Published Thursday, December 26, 2002
accumulation
in forecast
By Larissa Theodore
Herald Staff Writer
If area residents were dreaming of a white Christmas, their wish came true.
Mother Nature treated Mercer Countians to her own holiday decoration: a 6- to 8-inch blanket of heavy snow that blocked driveways and sidewalks and clung to trees and shrubbery.
And another 2 to 4 inches were predicted by this morning. The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory Wednesday night for Mercer, Lawrence and Venango counties.
All over Mercer County, the usual quiet of Christmas morning was punctuated by the buzz of snow blowers and the rattling of snow plows and salt trucks.
The snowy weather was blamed for a string of fender benders, which a Mercer County 911 spokesman said occurred mainly on interstates 79 and 80. State police recorded 32 car accidents by 9 p.m. Two of those were rollovers with injuries, which occurred on Springfield Church Road in Findley Township and near Grove City, said a state trooper, who did not provide details.
Tow trucks spent much of Christmas morning pulling stuck vehicles out of the white stuff.
Jim's BP & Service in Farrell rescued several cars between midnight and 4 a.m.
"It was nothing really extravagant," said owner Jim Moore. "We got a couple of vehicles out (Tuesday) night and (Wednesday) morning."
His tow service received a steady flow of calls through 1 p.m. Wednesday. But after 3 p.m., the phone died down.
"I think everybody is off the road, now that they realize it's slippery," Moore said Wednesday afternoon. "The main roads seem to be decent, but the side streets and secondary roads are terrible. A lot of people don't like to slow down."
Tow-truck drivers weren't the only ones keeping busy.
State and local street crews spent much of their holiday clearing snow and ice from main and secondary roads.
PennDOT crews spent Wednesday salting the interstates and keeping lanes open, said Deborah Schreckengost, PennDOT community relations coordinator.
She said crews began preparing for the worst Christmas Eve. A salt grind, or anti-icing material, was spread on roads before the snow started falling.
Crews manned their plows promptly when snow began to fall, she said, adding 25 mph winds blew a slight snow cover back over cleared roads late Wednesday.
"Currently we're working on getting the shoulders cleared off," Ms. Schreckengost said at about 4 p.m. "We're also watching the weather" for additional accumulation, she said.
"Our crews will continue to be out. Nobody's going home. Typically this is what happens to people who work on the roads. We work whether it's a holiday or not."
Like Moore, Ms. Schreckengost advised motorists to watch their speed.
"People really need to slow down. If the temperature drops, you suddenly have to be alert for ice. Take it easy and give yourself plenty of time for driving," she said.