Oceanside hit hard by major snowstorm

Updated at 2 p.m., Feb. 9: The National Weather Service has upgraded its Feb. 9 forecast for Long Island to Blizzard Warning, meaning more snow will likely fall than originally predicted and sustained winds and gusts will blow at higher speeds.

With snow falling constantly since the early morning, Oceanside residents woke up to a thick coat covering the streets.

At about 5 a.m., a heavy, wet snow, mixed with freezing rain, had already begun to fall. The snow was expected to turn more powdery as temperatures dropped into the low 20s throughout the day. Snow could fall at three inches per hour at times, and accumulations could range between 12 to 16 inches.

Expect winds out of the north to blow at 20 to 35 miles per hour, with the strongest gusts up to 45 mph.

Oceanside schools and its library are closed Thursday.

As of 2 p.m. the Oceanside Fire Department reported that there have been no major incidents due to the snow.

Oceanside resident Mark Mirsky said that, as of noon, the center of Bennett Street — where he lives — was plowed, but that the street was not visible.

Despite snow still blocking the sides of the road in front of his house, Mirsky said he was in no rush to shovel what he guessed would be wet, heavy and difficult to clear.

“I’m not going out now; it’s only going to get worse,” Mirsky said around noon. “…I can’t even see out my window here.”

Others plan on shoveling later as well, and not only for themselves.

With forecasts earlier this week projecting that an impending snowstorm would hit the area on Thursday, Kyle Baxter, 30, a lifelong Oceansider, said he made sure people knew he would be willing to help residents remove snow.

Baxter and his co-worker, Dan Lombardo, started the business, Two Brothers Snow Removal, two years ago, and spread the word of their services the last couple days by handing out flyers and putting an advertisement on social media.

“When it snows, a lot of people are looking for work, but no one wants to go around knocking door to door,” Baxter said.

He said by letting people know ahead of time and building relationships during previous snowstorms, about 40 houses, as of noon, requested snow removal.

“My phone hasn’t stopped going off since 8 a.m.,” Baxter said. “We just have to wait for the snow to stop for us to get out there.”

Though the two leaders and a small crew fulfill certain requests to clear snow for people at certain times, or immediately in the case of an emergency, the bulk of the work is done after snowfall ceases. Baxter said people have been very appreciative of the service in the past.

“[Residents] were coming outside [saying], ‘Wow, this is amazing, I don’t have to wait somebody for right; I can just leave,’” Baxter said. “They were like, ‘Put me on your list, and basically you don’t have to call me anymore. Just come over next time it snows.’”

Throughout the Town of Hempstead, crews were busy on Wednesday pretreating streets south of Sunrise Highway with brine, a snow-melting solution. They will apply rock salt to the rest of the town, have plows ready and are clearing storm drains. The town has 400 pieces of equipment and 4,500 tons of salt ready to treat roads and parking lots.

At a news conference at the Town of Hempstead Sanitation Department, Supervisor Anthony Santino advised people to avoid driving as much as possible. "If you can, stay home with your kids and binge-watch their favorite Netflix show," he said.

Nassau County’s Department of Public Works began pre-treating roads with brine on Wednesday as well.

“Nassau County is helping to ensure residents have a safe commute by brining main County roadways, bridges and overpasses to prevent black ice,” said County Executive Ed Mangano. “DPW is at the ready to plow and salt county roadways. Our Office of Emergency Management is closely monitoring the storm and has put assets in place to assist residents should the need arise.”

Officials asked that people not park on streets to allow plow crews to clear the roads as quickly as possible.

Nassau County opened its Emergency Hotline at 5 a.m. For non-life-threatening emergencies, call (800) 315-5153. For life-threatening emergencies, call 911 immediately.

Homeless people in need of shelter should call the county's WarmBed Hotline at (866) 927-6233

PSEG Long Island officials said to expect possible power outages. To report an outage, call (800) 490-0075.

The Long Island Rail Road canceled nine trains on six branches on Thursday because of a non-commuter train derailment at Jamaica Station the day before. Because of reduced service and the snowy weather, riders should expect delays, LIRR officials said. Go to mta.info for updates.

For flight delays at John F. Kennedy International Airport, go to panynj.gov/airports/jfk-airlines.html.

For airport alerts, go to airportinfoalerts.com/recentmessages.aspx.

More on this developing story throughout the day.