It’s been 40 years since the Blizzard of ’78
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — It is the standard to which all central Indiana winter storms are measured. It was 40 years ago, when for 31 hours on Jan. 25 and 26, Mother Nature unleashed a wrath of snow and wind that paralyzed a good part of Indiana.
The numbers from the storm were staggering. Snow accumulation totals reached up to 3 feet in places. Snow drifts piled up to 20 feet. Wind chill values dropped down to 50 below zero. Visibility was less than a quarter of a mile for 25 straight hours. Roads and railroad service were paralyzed. Power outages lasted for days. The National Guard had to be deployed for rescues.
Several years ago on the show “Mike Ahern: One-on-One,” legendary WISH-TV anchor Mike Ahern and meteorologist Stan Wood reflected on the Blizzard of ’78.
The storm system developed quickly and Wood, who was a meteorologist in the military prior to his days at WISH-TV, used his experience to forecast what was coming.
“Based on what I had observed in Korea, when we had a Manchurian blizzard that stopped the war for a couple of days, I could tell that this was going to be a major event,” Wood said.
Wood’s insight and forecasting experience turned out to be critical. He was the first TV meteorologist in Indianapolis to forecast the event, and that helped WISH-TV prepare coverage for the storm.
“May I say this? We did beat the local television competition hands down,” Wood said.
Wood also helped the city of Indianapolis prepare.
“Mayor (Bill) Hudnut would call to find out the latest, and we were pretty well giving him advice on what it looked like it was going to do for the city,” Wood said. “Ultimately, of course, he closed the city”.
As the blizzard ravaged central Indiana, WISH-TV provided continuous live coverage of the monster storm. While this is common now, it was unprecedented in 1978. The coverage lasted for three straight days. In a day where local TV was a main basis of information, the coverage was critical.
“We were there live showing them and telling them what was going on hour-by-hour, minute-by minute actually,” Wood said.
Eleven Hoosiers lost their lives in the Blizzard of ’78, but the preparation and actions of many, probably saved countless lives.
“I’ve heard people come to me, come up to me, even lately, and say, ‘You know, we got through the night because we realize there was something beyond that snowdrift,’” Ahern said.