Sample Detailed Written Report
- Date:
- September 2, 2003
- Attn:
- Mr. Joe Attorney, Esq.
- Company:
- Attorney & Lawyers, P.C.
- Case:
- “somebody v. somebody else, Inc.”
Detailed Summary of the Weather and Ground Conditions
for the Period January 1-7, 2003 in Your Town, New York
1. INTRODUCTION
This in-depth report is based on a review of weather data and climatological records in the vicinity of Yourtown, New York (Location of the incident). In order to determine the weather and ground conditions for the period January 1-7, 2003, official copies of the following weather records were obtained and reviewed:
- National Weather Service hourly surface weather observations
- Cooperative observer station reports
- The publication “Local Climatological Data” for the LaGuardia Int’l Airport in Queens, New York in January 2003
- New York City 0.5 degree tilt-Base Reflectivity Doppler Radar images zoomed in over the Yourtown, New York area
The station locations that were used in this study are listed below along with their approximate distance from the location of the incident (in Miles):
| Station (Location) | Distance from Incident |
|---|---|
| Closetoyourtown, New York: | 2 Miles Southwest |
| Furtheraway, New York: | 8 Miles North |
| Otherdirection, New York: | 10 Miles East |
| Nearby, New York: | 16 Miles West-Southeast |
These weather station locations are plotted in red ink on a “Streets 98” map that is attached to the end of this report. The location of the incident is highlighted in yellow. This will help give you an approximate location of the weather stations we used in this determination.
The weather data and Climatological records used for this analysis are the official records that Meteorologists rely upon every day during the normal course of business and are either kept in our office or at the National Weather Service.
2. DAILY WEATHER ANALYSIS
The following table is a summary of daily weather and ground conditions day by day for the period January 1-7, 2003 in Your Town, New York (location of the incident). This summary includes the date, the Maximum temperature for the 24 hour period (in Fahrenheit), the Minimum temperature for the 24 hour period (in Fahrenheit), the Liquid-Equivalent precipitation total for the 24 hour period (in inches), the amount of snow and/or sleet that fell during the 24 hour period (in inches) and the snow and/or ice depth on the ground at 7:00 AM EST (in inches). It should be noted that any snow and/or ice measurements, including the snow and/or ice depth on the ground, are taken in exposed, untreated and undisturbed areas away from any objects that may act to distort the true measurement.
Please note that a “Tr”, or Trace, in the liquid equivalent precipitation column indicates an amount under 0.01”, not measurable. A “Tr” in the Snow/Ice column indicates less than 0.1” fell, and a “Tr” in the On Ground column indicates a snow and/or ice depth under 0.5”.
JANUARY 2003
| DAY | MAXIMUM | MINIMUM | Liquid Equivalent | Snow/Ice | On Ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/1 | 45 | 33 | 1.60” | 0.0” | 0.0” |
| 1/2 | 36 | 27 | 0.21” | 0.0” | 0.0” |
| 1/3 | 33 | 26 | 0.45” | 1.0” | Tr |
| 1/4 | 33 | 29 | 0.19” | 0.5” | 1.0” |
| 1/5 | 34 | 22 | 0.09” | 1.0” | 1.0” |
| 1/6 | 33 | 29 | 0.10” | 1.0” | 2.0” |
| 1/7 | 29 | 21 | Tr | Tr | 2.0” |
A very unsettled period of weather occurred in Your Town, New York from January 1-7, 2003. A heavy rainstorm occurred on January 1, 2003 and rain also fell on January 2, 2003. On January 3, 2003, another storm system moved through causing snow, freezing rain and rain to fall throughout most of the day, continuing into the day on January 4, 2003. On January 3-4, 2003, the air temperature was close to or below freezing most of the time. This caused any precipitation and standing areas of water to accumulate and freeze on untreated and undisturbed surfaces.
