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BY PATRICK WALTERS / Associated Press Writer
Utility crews rumbled along icy roads working to restore power to more than 100,000 customers from Virginia to New Jersey and snowbound airports resumed limited operations Thursday, a day after a powerful storm disrupted the lives of 50 million people from the southern plains up through the East Coast.
Many schools systems in the path of the storm remained closed for a second day, including in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., although New York City school children headed back to class after only their third snow day in six years.
In Washington, the federal government was closed for a fourth straight day. The nation’s capital joined Philadelphia and Baltimore in logging their snowiest winters in history.
Paul Kocin, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Washington, D.C., said the storm compares to some of the greatest ever largely because of its timing. He estimated 50 million people were affected.
“The big difference is that it occurred within a week and a half of three other storms,” Kocin said. “The combination of storms is almost unprecedented — the amount of snow, the amount of impact.”
The latest storm dumped nearly 16 inches in Philadelphia and about 20 inches in central New Jersey. Totals ranged from 10 to 16 inches around New York City.
Yue-Chung Siu, 25, got up early to be at work at his family’s bagel store in Philadelphia by 5:30 a.m. Thursday. He said his normal 30 minute commute from Bensalem turned into an hour and 45 minutes because of detours and poorly plowed roads.
He recalled the record-breaking blizzard of January 1996.
“I was a little kid, so I had a lot of fun,” Siu said. “Now, it’s like half-fun, half-hassle.”
D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty said it would take another 24 hours to see a lot of normal government operations.
“Then we have a nice, long weekend and the city should be back on its feet by Tuesday,” he told CBS’ “The Early Show.”
He said the city has spent at least double its normal budget on snow removal and expects to ask the federal government for help.
The storm had halted flights throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, but by Thursday morning flights began to arrive at Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. Both of Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport’s two main runways reopened, but officials warned that flight cancellations would continue because of the storm.
One primary runway was open at Philadelphia International Airport on Thursday morning and a second should open by 9 a.m., said airport spokeswoman Victoria Lupica.
All three New York area airports were back in service, although many flights still remained canceled.
In Philadelphia, road crews worked to clear Interstate 76 and I-676, which closed Wednesday to leave the city of 1.5 million residents with only one usable major artery. Authorities reopened the two routes Thursday morning.
The D.C. Department of Transportation urged motorists to stay off city streets Thursday morning to keep them clear for emergency response, tree and road crews.
Emergency officials in eastern Pennsylvania reported more than 200 vehicles, mostly trucks, were stranded Wednesday along I-78. Officials said gasoline, food and water were delivered to the stranded drivers before plows could clear paths for them by midnight, but the roadway remained closed on Thursday.
In northeast Maryland, staffers at the Harford County Emergency Operations Center fielded several calls per minute from residents struggling to meet the financial demands of a second snowstorm just days after the first. One woman called to say she couldn’t afford to stay at her motel another night and was about to be evicted. Homeless shelters were full, forcing the county to pay for motel rooms for some people.
“We really can’t have people pushed out into the snow,” said Scott Gibson, the county’s director of human resources. “The motels are our second line of defense.”
Neighbors
Related Photos
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AP Photo/Intelligencer Journal
Discussion
Eastern U.S. digs out from storm for record books
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Pietrowski-Smith Engagement
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Helton named Teacher of the Year
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Lay Students Help Dedicate New Playground
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Whitley Fish and Wildlife sergeant graduates from DOCJT’S Academy of Police Supervision
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Cumberlands welcomes the class of 2014
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Local tumbling team strikes gold at Kentucky state meets
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New York Bound!
Three local young women are on their way to experience the Big Apple.
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Surprise birthday tea held for Ruth Thomas-Burkhart
A surprise birthday tea was held recently for Ruth Thomas-Burkhart at the Thomas Farm in Rockholds. Over 50 people attended the noon tea and dinner later that evening.
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Make school lunches and snacks nutritious and fun
As kids head back to school, parents are faced with the dilemma of finding foods to pack for lunch and snacks that kids want to eat and that are good for them. Most snacks available in the grocery stores are full of fat, sugar and/or salt with little nutritional benefit, so finding healthy choices that kids are willing to eat isn’t always an easy task.
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Photo detective
To our readers: We received the historic photos shown, but we need your help telling us their stories.
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