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Feb. 28 (UPI) -- One of the biggest lake-effect events of the season continued on Friday as snow totals across the Great Lakes steadily rose. The highest accumulations so far have occurred in western and upstate New York with several locations reporting more than a foot of snow. Blizzard warnings remained in effect with AccuWeather forecasters predicting feet of lake-effect snow in parts of upstate New York, including areas north of Syracuse around the Tug Hill Plateau.
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Cleveland, Erie, Pa., and Jamestown, N.Y., were several cities under a lake-effect snow warning Friday.
Areas just east of Lake Ontario have seen the worst of the lake-effect snow with over two feet piling up in some areas. Watertown, N.Y., reported nearly 7 inches of snow in just a 2 hour period on Friday morning.
In the village of Copenhagen, N.Y., about 90 minutes north of Syracuse, 28.5 inches had fallen through early Friday morning.
By Saturday night, the areas hit hardest by the storm are projected to be near the AccuWeather Local StormMax of 45 inches.
The State University of New York at Oswego canceled all classes after 12 p.m. Thursday and on Friday due to the high winds and heavy snow. The cancellations were in effect at the main campus in Oswego and the Syracuse campus.
The dicey conditions were documented by student Kaitlyn Jesmonth on her walk home from class on Thursday, where visibility is shown to be very low with snow blanketing the ground.
Powerful winds not only contributed to whiteouts, but also led to property damage. The 50-mph winds in the area caused damage to a building under construction in Henderson, N.Y., according to another Oswego State student, Jake Rumowicz, who captured a video of tarps on the construction site billowing in the harsh winds.
AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alan Reppert explained that lake-snow effect occurs when cold air travels over the comparatively warmer lakes and forms clouds that eventually produce snow. The term is regional and used in reference to the Great Lakes.
A blizzard is more than just heavy snow.
"A blizzard is defined as a storm that brings sustained winds or wind gusts of 35 mph or greater and a visibility less than one-quarter of a mile for three consecutive hours," AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski explained.
By 10:45 a.m., the National Weather Service office in Buffalo confirmed blizzard conditions had hit east of Lake Ontario.
The lake-effect snow was so intense on Thursday evening on the eastern shores of Lake Ontario that thundersnow was reported.
The blizzard conditions will continue east of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie through Friday, according to AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alan Reppert.
Winds will begin to shift by Saturday, causing the dangerous conditions to lighten up. For the season, Reppert said this will be one of the highest, if not the highest, amounts of snow for the region.
The New York State Thruway Authority has been consistently reminding motorists over social media to stay safe on the snowy roads and in "treacherous" conditions.
In the early hours of the morning on Thursday, the Thruway Authority placed a ban on empty tractor trailers on I-90 from the Lackawanna Toll Barrier to the Pennsylvania state line. The ban was lifted on Thursday night.
By Thursday evening, Fredonia, N.Y., had reported wind gusts of up to 62 mph. In Maine, where the remainder of the wintry storm was passing through, the highest recorded wind gust was 66 mph in Greenville.
Temperatures east of Lake Ontario have hovered around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, with the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperatures reaching as low as the single digits, according to Reppert.
In a moment of calm, the sky cleared just enough for a "fiery" sunset through the clouds above Lake Ontario while the blizzard carried on just north.
