More snow and ice expected
The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh issued a winter storm warning for Southwestern Pennsylvania that started early Monday morning and stretched into Tuesday afternoon.
“Power outages and tree damage are likely due to the ice,” the warning stated. “Travel could be nearly impossible.”
According to the weather service website, 1 to 3 inches of snow was expected along with up to a quarter-inch of ice beginning at 4 a.m. Monday until 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Washington, Greene, Allegheny and Westmoreland counties were included in the warning.
The state Department of Transportation issued Tier 1 vehicle restrictions for the region beginning at 6 p.m. Monday, according to a news release. Those restrictions include a reduced speed of 45 miles per hour and not permitting unloaded tractor-trailers, RVs, and school or commercial buses that don’t have chains or alternative traction devices.
The entire length of Interstate 79 is included in the restrictions along with Interstate 70 from the West Virginia line to the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Jay Ofsanik, press officer for PennDOT’s District 12, said Monday that drivers should be prepared for icy roads Tuesday morning.
“Get up a little earlier to give yourself time to get to work,” Ofsanik advised motorists. “Anytime you have ice or heavy snow there’s that chance for trees or lines down. It’s a possibility; that’s why I always tell people to be prepared for changing conditions.”
Gov. Tom Wolf issued a news release Monday afternoon urging residents to avoid traveling due to anticipated ice and snow accumulation.
“Safety is paramount during these ongoing winter storms,” Wolf said in the release. “State agencies, including PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) and local municipalities are working to prepare roads and clear snow and melt ice to allow for necessary travel, but the more we stay off the roads, the easier their jobs will be and the safer we will make our state.”
Although it’s been a snowy winter, the region isn’t close to breaking season records yet, according to Jason Frazier, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh.
“With this storm, we’re climbing up the charts, but we’re nowhere near accumulation records for the season,” he said.
The Pittsburgh area is just under 50 inches of snowfall for this season, Frazier said, but in 2018 we had nearly 60 inches. The infamous “Snowmageddon” storm of 2010 brought that season 75 inches of snow, Frazier said.
“This season we’ve had more (snow) than the past two winters, but nothing approaching records yet,” he said.
This storm, he said, won’t necessarily bring a lot of snow, but the region can expect at least one-tenth of an inch of ice due to freezing rain, Frazier said.