d Reed/Mayoral Photography Office

Mayor de Blasio updates New Yorkers on storm preparations on Sunday, January 25.

A forecast that worsened suddenly. Snow that fell not just deep but fast.

Those were two factors present when a blizzard struck New York City on December 26, 2010, that appear also to be in play today as the city braces for a storm that the National Weather Service has dubbed “potentially historic.”

The 2010 storm was a disaster for the city and the Bloomberg administration. Passengers were trapped on trains. Buses were abandoned on the streets. References to the 1969 snowstorm that forever damaged Mayor Lindsay’s reputation piled up as deep as the white stuff.

As late as yesterday morning, the city was under a storm “watch” calling for 10 to 14 inches before the forecast worsened in the afternoon. And NWS is calling for snow to fall at a pace of two to four inches per hour; the 2010 storm was on the low side of that.

Clad in a green DSNY jacket, Mayor de Blasio yesterday spoke at length about precautions the city is taking to deal with the coming storm. Read the report the Bloomberg administration issued after the 2010 debacle and decide for yourself if we’re ready.