Remembering the Other January 6th: The Great Philadelphia Blizzard

Archival images from the great Philadelphia blizzard of 1996 (images via video, embedded below)

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Remembering the Great Philadelphia Blizzard of 1996

There’s no shortage of news stories to remind us that on this date five years ago, rioters stormed the Capitol. When I hear the date, though, an additional story comes to mind: the Great Blizzard of 1996, when Philly got positively buried.

With the lightweight winters we’ve been having of late, it’s hard to imagine a Philadelphia blanketed in 30-plus inches of snow. But such was the case three decades ago – long before hyperbolic weathercasters invented terms like “snowpocalypse” and “snowmageddon.” So we were stuck with regular old “blizzard.”

The first flakes fell in the early morning hours of January 6th – and just kept falling as a crippling Nor’easter dumped 30.7 inches on us, making Philly the biggest snow-getter of any city in the storm’s path. This would also go down as the largest recorded snowfall in Philadelphia’s history.

Crews had to dump snow into the Delaware River, with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge explaining to the press, “You got so much snow, you just can’t move it aside.” Mayor Ed Rendell took to local news stations to implore residents to excavate the fire hydrants on their blocks, because firefighters showing up to battle a blaze (fire’s gonna fire, even in a snowstorm) wouldn’t have a clue as to their location. Meantime, the National Guard were using Humvees to transport emergency medical cases to area hospitals since standard-issue ambulances couldn’t navigate the roads.

Then as now, news crews documented the Ack-a-me running out of bread (the horror!), some guy from the suburbs turning up in Center City on a snowmobile, and a usually noisy city that was forced to go quiet for a few days while residents handled being cut off from the world. As someone who lived in Center City at the time, I can say that – while the blizzard was a huge inconvenience – there was also something just, well, nice about the way it brought us together in a common experience that none of us would soon forget. (It didn’t hurt that Bob & Barbara’s – my favorite local haunt – kept its doors open to pour bourbon and beers for those of us with nothing else to do.)

As for whether we’ll ever see anything like that again, well, certainly not this week: We’re looking at highs in the 50s all week long, starting tomorrow.

Below, some fun archival footage from the Philadelphia blizzard of 1996:

Meanwhile, on South Street…

A South Street sex shop has been warned by the feds about a not-particularly-scandalous item they sell on the second floor. This is what the federal government is spending our tax dollars on? I feel much, much safer now.

Meanwhile, in Fettermanland…

The senator from Pennsylvania has come out in defense of the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela, calling the whole thing “appropriate and surgical.” Now seems like a good time to remind you of our 2024 Philly Mag feature about the man: Is This the John Fetterman Pennsylvania Elected?

By the Numbers

1 million: Number of visitors that these 22 events are expected to bring to Philadelphia this year. And how much money will these people spend? The projected number is $950 million. No word on how much of that will be spent at Pat’s or Geno’s, or what percentage of visitors will hit the Rocky statue but not enter, just behind it, the Philadelphia Museum of Art (sorry, the Philadelphia Art Museum… change is hard).

1/2/2026: Date that SEPTA finally completed repairs to its West Philly trolley tunnel, which had forced riders to use shuttle buses since November. SEPTA is now testing the lines and plans to reopen the tunnel later this month. But did they do anything to remove the pervasive smell of urine and general stench on the platforms? Time will tell.

Twice: Number of times that residents in certain areas of North Philadelphia can now look forward to having their trash picked up, starting this week. It’s all said to be part of an effort to curtail illegal dumping.

Reader Mail

Yesterday, I told you about the anti-Trump message posted by South Philly restaurant Le Virtù on social media over the weekend, and I pointed out how unusual it is for a restaurant to publicly throw itself into the political fray like that. Here’s part of what reader David A. DiLuzio had to say about my story:

Thank you for the rather informative albeit biased article regarding this restaurant. As a staunch Trump supporter and a believer in common sense rule, I can now avoid this eatery featuring $45 plates of polenta and sausage. I must confess that my last 4 times dining here were quite pleasurable and the Abruzzese selections delicious.

Renowned chef Marc Vetri also took notice of my article and noted that he’s been very outspoken at times about the Trump administration’s activities, albeit from his personal account and not his business accounts.

“My restaurants stay neutral, but I am synonymous with them, so it’s kind of the same,” he told me via text. “I’ve lost many followers. But I will say that most of the time someone messages me and says they’re never eating at my place again, after a discussion, we become friendly. It’s pretty funny!”

Marc Vetri: great chef and diplomat. Who knew?

Local Talent

Just recently, I was having a conversation with a friend about famous Philly musicians, the name Jill Scott came up, and I realized that she hasn’t released a new album in more than a decade. That’s a long, long time in the world of music makers. So I’m happy to share that next month, Ms. Scott is releasing a new album, To Whom This May Concern, and it includes an appearance from the standout Philly rapper Tierra Whack. Woot! If you’re wondering what Scott has in store, this first single gives you a taste.