Worst Snowstorms In U.S. History: Will 2016 Make This List?

This weekend’s imminent snowstorm has been called everything from a “nightmare” to “potentially historic” to a “threat to life.”

Indeed, it does look like it could be a doozy, with two feet of snow possible in our nation’s capitol and surrounding areas.

But it likely won’t come close to some of the worst blizzards on record in U.S. history.

If you’re holed up this weekend, staying away from the cold and snow outside your window, keep in mind that it could always be worse.

Here are some of the worst snowstorms in history.

The Great Blizzard of 1888

A warmer-than-normal than winter gave way to a brutal snowstorm that began March 12 and dropped more than 50 inches of snow in some places and created snow drifts as high as 52 feet (yes, feet), according to the National Weather Service.

More than 400 people died across the Northeast, including more than 200 in New York City alone.

The Blizzard of 1978

New Englanders remember February of 1978 all too well, when snow blanketed the area, including more than 40 inches in parts of Rhode Island.

Snow fell for 33 straight hours across the region and caused $520 million in damage, according to the appropriately named blizzardof78.org.

In somewhat of an eerie coincidence, 105 years to the day after the 1888 blizzard, a cyclone moving through the Gulf of Mexico dumped snow on much of the Southeast, Mid Atlantic and Northeast.

It collapsed roofs, trapped hikers and killed about 270 people, according to the National Weather Service. Fifty-six inches of snow fell on Mount LeConte in Tennessee and 50 inches on Mount Mitchell in North Carolina.

The storm closed every major airport on the East Coast at some point or another, the service said.

The Blizzard of 1996

AccuWeather calls this “one of the most devastating winter storms to affect the Northeast United States.” The blizzard caused $3 billion in damage, including $1 billion in Pennsylvania alone.

White House Station, New Jersey was hit with 35 total inches of snowfall, according to accuweather, and Philadelphia got 30.7 inches.

The storm was doubly dangerous, as the subsequent flooding from melting snow and rain put parts of Pennsylvania underwater.

“Snowmageddon”

This February storm (well, two storms) is notable both for its wide reach and how it was named.

Two separate storms helped set February snowfall records across the country, including 32.4 inches in Washington, D.C. Following the second storm, 68.1 percent of the country had been covered in snow at some point during the month, according to Live Science.

When President Barack Obama had to leave the White House to speak to the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting he dubbed the month, “Snowmageddon,” and the name stuck.

Image: New York City during The Great Blizzard of 1988