Columbus Day Storm of 1962 Columbus Day Storm of 1962 The Columbus Day Storm of 1962 (also known as the Big Blow, and originally as Typhoon Freda) was a Pacific Northwest windstorm that struck the West Coast of Canada and the Pacific Northwest coast of the United States on October 12, 1962. It is considered the benchmark of extratropical wind storms. The storm ranks among the most intense to strike the region since at least 1948, likely since the January 9, 1880 "Great Gale" and snowstorm. The storm is a contender for the title of most powerful extratropical cyclone recorded in the U.S. in the
Columbus Day mainstream. Surveys conducted in 2013 and 2015 found 26% to 38% of American adults not in favor of celebrating Columbus Day. There are many interrelated strands of criticism. One refers primarily to the treatment of the indigenous populations during the European colonization of the Americas which followed Columbus's discovery. Some groups, such as the American Indian Movement, have argued that the ongoing actions and injustices against Native Americans are masked by Columbus myths and celebrations. American anthropologist Jack Weatherford says that on Columbus Day, Americans celebrate the greatest waves of genocide of the American Indians known in history. A second