40° felt amazing Saturday Indianapolis finally hit freezing after staying below that for nearly a week. For the six days below freezing, Indy's average temperature was only 11.5°! Our highs in the upper 30s to near 40° are about 20 degrees warmer than yesterday. This is only the beginning of how well-deserved thaw that is going to take place over the next several days. The improvements came on an important day in Midwest weather history... the anniversary of the Blizzard of '78! High Temperatures Saturday 24-Hour Temperature Changes No blizzard this go-around, different story 47 years ago If you were around on the dates January 25-27, 1978 in Indiana, you likely remember one of the worst snowstorms in history. It raged for days, and the powerful storm is remembered as the worst in Indianapolis and perhaps for the entire state. The Blizzard of '78 started when the first Blizzard Warning in state history was issued at 3:45 p.m. To this day, it remains the worst blizzard in state history. Three-day snow totals were off the charts. Indianapolis received 15.5" of snow with this blizzard. The 15.5" of snow is the second-highest snow total on record for the Circle City. In other areas, up to 3 feet of snow fell. Additionally, there was already 6.0" of snow on the ground before the storm even hit. Combining those totals, it gave Indianapolis a snow depth of 20 inches which is still the most snow on the ground ever. The storm's central pressure dropped rapidly as two weather systems merged, the rapid drop in the barometer created an intense wind field with gusts of 100mph reported as the low churned over Cleveland with a central pressure of 28.21 inches or 955 mb! The intense storm earned the name the “Cleveland Bomb”. The blizzard made the Hoosier State go into a standstill. This was also the story throughout the Midwest. All roads in Indiana were closed by the Indiana State Police and the National Guard was sent to remove stranded motorists. Wind chills (using the old scale) got down near -50° and 50-55 MPH wind gusts created 20-25 foot high snow drifts. According to the National Weather Service, 70 people died during the storm. Check out some photos from our colleagues at the Indianapolis Star from that period. The only thing moving on Ohio St. during the blizzard of 1978 was a wind blown newspaper. Shot between Penn and Meridian. James Ramsey/The StarAbandoned trucks on Shadeland Ave. ramp during the blizzard. Jan. 27, 1978 Jim Kern/The StarThe snow is piled high on Pennsylvania north of 116th St. near Carmel. Until the thoroughfare was plowed it would have been impossible for even this four-wheel drive vehicle to get through. Jan, 29, 1978. Joe Young/The News1/25/03 Flashback. A National Guard armored personnel carrier was one of few vehicles to get out on the streets 25 years ago this weekend as the Blizzard of 1978 left Indianapolis buried in more than 20 inches of snow -- more than 15 inches of freshly fallen powder capped about 5 inches that already was on the ground from the previous weekend. For three days, from Jan. 25 to Jan. 27, snow fell, the winds blew, and temperatures plummeted. Snow drifted as high as 10 feet and National Guardsmen were called out to rescue many stranded motorists all over Indiana and to break through snowdrifts on Interstate 465. More than 300 travelers - most of them passengers on northbound and westbound Greyhound buses - were stranded at the Downtown terminal. On Thursday, Jan. 26, Mayor William Hudnutt declared a snow emergency following a statewide emergency declared by Gov. Otis Bowen. Hudnut was awake for 36 straight hours as he coordinated the city's response to the snow emergency, including time spent in a helicopter hovering over the strangely quiet, pure white cityscape. Finally, on Sunday, main roads in Indianapolis were clear enough to navigate. Ultimately, 11 deaths in Indiana were attributed to the Blizzard of '78. Indianapolis Star File Photo (Note: this photo was published Jan. 28, 1978).Mike and Gregory Howard have a big job of digging out these cars in the 4500 block of N. College Avenue following the blizzard of 1978. Cold front on the move for a temporary cool-down Temperatures will dip back into the 20s overnight when a cold front comes swinging. This will give us a wind shift overnight, too. Winds Sunday will come out of the west-northwest keeping our temperatures a touch cooler in the upper 20s and lower 30s. Still, this is much better than all of last week. Still have the jackets handy because morning wind chills in the teens are likely. Very pleasant weather starts Monday High pressure will sweep in and it will camp out overhead for days. This will keep our weather consistent next week for several days. The snow will continue melting thanks to the continued sunshine. This will also be the case with temperatures soaring into the 40s for several days! Expect high temperatures 5-10° above average all next week. After we get through the work week, increasing precipitation chances return by next weekend. As of now, rain chances go up starting Friday night with a rain/snow mix possible overnight into Saturday. Because we'll have warmer air aloft in our atmosphere, maybe some freezing rain/sleet could mix in. This is still seven days away but stands as our next precipitation chance in the near term. Until then, enjoy the thaw!