Things to Consider When Writing Snow Storms

Snow storms can be a handy plot device, and if you’re from a snow country, you doubtless know all there is to know about them. This article is less for you and more for people who don’t have a lot of experience with serious snow. It’s not all the details, but it covers enough things to consider when writing snow storms to get you started on your research.

Important Aspects of Using Snow Storms in Stories

How People React

The way people react to snow storms or the threat of snow storms depends greatly on four factors:

1. Age,
2. The amount of snow the person is used to dealing with,
3. The amount of snow the area normally gets, and
4. The person’s access to back-up resources.

Let’s get #1 out of the way first: kids don’t usually react to snow storms like adults do. To most kids, snow storms are opportunities to get out of school and to build snow forts. Most people try to shelter their children from the more serious aspects of a storm. When they can’t do that, the kids generally follow their parent’s cue on how to react.

People who are not used to dealing with a lot of snow are more likely to be alarmed by a big snow storm. Common reactions include…

• Panic,
• Fear, and
• Over-preparing / stockpiling.

If the snow-fall is normal for the region, this will most likely only affect newcomers and travelers – people who have not experienced many winters there yet. If the entire area is expecting much more snow than is normal, then, these reactions will be much more wide-spread and have bigger effects. Such as stores running out of kerosene lamps, heaters, toilet paper, etc.

Finally, the people most affected by storms are those without back-up resources. In cities, the homeless and the very poor are at risk from lack of food, shelter, and warmth. They are likely to have fewer options when faced with a power outage or home damage. That makes the situation much more serious and more frightening for them.

Similarly, those without families or financial back-up to rely on in an emergency are the most likely to run into serious problems in the city and the country, as well. And in the country and more isolated areas, having back-up systems like generators, medical supplies, and larger food supplies become more important because it’s easier to get cut off from help.

How People Prepare for Snow Storms

The exact supplies and resources laid in will depend on the area and severity of the storm. People preparing for a snow storm in Indiana are not going to make the same preparations as people in Alaska. The temperatures and accumulation that count as a major storm are very different for those places and require different prep.

That said, there are common aspects to the preparation regardless of the area:

1. Buying enough supplies to not need to leave the house for the length of time they think they might be snowed in. This usually includes food, toilet paper, and prescriptions at minimum. It might include fodder and shelter for animals.
2. Preparing for a power outage. From checking flashlights and batteries to charging phones/laptops to checking that a generator is in good condition.
3. Checking on those who might need help doing these things such as elderly relatives. From getting them stocked with supplies to moving them in with you temporarily.
4. Preparing for major drops in temperature. Depending on your home and garage options, especially cold temperatures can mean taking special precautions to keep your car and your water pipes from being damaged. I’ve heard of needing block heaters to get cars ready to drive and opening cabinet doors to make sure pipes don’t freeze.

The first 3 are the standard prep actions. The 4th only really happens when temperatures get much colder than is usual for the area. Or when living in a location with insulation or heating issues.

How Storms Affect Infrastructure

By “infrastructure,” I mostly mean government response, but it can also mean the economic patterns an area is built on. This could be at the state, city, or federal level, but it’s most obvious in large cities and on roads.

When an area gets significantly more snow than it’s used to, five areas are most affected:

1. Roads take a lot longer to clear. More snow takes more plows and more salt to clear quickly, and cities used to less don’t keep extra plows, drivers, and salt in reserve just in case they get an unusually big storm. If they did, the taxpayers would riot.
2. The power goes out. Snow weight and ice often cause trees and branches to come down. That can wreak havoc on power lines, and with roads slow to clear, getting lines repaired can take extra time.
3. Things shut down. Usually because of the first two. When the roads are bad, the government tells people not to drive, and when the power’s out, and people can’t drive to work, businesses can’t run. That can affect other government services like trash pick-up, usps, government offices, etc.
4. Emergency response is slowed. Again, bad roads and no power can cause glitches. Emergency helicopters may not be an option due to weather, and it may not be possible to get ambulances to every location they’re needed before roads are cleared.
5. Supply lines get delayed. This is most obvious with grocery stores, but generally, when the roads are bad, anything coming into the area gets slowed down. By plane, too.

The extent that these issues become a problem depends on just how much more snow than usual the area got and the temperatures during and after the snow. If they only got a few inches more than usual, it won’t be too bad. If they got a few feet, or there’s a lot of ice, it will be significantly worse.

How fast temperatures rise afterwards makes a big difference, as well. A big snow that melts very quickly will cause flooding, which can make more problems in those five areas. It’s also even more likely to cause property damage. By code, houses in most states are structured to handle more snow weight than they usually get (as a precaution). The same cannot be said for flooding.

How Snow Storms Kill & Injure People

Freezing to Death

People out during the snow storm are the most likely to freeze to death. White outs can make it impossible to navigate outside without guide ropes (which are not generally around), and walking through deep snow and dealing with cold are extremely exhausting. If people don’t reach shelter fairly quickly, they will almost certainly collapse and lose consciousness.

Anyone without shelter during the storm or an extended cold spell afterwards is at risk for this. Extended power outages in extremely low temperatures can make this an issue even where people are inside. After several days without power below freezing, temperatures inside can become dangerously low, as well. Those not able to go somewhere with heat can face exposure in their own homes.

And, of course, if the people do not die of the cold, they can also suffer frostbite from the same situations.

