A historic Christmas snowstorm dumped a record of 53 inches of snow in Erie, Pa.

A lake-effect snowstorm hammered Erie, Pennsylvania, Christmas Day into Tuesday, shattering not only city records, but also at least one all-time Pennsylvania snowstorm record.

The National Weather Service office in Cleveland says the storm brought 34 inches on Christmas Day — a new all-time daily snowfall record for Erie.

And another 19 inches fell before dawn Tuesday, bringing the total to 53 inches — the greatest two-day total in commonwealth history. The previous record was the 44 inches that fell in Morgantown in March 1958.

This prolific event shattered all previous multi-day snowfall records in Erie dating to 1893, according to the National Weather Service office in Cleveland, including:

Two-day snowfall: 26.7 inches (Nov. 24-25, 1950; the "Great Appalachian Storm")
Three-day snowfall: 30.2 inches (Dec. 29-31, 2002)
Seven-day snowfall: 39.8 inches (Dec. 27, 2001 - Jan. 2, 2002)
13-day snowfall: 52.8 inches (Dec. 31, 1998 - Jan. 12, 1999)

The city of Erie issued a snow emergency, citing “dangerous and impassable” roads, and asked residents to stay off city streets until the snow stops and roads can reopen.

State police and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation are urging people to avoid travel, citing poor visibility and deteriorating conditions.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.