Your ISP has a DHCP server. They can assign IPs by modem MAC addresses. When your modem comes online, it communicates to the network indicating it is looking for an IP address. The DHCP server listens to this communication and starts talking to the modem. The modem then transmits its MAC address to the DHCP server.
A storm that has dumped 60 inches of snow on Erie since Sunday night will bring another heavy blast of lake-effect snow to portions of Erie County Tuesday night and Wednesday. The National Weather Service in Cleveland is forecasting possible snow accumulation of an additional 7 inches Tuesday night and into the early morning Wednesday.
However, in some seasons, communities on the Tug Hill have recorded seasonal totals exceeding 400 inches (about 1,000 cm). Lake-effect snow is also to credit for Pennsylvania's snowiest location, Erie, and lake-effect moisture is also a big factor in bringing snow to the mountains of western Maryland.