The first “major” winter storm in Schuylkill County in 2019 — the one some called Winter Storm Harper — was a total dud.
Coal Region Canary generously measured 2 inches of very heavy wet snow this morning after much of the precipitation had stopped.
This was far less than the 4-8 inches of snow predicted much of the week prior to the storm.
It was just before the storm was really supposed to ramp up that the National Weather Service downgraded the Winter Storm Warning for Schuylkill County to just a Winter Weather Advisory. The advisory cautioned that we could be in line for between 1-4 inches of snow and some ice accumulations from freezing rain.
The freezing rain came and went in no time and by the time it got cold enough to snow again on Sunday, the storm had moved out of the area.
The bad news for Schuylkill County residents: It’s gotten REALLY cold Sunday afternoon and if you didn’t shovel out your areas, you’re facing a nasty block of ice. Take extra care on sidewalks and driveways
Winter Storm Harper is a Bust
It never really got that cold so what could have been a somewhat significant snowstorm for Schuylkill County turned into a mess, more than anything.
By about midnight, you could hear pinging of freezing rain on the windows and cars outside. Not long after that, however, it had turned to mostly plain rain. The idea of precipitation turning back to snow was out of the question at this point.
Temps began dipping around 10 a.m. on Sunday, when a fierce arctic wind settled on the county. That wind sent temps from the upper 30s, and quite nice, to the 20s and lower throughout the day.
Pre-storm Hysterics
It’s always hilarious to see state officials around a snow storm.
So often, our “leaders” in Harrisburg are caught with their pants down or up too high when it comes to winter storms. They can never get the timing right and usually look ridiculous in the process.
Prior to “Winter Storm Harper”, Gov. Tom Wolf declared a State of Emergency. First of all, we think it’s ridiculous to declare an emergency before an emergency has happened. They never seem to have this foresight when an actual storm hits Pennsylvania, though. Odd.
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