Northern Delaware saw another troublesome round of snow today.
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell ordeed state offices to close on Tuesday morning and New Castle County did the same, as schools remained closed. Snow started to fall around 7:30 a.m. Roads were quickly covered, but the snowfall was far lighter than on Sunday.
A wave of other closings and cancellations followed, with the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce canceled its annual holiday breakfast today. Blood Bank of Delmarva remained open, although those with appointments were asked to be careful.
Snow fell steadily, but fell below worst-case estimates. The DEOS system reported snowfall totals ranging from 1.2 inches in Townsend in southern New Castle County to 3.6 inches in Greenville.
“The snow has arrived,” said State Police Sgt. Paul Shavack. “We encourage motorists to limit travel during the snowstorm, but if you need to venture out be prepared for slippery roads and limited visibilities, which make driving conditions difficult.”
Non-essential state employees who live or work in New Castle County are not to report to work for this period, according to the state release. Non-essential employees who live or work in New Castle County and who work second and third shift are also not to report to work.
The University of Delaware remained open during the key final exam period. The Delaware Tech Stanton-Wilmington campus was closed. Wilmington University opened at noon.
The decision came after a surprise storm on Sunday snarled traffic and fell so rapidly that normally snow-free Interstate 95 became snow-covered for a time. The intense storm stayed in a narrow band in Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania and left a foot of snow in some locations.
Snow was expected to start on Monday night in the mountains of Tennessee, then quickly spread across the mid-Atlantic and New England throughout Tuesday, Accuweather reported.
Meanwhile, Delmarva Power took note of the possibility of freezing ran that could snap limbs trees and power lines. Outages were few in the Sunday storm, which came down quickly and did not change to frozen precipitation until after the most intense bands had left.
The intense Sunday snowfall came as a surprise to government agencies and motorists, leading to nightmare trips of several hours and numerous accidents.
Click here for the story from Acccuweather:
