PD News

NEPA is not expected to get as much snow as areas to the south, but high winds will reduce visibility and drifting will make it harder to keep roads passable

Snow coming, and driving could be tricky

By Steve Mocarsky smocarsky@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

Folks in Luzerne County can expect at least 3 to 5 inches of snow to accumulate on Wednesday, with high winds and drifts that will impede driving and impact schedules, according to a local meteorologist.

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Operator Al Pedana moves road salt around Monday after receiving a shipment at the PennDOT compound off Route 115, Bear Creek Township.

Aimee Dilger/the times leader

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TRAVEL TIPS

• Because weather and road conditions can deteriorate quickly, motorists should always check the weather forecast before traveling.

• Road conditions for interstates and some limited-access highways are available by visiting www.511pa.com before leaving home, or by calling 511 while stopped in a safe location.

• For more winter driving tips and information on how PennDOT treats winter storms, visit www.dot.state.pa.us/winter.

• Downloadable materials, including home and car emergency kit checklists and emergency plan templates, are available at www.ReadyPA.org or by calling 1-888-9-READYPA.

FORECAST

 

•Snow will begin early tonight and last into Wednesday night. Total snowfall across the Wyoming Valley should range from 3 to 5 inches. Details, Page 8B

“There will be enough snow to shovel and plow, but it won’t be the storm of the century, it won’t be the blizzard of 2010 and it won’t be the kind of storm that hit Washington and Philadelphia over the weekend,” WNEP-TV Chief Meteorologist Tom Clark said on Monday afternoon.

The National Weather Service issued a “severe weather alert” for this afternoon, calling for a “winter storm watch” in 22 Pennsylvania counties, including Luzerne and surrounding counties.

According to the National Weather Service, a snowstorm is possible for a large part of South Central New York and Northeast Pennsylvania from late today through Wednesday.

Snow is expected to begin late this afternoon and evening and last through Wednesday, tapering to snow showers Wednesday night. The snow could become heavy at times, especially during the day Wednesday. The potential exists for at least 7 inches of snow from South Central New York to Northeast Pennsylvania, according to the NWS.

Wilkes-Barre area residents started preparing for the storms this past weekend.

Nick Kukosky, assistant manager at Lowe’s Home Improvement Center in Wilkes-Barre Township, said sales of shovels, snow blowers and related merchandise is “up a good 20 percent or more.”

“Every time there’s a snowstorm, this area is famous for that. People will go out for their bread and milk and their snow shovels. It’s the same thing with air conditioners in the summer. You think you can’t possibly sell any more, but you do,” Kukosky said.

And considering the wintry wallop the southeast received over the weekend, people are sensitized to expect a major storm locally, Clark said. However, he predicts a bit less snow for the Wilkes-Barre, Scranton and Hazleton areas.

“There’s going to be a Nor’easter along the East Coast and it will be snowing here by daybreak on Wednesday. … The heaviest snow should fall Wednesday morning into the early afternoon. It will probably be a light snow Wednesday evening with strong, gusty north winds up to 40 mph,” Clark said.

Clark predicts that the snow will start falling locally tonight, possibly as late as midnight.

The good news is that there likely will not be any sleet or freezing rain to deal with. But the blowing and drifting snow will make it more difficult for road crews to keep roads passable, Clark said.

State Department of Transportation crews are preparing to deal with the second massive snowstorm to hit the state in less than a week, and officials are urging motorists to avoid unnecessary travel.

“I want to applaud those motorists who heeded our warnings last week and stayed off the roads over the weekend,” said PennDOT Deputy Secretary for Highway Administration Scott Christie.

“However, this storm will occur during the week, when many motorists will have no choice but to travel, so we’re asking them to allow extra time to reach their destinations and be sure that their vehicle emergency kits are packed,” Christie said.

PennDOT warns motorists that although snow accumulations might not approach the amounts seen this past weekend in Southeastern Pennsylvania, high winds are expected to accompany the latest storm, creating the potential for near-zero visibility and major drifting.

PennDOT advises motorists who do encounter white-out conditions to make every attempt to come to a complete stop, but only after safely getting as far off the road as possible or preferably when there is a safe area to do so. Also, do not stop in the flow of traffic because this could create a chain-reaction collision.

According to Christie, interstates and other high-volume expressways are treated first during winter storms. Secondary state routes are a lower priority and during severe winter storms, deeper accumulations will occur on these roadways.

PennDOT asks motorists to allow plenty of space when driving near plow trucks. Also, for their own safety and the safety of plow operators, motorists should never attempt to pass a truck while it is plowing or spreading winter materials.

The department’s primary goal is to keep roads passable, not completely free of ice and snow. PennDOT will continue to treat roadways throughout the storm until after precipitation stops and roads are clear. The department has more than 600,000 tons of salt in stock around the state.

Through the end of January, PennDOT has spent $131.9 million out of its projected winter budget of $245 million to plow and maintain the 96,000 snow lane miles for which the department is responsible.

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