Prepare for a heavy snow this weekend

(Chambersburg) — Franklin County’s first snow storm of the season offers an excuse to be snowbound this weekend.

Winds are expected to kick up deep, powdered snow. On Thursday, a day before the first snowflake was expected to fall, Gov. Tom Wolf declared a state of emergency so authorities can respond quickly.

Utilities expect white-out conditions during the storm. The storm’s dry snow should result in fewer power outages than in a wet snow, but the outages could last longer. The severity of the storm may delay crews responding to trouble spots.

The snowfall could be the deepest in six years.

The National Weather Service, State College, as of Thursday afternoon had refined its mostly likely snowfall to 16 inches at Chambersburg with higher amounts to the south and lesser to the north. The maximum potential accumulation for Chambersburg was 24 inches.

Wind will accompany the storm Friday night through Saturday – sustained at 10 to 15 mph and gusting to about 25, according to the National Weather Service. A calmer and warmer Sunday should have a wind of less than 10 mph and a high temperature around freezing.

The Franklin County Emergency Operations Center will be on standby. An additional staffer will answer non-emergency calls about downed power lines and people who have lost power or heat in their homes.

“Somebody will be here around the clock monitoring things,” said Bradley Stouffer, hazardous materials specialist for the county. “If it’s a couple of calls an hour we’ll have one person.”

If it’s a major incident affecting several municipalities, more help will be called in, he said.

“We’re ready if it gets that bad,” Stouffer said. “We can get a representative from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency down here to assist us and coordinate state assets. We coordinate local and county assets.”

Officials can open up emergency shelters or call out the National Guard.

That happened during a snowstorm in February 2010. Snow drifted five feet deep in 20 mph winds. Motorists were caught in whiteouts. About 100 stranded motorists were rescued. U.S. 30 and Pa. 416 were closed. Three National Guard Humvees cut paths through the snow. Neighborhoods lost power. More than 50 people spent the night at American Red Cross emergency shelters in St. Thomas and Pleasant Hall. Nearly 13 inches of snow fell on top of the foot already on the ground.

For this storm nicknamed Jonas by the Weather Channel, local folks started preparing earlier in the week when the system was still off the Pacific coast.

“Typically bread, milk and eggs are the first to go, whatever people can get into the cart before the first storm of the season,” said Leo Schoenhofen, vice president of the Butcher Shoppe in Chambersburg. “People are pretty excited.”

“The first part of winter was so warm that when cold weather came, things started flying off the shelves, said Derrick Little, sales associate with Nitterhouse Masonry and Hardware in Chambersburg. In advance of the storm people bought ice melt, insulated gloves and snow covers for windshields.

Andy Lakjer, owner the Path Valley Market in Spring Run , said he expected a rush on Friday. He ordered extra milk and comfort food.

“People are stocking up on ice cream,” he said. “I guess if they’re snowed in they want comfort food.”

West Penn Power, the primary distributor of electricity in Franklin and Fulton counties, is moving crews from the Pittsburgh area to Franklin County for the storm, according to spokesman Todd Meyers. Employees will work 16-hour shifts as work continues around the clock. Hazard responders promptly will secure areas at downed lines until they are safe.

“We work on the outages that have the greatest number of customers,” Meyers said. “Public safety is our first priority. There may be a period were roads may not be plowed. There may be a period   where it’s hard to get around and do things.”

“With snow falling at a rate of 3 inches an hour, there’s no way we can keep up with everything,” said Bobby Bingaman, acting Franklin County manager for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Plow drivers will operate on 12-hour shifts. The primary focus of PennDOT’s 35 trucks will be keeping open the main routes of Interstate 81, U.S. 30, Pa. 75, Pa. 16 and U.S. 11.

The heaviest snow should fall during the night, according to Bingaman. Sustained winds of 15 mph may gust to 35 mph.

The storm should cross the Maryland line between 5 to 6 p.m. Friday, he said.

“Even though the storm is to be out of here by 5 or 6 p.m. Saturday, snow will be blowing across roads and causing trouble into Sunday,” Bingaman said.

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This article comes to us through a content-sharing partnership between WITF and the Chambersburg Public Opinion.