WINTER BLAST
Pedestrians cross Seventh Street at the Liberty Avenue intersection during a snowy rush hour on Wednesday.
Pittsburgh shattered its record of total snowfall for Dec. 16 before the day was close to over, according to National Weather Service officials.
However, the snowstorm so far has caused no delays in delivering the COVID-19 vaccine, the state reported.
NWS meteorologist Jenna Lake said at around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday that the city had seen about 7 inches of snow, breaking the 1.9-inch record set on that day in 1890.
The area surrounding Pittsburgh saw a few inches more, about 8 to 9 inches at around 9:30 p.m., because the city tends to be warmer, Ms. Lake said.
She also said at the time that an additional 1 to 2 inches were expected overnight.
Despite the storm, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported on Wednesday evening that the snow had not caused any concerns in delivering the COVID-19 vaccine.
“At this time, we have not received any delays or issues delivering the vaccine,” Department of Health spokesperson Rachel Kostelac said.
In the first round of vaccine deliveries this week, 13,650 doses were to be delivered to Philadelphia and 97,500 across the rest of the state, according to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
As far as snow clearing,
Allegheny County spokesperson Brent Wasko said on Wednesday that the crews were “completely prepared for everything we’ve seen so far.”
Timothy McNulty, spokesman for Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto, echoed that sentiment, saying the city’s plan for snow removal had not changed from Tuesday.
In a press release issued Tuesday, city officials said the Department of Public Works planned to have 75 trucks out from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 69 trucks out from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday.
Officials said night crews are working to remove snow from 10 p.m. Wednesday to 7 a.m. Thursday.
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation spokesperson Steve Cowan said PennDOT likewise had 79 trucks circulating through the district. He said the trucks were in “round the clock coverage” through the end of the storm, clearing and salting roads and monitoring refreezing situations.
Mr. Cowan noted several accidents throughout the day, including a traffic stoppage at the Fort Pitt Tunnel at about 7:30 p.m. due to “a disabled truck and roadway conditions on Green Tree Hill.”
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Director Randy Padfield told PennLive on Wednesday that the dangers of such a storm don’t quite end when the snow does.
“The day after a snowstorm is always one of the busiest days,” Mr. Padfield said. “The reason being is people go out and try to recover. That’s when people have heart attacks, they have strokes, they slip and fall and those types of things. That’s when the emergency departments get extremely busy.
“That’s why we really want people to heed our warnings and safety advice, to be able to take your time and work as a community to recover from this storm.”