UPDATE: Harsh winter storm smashes Wantagh, Seaford
UPDATE AS OF SATURDAY, 2 P.M.:
The National Weather Service has reported Seaford had received a total of 12 inches of snow as of 11:50 a.m. on Saturday.
The original story is below.
In the waning days of January, a nor'easter blew across Wantagh and Seaford Friday night into Saturday, bringing with it plenty of snow and heavy winds.
Seaford had accumulated 8.4 inches of snow as of 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Additional snow is expected to accumulate in Wantagh and Seaford mainly before 4 p.m. Saturday, with heavy downfall at times. Temperatures in Wantagh loomed around 16 degrees on Saturday morning into the afternoon.
County and town officials described road conditions as "dangerous" and said motorists should stay home if they do not have to go out. New York State Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency in New York that began at 8 p.m. on Friday.
Councilman Chris Carini, whose district covers both Wantagh and Seaford, said on Friday that the Town has prepped 400 pieces of equipment and more than 40,000 tons of salt on hand for the storm.
"Our great CSEA Local 880 has prepared for this storm to cover 1,200 miles of the Town of Hempstead's roadways. I ask people to stay off the road as driving will be hazardous," he said.
Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin said Friday that crews are ready to plow the town's 1,200 miles of roadway. "This winter storm is serious and we advise residents to try to stay home and refrain from driving as our region gets hit with heavy snow and strong winds," Clavin said.
At a news conference Friday, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman urged county residents to stay inside their homes and off the roads.
"Our county is prepared for this event," Blakeman said. "We have 80 trucks that have been out already since this morning salting the roads, and they are out prepared to do more salting throughout the evening, and they will plow throughout the evening and tomorrow morning. We expect this to be a two-day event — what I mean by that is the roads won't be clear probably until Sunday morning."
Blakeman also advised residents to keep pets indoors and, in case of power outages, not to leave candles unattended in order to avoid fire hazards.
PSEG-Long Island was reporting only scattered outages across the Island on its website. Electric system reliability was at nearly 100 percent, the utility said as of 9 a.m.
The Long Island Rail Road suspended service until further notice. The LIRR posted on its Twitter feed: "Safety first! We continue to operate patrol trains throughout the system to keep tracks and switches clear of snow and prepare for the resumption of service. Stay off the tracks at all times and do not go around lowered crossing gates, as a train may be approaching at any time."
A winter storm warning remains in effect until Saturday at 7 p.m. A coastal flood advisory is in effect until Sunday at midnight.
Should there be power outages or downed wires, call PSEG at (800) 490-0075. Yo Report and received status updates text OUT TO PSEGLI (773454 or go online, www.psegliny.com/outages.
