After a severe blizzard hit the High Plains of the United States in February 1888, causing the deaths of many people and farm animals, an even more destructive blizzard wreaked havoc on the East Coast from Maine to Chesapeake Bay from March 11 to 14. Several feet of snow fell all over the region, and in Saratoga Springs, New York, 52 inches (1.32 meters) of snow fell and there were drifts of up to 52 feet (16 meters) deep. Wind speeds ranged up to 70 miles (113 kilometers) per hour. By the time the storm was over, more than 400 people had lost their lives.