In addition, between January 4, 2003 and January 6, 2003, melting and refreezing processes occurred and these processes caused new areas of ice to form in addition to the snow and ice that was already on the ground from the original storm. As daytime air temperatures rose above freezing, the snow and ice on the ground melted and caused areas of standing water and runoff to accumulate. Once the air temperature dropped back to freezing or lower, these areas of standing water and runoff refroze to ice on exposed, untreated and undisturbed sur- faces. The result is a presence of snow and ice from the original storm with additional areas of ice present from the melting and re-freezing processes. This ice is sometimes referred to as “black ice. Sunshine alone can sometimes cause melting to occur even when the air tem- perature is below freezing.
JANUARY 5, 2003
On this date, approximately 1.0” of snow and ice was present on exposed, untreated and undisturbed surfaces. Light snow developed around 5:00 PM EST and this continued through Midnight. Approximately 1.0” of new snow fell. The maximum temperature was 34 degrees Fahrenheit and the minimum temperature was 22 degrees Fahrenheit. The air temperature was at or below freezing from around 3:45 PM EST through Midnight EST.
JANUARY 6, 2003
Light snow was already falling at Midnight EST and this continued through about 4:00 AM EST. The sky remained overcast from 4:00 AM EST through 8:45 AM EST. At about 8:45 AM EST, light snow redeveloped and continued to fall through around 2:00 PM EST. No precipitation fell from around 2:00 PM EST through 8:00 PM EST. At approximately 8:00 PM EST, light snow began to fall again and this continued intermittently through Midnight EST. Ap- proximately 1.0” of new snow fell on this date.
The air temperature on January 6, 2003 was at or below freezing from Midnight EST through about 1:00 PM EST, at 33 degrees Fahrenheit from about 1:00 PM EST through 1:30 PM EST and at or below freezing from around 1:30 PM EST through Midnight EST.
JANUARY 7, 2003
Light snow was already falling at Midnight EST and it continued to fall through about 12:15 AM EST. No precipitation fell from 12:08 AM EST through 5:45 AM EST. Light snow redeveloped at around 5:45 AM EST and this continued to fall through about 6:45 AM EST. The sky remained mostly cloudy and no precipitation fell from around 6:45 AM EST through 8:45 AM EST.
At 7:00 AM EST, the sky was mostly cloudy, the air temperature was 25 degrees Fahrenheit, there was a fresh dusting of snow on the ground and approximately 2.0” of snow and ice was present on exposed, untreated and undisturbed surfaces from previous events.
HOURLY TEMPERATURE ANALYSIS
The following table is a summary of the air temperature at the surface by hour (In degrees Fahrenheit).
| Hour | Temperature |
|---|---|
| 1am | 27 |
| 2am | 27 |
| 3am | 27 |
| 4am | 25 |
| 5am | 25 |
| 6am | 25 |
| 7am | 25 |
| 8am | 25 |
| 9am | 25 |
3. CONCLUSION
After studying all of the available weather records and information, I conclude with a reasonable degree of Meteorological certainty that in Your Town, New York: (a) Several precipitation events occurred between January 1-7, 2003; (b) On January 3-4, 2003, the air temperature was at or below freezing most of the time on both days and this caused the rain, freezing rain and snow that was falling to accumulate; (c) In addition, any areas of standing water or film that were present on exposed, untreated and undisturbed surfaces on January 3-4, 2003 likely froze into layers of ice; (d) Several light snow events occurred on January 3, 4, 5 and 6, 2003 with additional snowfall of 0.5-1.0” accumulating each day; (e) The air temperature was at or below freezing almost all of the time on both January 5, 2003 and January 6, 2003 and below freezing for the entire day on January 7, 2003; (f) At 7:00 AM EST, the sky was mostly cloudy, the air temperature was 25 degrees Fahrenheit, there was a fresh dusting of snow on the ground and approximately 2.0” of snow and ice was present on exposed, untreated and undisturbed surfaces from previous events (g) Light snow fell from about Midnight EST through around 12:15 AM EST and again from 5:45 AM EST through around 6:45 AM EST on January 7, 2003; and (h) With a pre-existing snow and ice cover present from the events that occurred several days earlier, it is likely that the light snow that fell during the morning of January 7, 2003 likely covered any pre-existing snow or ice with a fresh dusting of snow.