Winter storm drops 11 to 14 inches of snow in RVC

Roughly a foot of snow dropped in Rockville Centre on Thursday as a fierce winter storm swept up the Atlantic Coast.

According to Mayor Francis X. Murray, about 11 to 14 inches fell in the village, depending on the area. The snow began falling early in the morning, between 4 and 5 a.m. on Feb. 9, and did not let up for another 12 hours. As predicted, the heaviest snow fell at midday, when high winds whipped snow across local streets, causing near-whiteout conditions.

Murray declared a snow emergency on Thursday, which prohibited on-street parking so that emergency vehicles and plows could have easier access to the roads. Many folks heeded the warning as they rode out the storm at home, so streets were virtually empty, allowing plows to work largely unhindered throughout the day.

“They did a beautiful job,” Murray said of the village’s Department of Public Works. “I didn’t have one complaint.”

The snow emergency has since been lifted.

By 4 p.m., the snow had petered out, and by 5:30 the skies cleared, allowing for a brilliant red-and-orange sunset to end what was a very tough day for Long Island.

People were seen in their driveways digging on Thursday afternoon, even before the storm wound down, as well as on Friday morning.

The Rockville Centre School District and St. Agnes Cathedral School were both closed on Thursday and had delayed openings on Friday.

According to village police, there were three reported accidents on Thursday. There was a two-car collision on Sunrise Highway, a solo wreck near Lincoln Avenue and another two-car accident near Aldred Avenue. There were no injuries in any of the accidents.

Nassau County opened its Emergency Hotline at 5 a.m. on Thursday. 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.

To report an outage, call PSEG Long Island (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.