Extreme winds cause 30ft waves on Lake Erie, flooding parts of Buffalo
Rare ‘seiche’ wave drains lake during fierce winter storm
- Extreme winds caused a seiche on Lake Erie, leading to significant flooding in Buffalo, New York, and a dramatic drop in water levels at the other end of the lake.
- Winds in the Buffalo area reached speeds of 35 to 45 mph, with gusts up to 75-80 mph, pushing water across the 225-mile-long lake.
- On Monday, Lake Erie's water level rose by over six feet in Buffalo, while simultaneously dropping by approximately 13 feet in Toledo, Ohio, resulting in an almost eight-foot difference across the lake.
- Meteorologists explained the seiche as wind pressure “sloshing” water like in a bath tub, exposing the lakebed on one side and causing flooding on the other.
- Maintenance worker Kevin Aldrich from Monroe, Michigan, said he has never seen the lake recede so much and was surprised to spot the remnants of old piers dating back to the 1830s, along with the wreck of a car and a snowmobile.