Published Monday, February 17, 2003
By Larissa Theodore
Herald Staff Writer
Gary Paulson of Sharon made sure he dressed properly Sunday night. He wore snow boots, a heavy parka, gloves and what he called his "ninja Velcro" face protector, to guard against frigid wind.
Through rain, sleet or -- in recent weeks -- snow, Paulson works outside up to three hours at a time collecting grocery carts from the Giant Eagle parking lot in Hermitage.
"I could go inside and help bag, but then the lobby would be low (of shopping carts)," he said through his face protector.
While Mercer County was on the outside edge of what's being called the East's worst storm of the season -- a near blizzard that buried Washington D.C., Philadelphia and dumped a half-foot of snow on Pittsburgh -- the weather pattern produced unbearably cold work conditions for Paulson and others like him.
The wind chill here on Sunday night was down to 0 degrees and the area was expected to accumulate another two inches of snow overnight, according to the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh International Airport. The county could see between 3 and 6 inches of snow today, said Lou Giordano, Weather Service meteorologist.
Snow fell Sunday from Missouri to New Jersey, part of a huge storm system that also produced thunderstorms in the South and a tornado in northern Florida. At least five deaths had been blamed on the weather since snow burst across the Plains on Friday and Saturday.
In Pittsburgh, 6.5 inches of snow had fallen by Sunday evening. Across the state, Harrisburg saw 8.5 inches of snow, more than a foot was expected in Philadelphia, and the National Weather Service predicted some areas in western Pennsylvania could get as much as 20 inches of snow, while 3 feet could fall in the mountains.
Flakes fell at a rate of up to 4 inches an hour in parts of Maryland. Forecasts ranged from a foot of snow by late today in Rhode Island and Massachusetts to 20 inches in New Jersey and 2 feet in Maryland and northern Virginia. The Weather Service forecast up to 3 feet of snow in West Virginia's most mountainous counties. More than a foot of snow was possible in New York City.
By 5 p.m. Sunday, Mercer County roads were wet and slushy at various spots, said Ken Pochatko, PennDOT assistant county manager. He expected conditions to get worse and said all available plows and salt trucks were out working.
Interstate 80 marked the heavy snow line in Western Pennsylvania and a number of minor traffic accidents were reported along Interstate 79. The accidents were keeping state police busy Sunday as visibility on the road was limited by moderate snowfall.
"People know enough to slow down, they just don't slow down enough," said State Police Cpl. Wayne Bush.
The cold and snow can be blamed on the jet stream, a fast flow of winds in the upper atmosphere, that is changing, Giordano said.
"The Northwest is getting cold weather from the Arctic and Canada. Starting Tuesday it shouldn't be as cold because you'll experience more from flow from the Pacific," he said.
While partly sunny skies and a high near 30 are expected for Tuesday, weather-watchers can look forward to Thursday's high in the lower 40s, Giordano said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.