HAMBURG, NY – An intense band of lake-effect snow formed over the Interstate 90 corridor off the shores of Lake Erie between Erie, Pennsylvania, and Hamburg, New York, Thursday morning, creating hazardous driving conditions during the morning rush.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced on X that it had declared a state of emergency in several counties, including Jefferson and Erie counties, because several feet of additional snowfall was expected for the remainder of the week.

“This is crazy,” one driver exclaimed in a video shared on social media, which showed there was almost no visibility through the windshield as whiteout conditions continued.

State of emergency declared, treacherous travel reported as lake-effect snowstorm blasts major lakes

The strong winds began early Thursday morning.

Storm tracker video showed these angry waves crashing against the seawalls of Hoak’s Lakeshore Restaurant in Hamburg, a local restaurant known for turning into an ice castle during major winter storms.

WHAT IS LAKE EFFECT SNOW?

The same winds that created the lake-effect snow created these huge waves on Lake Erie, which looked more like the Atlantic Ocean Thursday morning.

The wind was strong enough to create a seiche, which is a sharp drop in water level on one side of a body of water and a rise in water on the other side as sea level fluctuates back and forth.

WHAT IS A SICHE?

The FOX Forecast Center expects lake effect snow to continue through Friday before ending this weekend.

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