Car Accidents

People driving on icy and slushy roads have more car accidents (Reduce the coefficient of friction, and the ability to stop or control turns drops drastically.), and that gets worse when people are driving in worse conditions than they’re used to. And even though weather warnings tell people to stay off the roads, they don’t always listen.

Falls

What’s slippery for driving is also slippery for walking. People get hurt falling all the time, and people are far more likely to fall on ice and snow. That alone can result in injury or death, but don’t forget about the danger of falling and being unable to get up (Cliché or not, I’ve seen it happen.). Without someone coming to help, going into shock and freezing can be serious hazards.

Asphyxiation

Why asphyxiation? Because people sit in their cars with the car running to stay warm. Say they pulled over hoping the snow would clear up before driving further, or they had an accident and got stuck in a ditch. Maybe, they were in an rv in a campground. But somehow, the snow built up around the vehicle in such a way that the exhaust for the car or heater got blocked.

If the vehicle was off, that’s no big deal. If the vehicle’s running, however, it’s building up exhaust, and the exhaust can’t get it out. Instead, the car or rv fills with carbon monoxide, and the people die of carbon monoxide poisoning / asphyxiaton.

Shoveling Snow (See Heart Attacks)

Most people in the U.S. are not healthy. We’re not in the physical condition to do heavy labor in adverse conditions. Yet we still think we can move hundreds of pounds of snow in freezing temperatures without having any problems. The result? Heart attacks.

That’s right. Shoveling snow puts more stress on the body than running on a treadmill. A cubic foot of snow weighs 15-20 pounds on average – more if it’s weight, compacted snow. If you’re not in great shape (especially over the age of 45), shoveling snow may be a bad idea.

And let’s not forget that pulled muscles and other action-related injuries are possible as well.

Delayed Medical Care

Lots of regular injuries and health conditions can become more serious or even deadly because of delays to medical care. Medication delayed by shipment issues, ambulances that can’t get through, jammed ERs, or doctor offices without power. Here are a few simple examples of how these delays can be hazardous:

• Someone with lupus can’t go in for their regularly scheduled treatment because there’s a weather advisory – it’s illegal to drive until road conditions improve. As a result, their body hurts so badly, they’re essentially crippled for days.
• Someone on a medication for nerve pain can’t get a refill because the shipment was delayed. Going cold-turkey causes hallucinations, dizziness, and more. It can even cause suicide.
• Someone has an ischemic stroke in the morning while asleep. A family member finds them and calls 911 a few hours later. For recovery, treatment needs to begin within 4.5 hours after the stroke. With the delay of discovery and snowy roads, however, the medical team can’t make it in time.

There are many, many medications with negative side effects for missing a dose and even more medical conditions where delaying treatment can be hazardous or deadly. That’s why stocking medical kits and prescriptions is recommended when a big storm is on the way.

How People Can Benefit from Snow Storms

I know, I know. It’s a complete about-face. But there are ways people can benefit from snow storms. It varies a lot by time period and circumstance, but they definitely exist.

1. Obliterating tracks: If someone is being tracked through a snowy or muddy area, and a blizzard hits, the trail gets wiped out. Yes, the person is going to have to find shelter to avoid being wiped out, too, but if they manage it, they can get a much-needed delay in being tracked.
2. Flow of battle changing: If a snow storm hits in the middle of a war or a battle, the outcome can be drastically changed. The advantage can suddenly shift or flip entirely due to the new hazards faced by both sides. For example, a castle under siege could get a surprise reprieve.
3. Winter sports: People who normally have to travel to ski might be ecstatic over the unexpected precipitation. Don’t be surprised by impromptu ice hockey or skating scenarios either.
4. Winter festivals and frozen rivers and ponds: Sometimes, once the blizzard itself is over, people declare a kind of holiday. Historically, a market could pop up to celebrate things that aren’t usually available – like flavored ices, ice skating, or snow/ice sculptures. This happened more in periods when people didn’t have access to ice regularly, and they had to grab opportunities for profit wherever they could.
5. Enforced bonding: In a story, people getting snowed-in together is a simple way to force people to get to know each other when they wouldn’t have otherwise. It works the same way in real life, and like in books, sometimes the outcome is good, and sometimes, not.
6. Schadenfreude: I’m not entirely sure this counts as schadenfreude unless you’re watching someone who’s out in the snow. But, really, being warm and safe when you know it’s freezing outside is wonderful. Wrapping up in a blanket and sipping cocoa while staring out at a frozen field of snow is something many people enjoy. It’s common enough there’s probably a different term for it, but I couldn’t find it.
7. Financial gain: The stores selling all those staples, heaters, and snow shovels can definitely benefit from an expected storm. Depending on the area and time period, people selling specific services may benefit, too. Woodcutters and weavers, for instance, might have a sudden bloom in purchases.
8. Forced action: Extreme circumstances can force someone to take an action they wouldn’t normally take. While that doesn’t always end well, it certainly can (especially if the author of the story decides it should 😉 ). Such as a homeless person seeking out a shelter to weather the storm and getting additional help as a result. Or someone being forced to finally pay to replace an ineffective furnace because they know it won’t heat enough for the expected freeze – they still get to enjoy more warmth at less cost afterwards.

TL;DR

If you consider these aspects when writing snow storms, then, you should have what you need to make the storm and resulting plot conflicts realistic. While there’s more to snow storms than this (there always is), these are the essentials to start writing a snow storm that your readers can believe.

I hope you enjoyed – and, if it’s winter where you are, stay warm!