A sometimes impossibly icy mix of rain, sleet and snow lashed the tri-state area overnight and Friday morning, turning roads and sidewalks into icy rinks and sending rivers of water down New York City streets. York.
Although there was little accumulation in terms of snow in the city, those on the streets and sidewalks were met with piling up sleet and heavy, freezing rain by mid-morning. Travelers are advised to exercise extreme caution during the course of the day.
Snow accumulations north and west of the Big Apple’s five boroughs were most notable, with 4 inches reported in parts of the Hudson Valley as of 9 a.m. and snow expected to remain through at least noon.
Ice accumulation reports have been more in line with expectations, with the highest totals seen in New Jersey.
Power outages are a concern in this type of weather, but they were fairly limited (less than 2,500 reported) in the tri-state area as of 9 a.m. Friday.
The largest share of outages occurred in Nassau County on Long Island, with PSE&G reporting 796 customers, a third of all outages reported statewide at the time and more than half of those reported in New York.
Winter storm warnings are in effect for Sullivan, Dutchess and Ulster counties, and winter weather warnings are in effect for much of the rest of the region, including New York City, northeastern New Jersey, Long Island and Westchester and Fairfield counties.
Gov. Kathy Hochul directed state agencies to prepare emergency response resources in advance of the snow through Friday.
“Despite the warm weather we experienced earlier in the week, winter is not quite ready to be here in New York State and we are bracing for additional snow and ice expected to affect most of the state on Friday.” Hochul said in a statement. .
New York City suspended alternate side parking for Friday, and commercial vehicle restrictions went into effect in New Jersey starting at midnight, including a ban on tractor trailers.
Aside from some snowfall in far north New York City, much of the region will begin to dry out around noon. However, the commute to work at night can still be slippery, depending on the temperatures.
The weather pattern becomes calmer after Friday’s dirt, although it will remain cold. Temperatures are expected to hover around freezing on Saturday, though on Sunday it appears to rebound to 40 degrees. At this point, it looks like another frigid start to next week, with sub-zero high temperatures forecast on Monday.
Expect temperatures to hover in the high 30s and 40s for the rest of next week under sunny to partly sunny skies.
–
