Roads left a mess as winter assault goes on

Quick, heavy storm makes February the region’s second snowiest ever

Monday’s storm was quick, but it hit the winter-weary Lehigh Valley hard, leaving roads a mess after a burst of heavy snow.

“The snow came in fast and at intense rates,” said Ed Valley, meteorologist with Empire Weather, which provides localized forecasts for The Morning Call.

The snow arrived around 10 a.m. in the Lehigh Valley and quickly picked up over the next several hours. By midafternoon, the storm dropped more than 4 ½ inches in parts of Lehigh County, and 5 inches in parts of Bethlehem, according to the National Weather Service.

The snowfall was on the higher end of the predicated accumulation because the dividing line between rain and snow stayed well south of the area, National Weather Service meteorologist Trent Davis said.

Monday’s storm brought the Lehigh Valley’s total snowfall for February to 38.8 inches, according to the National Weather Service. This moves 2021 into the region’s second snowiest February on record, below 42.9 inches of snow in 2010.

Monday’s snow created near-whiteout conditions, causing crashes and snarling traffic on roads across the region.

Route 33 northbound in Wind Gap was closed for several hours in the afternoon at Route 512, where state police and Plainfield Township firefighters worked to clear a jackknifed tractor-trailer. A video posted to social media showed a mileslong backup of vehicles.

Interstate 78 westbound in Weisenberg Township, near Route 100, closed for 2 ½ hours due to a multivehicle crash. Route 309 also was closed at Shankweiler Road in North Whitehall Township.

Allentown — which came into the day tied for the 11th highest snow total in the eastern region — was recently named one of the most snow-fatigued cities in the country by The Weather Channel, along with Chicago, Cincinnati, Oklahoma City, Little Rock and New York City.

The good news? After today, forecasters see few opportunities for wintry precipitation as the calendar turns to March.

Here’s what to know about our weather going forward:

Sun angle

If you turn on a TV newscast this week, you’ll probably hear meteorologists talk a lot about the late February sun angle. Why does it matter?

By the end of the month, the sun will be even higher off the horizon. At this time of year, if we get any snow, the increase in the sun angle causes it to melt much more quickly. Temperature also plays a role with melting (of course), but the higher declination ultimately proves to be the game changer.

The biggest issue going forward will be runoff from the snow melt, which will refreeze at night and could cause problems on area roadways.

Longer, brighter days ahead

The days continue to grow longer as sunset times are continually pushed back.

Tuesday night, the sun will set around 5:45 p.m.

By the end of the month, the sun will set at 5:52 p.m.

By the end of the first week of March, the sun will set at 6 p.m.

In addition, the jet stream will make it usual seasonal shift north into Canada, allowing the region to flip from frigid to mild conditions.

This week, that shift (and the retreat of Arctic air) will allow Pacific air to race into the middle of the country through Tuesday, AccuWeather says.

The Lehigh Valley could see highs in the upper 40s to near 50 degrees by Wednesday.

Counting down the days to spring

The spring equinox occurs March 20, marking the astronomical first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere.

The event officially occurs at 5:37 a.m. After that, the region will experience more daylight than darkness in each 24-hour day. The amount of daylight continues to increase until the summer solstice in June, when the longest period of daylight occurs.

Following Monday’s storm and the subsequent warmup, meteorologists say there is still a chance for some areas to have wintry weather. However, the mid-Atlantic and Northeast are likely to be far less stormy as count down to the official end of winter.

PHOTOS BY MONICA CABRERA/THE MORNING CALL A man wipes snow from his headlights on a snowy morning on Main Street in Hellertown. The borough got 4.3 inches of snow, a trained spotter reported to the National Weather Service.

A Hellertown Public Works truck clears snow from Main Street in the borough on Monday.

MONICA CABRERA / THE MORNING CALL A worker with a flatbed truck stops on a Hellertown Street during the snow fall Monday. Traffic problems were reported across the region during the storm, including on Route 33, which was shut down for several hours near Route 512 because of a jackknifed tractor-trailer.

MONICA CABRERA / THE MORNING CALL A postal worker delivers the mail Monday on Main Street in Hellertown as more snow falls in the Lehigh Valley. The borough got 4.3 inches of snow, a trained spotter reported to the National Weather Service.

MONICA CABRERA / THE MORNING CALL David East, of Hellertown, fill jugs with diesel fuel for tractors while snow falls Monday. When asked what he thinks of the snow, East, a homebuilder, said,“it sucks.”

AMY SHORTELL/THE MORNING CALL A Northampton Department of Public Works plow clears Main Street in the borough.

AMY SHORTELL / THE MORNING CALL A resident works to clear Ridge Alley in Northampton during Monday’s winter storm.