Accu-Weather's Joe Lundberg thinks it'll snow until around lunchtime in the Lehigh Valley. "We're expecting a blanket average of six-to-ten inches of heavy wet snow," Lundberg says. Lundberg is concerned that the heavy snow combined with increased winds could cause downed tree limbs and perhaps power lines.
As feared, this morning's wet, heavy snow is causing power problems across the state. As of 9am, PPL reports more than 87,000 customers without service. The county hit hardest is Schuylkill, with more than 27,000 people in the dark as of 9am. In the immediate Lehigh Valley, more than 1600 PPL customers in Lehigh County and nearly 500 in Northampton County are without service. First Energy says nearly 19,000 of its customers were without service as of 9am. About 1000 of them are in Lehigh and Northampton counties.
The speed limit has been reduced to 45mph on major roads including I-78 in Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties; I-80 in Carbon and Monroe counties; I-81 in Schuylkill County; I-380 in Monroe County; Route 22 in Lehigh and Northampton counties and Route 33 in Northampton and Monroe counties. PennDOT is urging drivers not to go out if possible.
Today's snow has prompted LANTA to cancel its regular schedule. LANTA has announced all of its services are being cancelled today.
A barn in Carbon County was destroyed, but a pair of horses inside were rescued. The fire broke out around 3:30 Monday morning inside a barn on Buck Mountain Road near Weatherly. The horses inside made it out safely. No one was seriously injured. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but it is not considered suspicious.
It may be snowing today, but it'll be amusement park season soon enough and Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom is getting ready for it. The amusement park is holding virtual and in-person interviews from Feb. 17-24 with plans to hire 2,000 seasonal employees. The in-person interviews will happen at the Associate Services Center at 3700 Dorney Park Road, off of Haines Mill Road. The available positions include ride operators, food and beverage, lifeguards and aquatics and security.
Gov. Josh Shapiro says he knows not everyone will agree with his budget proposal he delivered last week, but he says he's ready to work with Republicans who might disagree. He also says he believes in everything he proposed. "That's what I think should be there, but I'm also open to other people's ideas. I've put forth a common sense, balanced budget that cuts taxes and doesn't raise them and still allows us to maintain a healthy surplus. It also allows us to make critical investments that all build on each other," Shapiro says.
The new Jersey State Senate has passed a bill that bans discrimination by weight or height. Republicans opposed the bill and argued current state anti-discrimination laws offer enough protection already. GOP State Senator Jon Bramnick says the bill would cause havoc in state labor law. If it passes the legislature, New Jersey would join Michigan as the only other state to bar discrimination based on weight and height.
New Jersey lottery officials say 2023 was a very good year for the games, with sales up more than two-and-a-half percent for a total of three-point-73 billion dollars. In its final report for the 2023 fiscal year, the lottery contributed a record one-point-17 billion dollars to state revenues. All totaled, the New Jersey Lottery paid out two-point-23 billion dollars last year as the Mega Millions game drove the increase with two jackpots topping one-billion dollars.
Super Bowl 58 was the most-watched telecast ever. Sunday's matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers drew an average of over 123-million average viewers across all platforms, with CBS drawing 112-million, the largest audience in history for a single network. Over 200-million viewers watched all-or-part of the game across networks as well, up ten-percent from last year, which previously held the record. The Chiefs beat the 49ers 25-22 in overtime.