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Special Reports
Special Report - Bizzard of 1978

The Blizzard of '78
Mention the Blizzard of '78 to most people and the memories come rushing back - of stranded cars and shuttered schools, sky-high snowbanks and futile searches for milk.

But for those in the under-30 set, the notorious nor'easter might as well be mythology.
Remembering the Blizzard
On Monday morning, Feb. 6, 1978, New Englander's woke up to cloudy skies but no falling snow. Some probably went straight to work, never giving the predicted snowfall a second thought. For those who had a chance to glance at the morning paper, there was nothing alarming to make them pause.

Commuters who had the time in the morning to listen to the radio or watch TV before they left the house, might have learned that the snow would be heavy, and a major storm was on the way. The people of New England, however, had just experienced record snowfall two and half weeks earlier, and that storm did little damage. So the general population started their commute to work. After all, this was New England, and snowfall is expected.
Remembering amazing days
The day started out in amazement as I looked out my back window to see a five foot high fence barely visible and the snow on the front porch halfway up the door, making it impossible to get out. My husband  who was on the North Attleboro Fire Department had worked the night shift and never did make it back home until four days after the snow had started to fall.
My parents honeymoon
I wasn't alive in the blizzard of 1978 but my parents got married on Febuary 5th of 78.  They had to postpone their honeymoon because of the blizzard.
Blizzard memory
I was 10 years old, my sister and I were finally able to go back to school we walked up our street and cars kept coming so I climbed up on the snowbank to be safe from the cars. I fell in and the snow covered up my head. I could hear my sister screaming my name and after what felt like forever she reached into the snow and yanked me out. We never did tell our mom or she would have started to walk us to school again. I am forever grateful of my sister saving me that day! I called her my very own superhero sister!
Wedding Plans
On Saturday before the blizzard I moved from my parents home to the apartment where I was going to set up housekeeping as a new bride. I was living north of Boston then. On Sunday we drove to NH to get groceries. It was before stores were open in MA on Sundays. I went to work on Monday and then it snowed. I was beginning to panic as my wedding was scheduled for Saturday.
Locked out
My first memory of the blizzard of '78 is getting locked out of the house. I was supposed to stay after school that day, so Mom made me give my house key to my niece who lived with us, (me -15, niece-14) so she could get in before I got home. But when the weather got rough they let us go home early.
Time Flies
My 1st thought about this article is how time flies!!
Nice Lady from Mom's Work
My mom worked at TI. A lady she knew (but not very well) lived in RI, so my mom invited her to stay at our house. She stayed for almost a week before she could get home! A couple of weeks later, she rewarded me and my sister Valerie for being "nice girls" by taking us to the Ringling Bros. Circus.

Storm stats

The numbers help tell the story of the Blizzard of '78, which took place Feb. 6 to 8, 1978.

Here are a few selected statistics:

32 hours, 40 minutes. Duration of the storm.

26. Total inches of snowfall in Attleboro.

54. Total inches of snowfall in parts of Southern Massachusetts.

92. Miles per hour of top wind speeds measured in Chatham.

29. Number of deaths attributed to the storm in Massachusetts.

$538 million. Estimated cost of the storm's damage to homes, in 2007 dollars.

$1.4 billion. Estimated financial impact of the storm on the state's economy, in 2007 dollars.

Sources: Attleboro Water Department; Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.

Snowed in

In the last three decades, no blizzard has dropped as much snow on the city of Attleboro as the Blizzard of '78.

Here are the 10 biggest storms of the last 30 years:

Feb. 6-8, 1978 - 26 inches

Jan. 23, 2005 - 21 inches

Feb. 18, 2003 - 20.25 inches

Mar. 31, 1997 - 18 inches

Dec. 7, 2003 - 16.5 inches

Dec. 5, 1981 - 14 inches

Feb. 13, 1994 - 13.5 inches

Apr. 12, 1982 - 12.5 inches

Feb. 13, 2006 - 12 inches

Dec. 14, 2007 - 11 inches

Source: Attleboro Water Department.