[devodave]

I live about 40 miles due south of Buffalo, but it seems a world away. That's just the nature of the snow bands we see in WNY. This year (so far), the bands have stayed over Buffalo and the Southtowns (Hamburg, Orchard Park), so they have gotten the brunt of the storms. At our house, we have perhaps 6" on the ground total from the 3 major storms so far this year, but some years we have gotten up to 360" total snowfall by the end of the season. The point is that the nature of the bands may lull folks into a false sense of security as you may think you will drive through it. There was plenty of notice about the falling temperatures, the snow, and the wind for folks to be prepared. But I will agree that if employers were requiring folks to report to work, especially in the retail sector right before Christmas, folks would have felt a need to be out. I'm lucky that I haven't had to leave the house since Thursday night, but others may not have been so fortunate. Today is already starting out much warmer. Now we will have to be concerned about potential flooding as the snow melts.