The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
First snow makes a mess of area
The first measurable snow of the season fell quickly and heavily Thursday, making evening rush hour dangerous and keeping first responders busy.
As the storm neared, predictions for snowfall totals ranged from a dusting to 6 inches or more for places farther away from the coast. When the storm arrived, at around 4 p.m., the pace of snowfall was quicker than many anticipated.
The snow caused slippery roads, delays and slow-downs on every highway west of Hartford by 6 p.m., with top speeds hovering around 25 mph.
In Stamford, at peak rush hour, around 5:15 p.m., the Merritt Parkway north was closed between Exits 35 and 36 because of, “many motor vehicle accidents and disabled vehicles,” according to the state Department of Transportation. That closure was still in effect more than an hour later.
Local law enforcement agencies were seeing crashes, including in Norwalk, where police reported an uptick in collisions around 5:30 p.m.
In Danbury, where the National Weather Service said about 6 to 8 inches of snow was expected, Mayor Mark Boughton said residents seemed to heed warnings about getting off the roads.
“People have been pretty good about getting home early, so (it’s) not like we normally have,” Boughton said. He said many residents were able to leave work early to avoid the worst of the storm during the typical evening rush hour commute.
Around 5 p.m., Boughton said about 2.5 to 3 inches of snow had accumulated in Danbury and more was falling heavily.
“There’s a lot of snow coming down right now,” he said. “But things are going smoothly — the plows are out there.”
Along the coast in Bridgeport, where forecasts called for 1 to 3 inches of snow before a changeover to rain, there were accidents galore.
“As soon as the snow started, we started to get these accidents starting to pop up,” said Scott Appleby, Bridgeport’s director of director of emergency management and homeland security.
He said the city expected 2 inches of snow “in the worst case.”
Forecasts called for the snow to transition into rain later Thursday night. The NWS expected the snow to somewhat melt because of the rain, but then refreeze and cause icy roads with the low temperatures.
“Temperatures are hovering around freezing or below, so road conditions will be hazardous,” the weather service said.
Northern Long Island and the northern portion of New York City were forecast to get 2 to 3 inches of snow per hour as the storm pushed on into the evening, the NWS said.