• February 2013 nor'easter
• January 2014 Gulf Coast winter storm (remembered as Snowmageddon in Atlanta)
• Early 2014 North American cold wave
• November 13 – 21, 2014 North American winter storm
• A series of storms in winter 2015 that broke snowfall records in Boston, Massachusetts (Snowmageddon,[11] snowpocalypse[12])
• January 2016 United States blizzard (Snowzilla[13])
• Winter of 2009–2010 in the United Kingdom
• Winter of 2010–2011 in the United Kingdom
• January 17, 2020 in St. John's, Canada blizzard (Snowmageddon)[14][15]
• February 13–17, 2021 North American winter storm

See also

• The dictionary definition of Snowmageddon at Wiktionary

• 1993 Storm of the Century
• 1991 Perfect Storm
• Hurricane Sandy
• Perfect storm
• White Juan

References

1. Ibbotson, Heather (January 26, 2010). "Mild winter easy on city budget". Brantford Expositor. Archived from the original on March 19, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2010. "At this time last year, we were referring to it as snowmageddon," Madden said.
2. Brooker, Charlie (January 16, 2010). "Charlie Brooker's Screen burn". The Guardian. Retrieved February 11, 2010. As far as the 24-hour rolling networks were concerned, this wasn't a freak weather condition. This was war. Death from the skies. Earth versus the Ice Warriors. Snowmageddon.
3. "Vote for storm name, Twitter hashtag & snow total". Washington Post. February 4, 2010. Archived from the original on June 28, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
4. Broder, John M.; Healy, Jack (February 5, 2010). "East Coast Is Hit by 'Potentially Epic Snowstorm'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 11, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010. bracing for what newspapers and bloggers have been calling the "snowpocalypse," or "snowmageddon,"
5. Gainor, Dan M. (February 10, 2010). "Washington's New Four-Letter Word: Snow". Fox News. Reuters. Archived from the original on July 31, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2010. D.C. residents have turned to social media like Twitter and Facebook to vent their frustration with terms like "snOMG," "snowmageddon", "snowpocalypse", and "kaisersnoze".
6. "Powerful blizzard shuts down US capital". AFP. February 5, 2010. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2010. The storm, dubbed "Snowpocalypse" and "Snowmageddon" by many locals,
7. "Snowpocalypse Now". North Kitsap Herald. 23 December 2008. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
8. Wheaton, Sarah (19 December 2009). "Snowpocalypse Now, and Then". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
9. Wright, Chris (2008). Winter Blast. Mountain Valley Publishing. ISBN 978-1-934940-10-5. Archived from the original on 2009-01-05. Retrieved February 11, 2010.
10. Capital Weather Gang
11. Nik DeCosta-Klipa (January 27, 2025). "The wildest stats and numbers from Boston's 'Snowmageddon' winter of 2015". WBUR. Boston, Massachusetts. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
12. Jill McDonough (February 21, 2015). "In Boston's snowpocalypse, some find inspiration". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. Archived from the original on February 7, 2025. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
13. Angela Fritz (January 22, 2016). "We hereby name this winter storm 'Snowzilla'". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. Archived from the original on January 23, 2016. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
14. "'Snowmageddon': cleanup begins after record Newfoundland storm". The Guardian. Canada. Reuters. 18 January 2020.
15. Marx, Paris (26 January 2020). "Snowmageddon has come and gone. Let's hope metro St. John's learns the right lessons". CBC News.