Good Question: Will we have a white Christmas this year?

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — if you’re dreaming of a white Christmas then this good question is for you.

One viewer is dreaming of something we haven’t had in a few years. Miles asks: “When was the last white Christmas in Rochester? Are we gonna have one this year?”

For the answer, I went straight to our in-house expert.

Emily Putnam: So Rich, what are our chances of having a white Christmas this year?

Rich Caniglia: Well you know historically, we have just over a 50/50 chance. I think this year, it’s looking a little bit better, because we have snow in the forecast Christmas eve, so I think we have a good chance this year of waking up to snow on the ground Christmas morning.

Emily: That’s good news for people who are wanting a winter wonderland. So, when was the last time we had heavy snow on Christmas?

Rich: Well, you gotta go back 20 years – 2002. christmas that year, we had over a foot of snow… then the most was back in 1978 – 18 inches of snow fell on Christmas day. The last time we had snow on the ground on Christmas morning was four years ago in 2018, when we had 2 inches at the airport. In 2017, we had 6 inches and in 2016, it was brutally cold, and we had 3 inches of snow.

So, after four years without one, if a white Christmas was on your list this year, it looks like you’re probably going to get it.