Morning Meteorologist @NewsChannel9 Syracuse, NY. Wife. Mother. Volleyball, dog, weather lover. @ualbany alum. Saugerties native. Tweets are my own Localsyr.com

Syracuse, NY
Joined April 2009
Quarter size hail in Salina/liverpool! @NWSBinghamton @NewsChannel9
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Kate Thornton retweeted
Extreme Heat Watches are up for NE PA and portions of Central NY. An Extreme Heat Warning is issued for a heat index of 105°F or greater lasting for 2 hours or more in NY (no time duration in PA). A watch is issued when Extreme Heat Warning criteria is possible 1 to 2 days out.
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It’s Nexstar Founder’s Day of Caring Day and we’re out front of the @NewsChannel9 studios taking your donations towards the @FoodBankofCNY and the @CNYDiaperBank come drop off non-perishable food items and/or diapers! #nexstarnation #FDOF2025
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Kate Thornton retweeted
#WPC_MD 0234 affecting Northern Mid-Atlantic into the Interior Northeast, #nywx #njwx #pawx #mdwx, wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/metwatch/m…
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Kate Thornton retweeted
Our storm survey team has found damage consistent with a microburst across parts of Schuyler and Tompkins counties, NY from the severe thunderstorm that moved through that area on Friday. A final assesment with more details will be completed later this afternoon. #NYwx
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Kate Thornton retweeted
An ice storm warning has been posted for Jefferson county for significant ice accumulations, with up to an INCH of ice expected through Sunday PM. Damage to trees and power outages are likely. Lesser amounts of ice are expected south of Lake Ontario. #nywx
Western NY is under a severe thunderstorm watch until 7pm Sunday.
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Kate Thornton retweeted
DANGEROUS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM/TORNADO OUTBREAK AHEAD: A dangerous outbreak of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes is forecast across a large area beginning late tonight. A dynamic storm system will bring two rounds of severe thunderstorms. ROUND ONE *The broad window for the first round of severe thunderstorms will come from around 11:00 tonight through 8:00 a.m. tomorrow. *SPC has defined an "enhanced risk" (level 3/5) for much of West Alabama for this event, with a "slight risk" (level 2/5) as far east and south as Scottsboro, Prattville, and Jackson. *Highest risk of severe storms with "round one" will be over the western half of the state, mainly along and west of I-65. The severe threat is much lower over the eastern counties, where the air will be more stable. *Where storms develop, they will be capable of producing hail and damaging winds. A few tornadoes are possible as well, mainly over West Alabama. ROUND TWO *This is the "main event"; the window is from 12 noon tomorrow through 3:00 a.m. Sunday. *A rare "high risk" (level 5/5) has been defined for parts of Alabama and Mississippi, including Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. The rest of the state is in a level 4/5 risk. FYI the last high risk issued for a part of Alabama was on March 25, 2021. *Storms will be capable of producing large hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes. A few violent, long track tornadoes are possible. This is a dangerous setup. *A flash flood watch has been issued for the northern third of Alabama where the heaviest rain is expected, and a wind advisory has been issued for the northern 2/3 of the state. Gradient winds will gust to 30/35 mph at times. KEY MESSAGES *I don't use strong wording often, but in this case it is needed. The threat is real, and the event is a dangerous situation for all of Alabama and most of the southern U.S. The goal is no loss of life, and no serious injuries; we all have a big role to play. *It is critical that you hear warnings. An outdoor siren is never, ever a primary way of hearing warnings. The "siren mentality" has killed more people than anything else during tornado events in Alabama. The baseline for every home and business is a NOAA Weather Radio; unfortunately many retailers have sold out of them due to the high demand this week. On your phone, be sure emergency alerts are enabled in notification settings... this is the tone you hear for tornado warnings and amber alerts. Have the free ABC 33/40 weather app installed. Turn the sleep/do not disturb modes OFF for the weekend so you will receive notifications at night. *In your safe place, have helmets for everyone, including adults. Use a car seat for infants. Most serious injuries in tornadoes involve blunt force trauma above the shoulders. Wearing hard shoes is also a good idea. Have a portable air horn for everyone; they can alert first responders to your location if you are injured. *If you live in a mobile home, know the location of the nearest shelter, or business open 24/7 that can serve as a shelter. Have transportation arranged so you can get there quickly. You cannot stay in a mobile home if you are in a tornado warning polygon. *A car is a death trap during a tornado. If you are driving and get a tornado warning notification, pull off as quickly as possible and go into a gas station, fast food restaurant, or any other business that can serve as a shelter. Do not drive into a tornado warning polygon. *You can be a hero. If you are reading this, you pay attention to weather. Let friends and family members today know this is a dangerous threat. During the event, if you have a friend or loved one in a tornado warning polygon, call or text them to let them know of the immediate danger. You can play a huge role in saving lives. *Subscribe to the James Spann and ABC 33/40 YouTube channels so you can watch our live coverage. During the event itself all of my attention is focused on the live coverage. I simply am not able to respond to the hundreds of requests for individual briefings during a severe weather outbreak. *Get the warnings, have a good plan, and we get through this together.
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Kate Thornton retweeted
A statement from our department regarding the recent NOAA/NWS cuts.
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Kate Thornton retweeted
Cortland County Traffic Alert: 81 northbound between Homer (exit 54) and Preble (exit 63) is CLOSED for the removal of an overturned tractor trailer.
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Syracuse hits a milestone it hasn't seen in 6 years. As of midnight we surpassed 100" of snow! We're sitting at 101" for the season so far, which hasn't happened since the 2018-2019 winter season!
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Kate Thornton retweeted
Impressive snow scenes around the house in Oswego! 21” on the ground and that’s after a couple inches of settling overnight!
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Kate Thornton retweeted
The peaceful quiet (and my favorite kind of curtains ) after the storm or before the next, no bragging rights here several areas got much more. We got 17 inches in 36 hours 244.5 inches season total for North Redfield, New York.
Update! Another 8.4" fell overnight, so Palermo has a total of 104" in 9 days!!
Our weather watcher in Palermo is clocking in with 95.6" of snow from 2/10 to 2/18! For perspective, Syracuse's seasonal snowfall total as of 2/18 is 97.4"! They've had a whole winter season in one week! @Ginger_Zee
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Our weather watcher in Palermo is clocking in with 95.6" of snow from 2/10 to 2/18! For perspective, Syracuse's seasonal snowfall total as of 2/18 is 97.4"! They've had a whole winter season in one week! @Ginger_Zee
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Go Carol!!!
Well…NOT a record but we finally made it to 200” season total (been since 19/20 season ) Where will we end up? Only Mother Nature knows N Redfield NY
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Kate Thornton retweeted
@KateThorntonNC9 Lake Ontario Ice from Tuesday this week.
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Carol having fun as always!
20.5 inches for us today season total now at 153.5 I’m gonna guess that there was a few that got a lot more than we did, but I would dare say not too many had as much fun as I did
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Over 50 school closings and delays. Good call considering how messy the last two mornings have been. The snow is picking up right during the morning rush for the 3rd morning in a row.
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Kate Thornton retweeted
At a low of 3 F this morning, Syracuse had its coldest am in almost two years (February 4, 2023 -13 F). The lowest we dropped last winter was +7 F. FYI, at 689 days Syracuse is in the midst of its 3rd longest streak without going below zero. #nywx