Posted on 12/06/2003 7:29:58 AM PST by BigWaveBetty
People walk down a snow covered sidewalk on New York's Fifth Avenue, December 5, 2003. The New York area is expected to get up to eight inches of snow in the next two days. REUTERS/Jeff Christensen
Northeast this season was threatening near whiteout conditions from New Jersey to Maine on Saturday after burying Pittsburgh under 7 inches of snow, delaying flights from Boston to Washington, D.C., and creating hazardous driving conditions blamed for at least five deaths.
As much as 2 feet of snow was forecast for Massachusetts by the end of the weekend, and northern Pennsylvania was bracing for as much as 20 inches.
"We're hoping the forecasters are wrong, but if they're not, we're trusting that people will be staying home with their families and off the road so we can get our job done," said Anna Farneski, spokeswoman for the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
Drivers on Friday braved slick highways, and commuters shuffled along frozen sidewalks as they tried to make their way home through the wind and snow. In New York City, traffic slowed to a crawl.
"The salt is here, the trucks are ready, the chains are on, and New York is prepared for the assault," New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday.
The storm was blamed for at least five traffic deaths, including the 74-year-old driver of a van that collided with a school bus in Pennsylvania. None of the three dozen children on the bus was hurt. Two people were killed in Virginia and two in New Jersey.
More than 80 fender-benders were reported on the New Jersey Turnpike, where the speed limit was reduced from 65 mph to 35 mph because of dangerous conditions.
The storm brought several inches of snow to Virginia and Maryland on Friday, and road crews were preparing for a second onslaught with flurries overnight expected to turn to heavy snow. Four to 8 inches was expected in the Baltimore region.
Dave Martin, a National Weather Service (news - web sites) Meteorologist in State College, Pa., said the two-day storm was dumping a large but not overwhelming amount of snow on an area stretching from the Carolinas to New England.
"What's unique is the fairly big accumulation, but what's making it relatively easy is that it's over two days," Martin said Saturday.
Forecasters predicted accumulations of up to 20 inches in northern Pennsylvania, up to 15 inches in New Jersey, and 12 to 18 inches in New York City and its suburbs by the end of the weekend.
Flights were delayed or canceled early Saturday at Logan International Airport in Boston, where wind gusts were at 35 mph, an airport spokesman said. Cancellations and delays also were expected Saturday at New York's La Guardia and John F. Kennedy airports and New Jersey's Newark Liberty International, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
About 100 flights were canceled at Philadelphia International Airport on Friday, and some flights were delayed at Washington Dulles International Airport.
While the storm disrupted or postponed outdoor plans — including Frederick, Md.'s downtown Kris Kringle parade, which was delayed for a week — some people embraced the seasonal weather.
"We're loving it," said Tana Graham, visiting New York City from Jackson, Miss. "It's putting us in the Christmas spirit."
Others were dismayed at the prospect of digging out. Sucie Stevenson looked dejected while inspecting a shovel she had just bought at a home and garden center in Orleans, Mass.
"I love storms, but I don't like shoveling," Stevenson said.
Many schoolchildren got an early start to their weekend when dozens of schools closed early on Friday. Some high school students got a lucky break when several schools canceled Saturday's scheduled Scholastic Aptitude Tests.
Gore seems to be creating one for the dems, lol. Clark just announced that he has not ruled out Hillary for his running mate...ha ha...link
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) speaks to reporters following a speech to the New York/National Housing Conference in New York, December 9, 2003. When asked by reporters to comment on former Vice President Al Gore's endorsement of former Vermont Governor Howard Dean (news - web sites) for president, Clinton said, 'I am not getting involved in the primary campaign.' REUTERS/Mike Segar
Translation: "I'll wait till the convention to make my move."
What's up with that tooth? Yikes. As for the earthquake, I don't know - things have been pretty darn calm around here.
The usually loquacious Sen. Hillary Clinton offered a stony, one-word answer when asked whether she agreed with her husband's once-loyal veep.
"No," said Clinton.
Behind the scenes, observers said the frosty response had more to do with 2008 - when both Gore and Hillary Clinton are projected as potential presidential contenders - than current affairs. Under this view, Gore's endorsement of Howard Dean yesterday was aimed at seizing long-term control of the Democratic Party, in part by gaining favor with front-runner Dean and his growing base of active, left-leaning Democrats.
That Gore chose to make his endorsement in Harlem - down the street from former President Bill Clinton's office - was just an added twist of the knife. "This was not Al Gore taking a shot across [Sen.] Clinton's bow," said Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia. "This was him putting one right into the solar plexus of both Clintons."
For her part, Clinton (D-N.Y.) has insisted that she has no plans to run for President against President Bush next year. But she has refused to rule out a run in 2008. Clinton confidants yesterday said she had no desire to get into a philosophical debate with Gore about the direction of the Democratic Party, which is now chaired by Clinton pal Terry McAuliffe.
"Hillary Clinton is focused on reclaiming the White House in '04," said Democratic operative Howard Wolfson, who ran her Senate campaign. "And a big fight with Al Gore is a distraction from that effort."
When pressed yesterday on Gore's comments, Clinton said only that she had no plans to endorse any presidential contender until the primaries are over. She held out the possibility that Dean could still be beaten, noting that her husband was at only 4% in December 1991 before he went on to win the nomination. "I think we are in the middle of a primary campaign, and I want to see who emerges as the candidate," Clinton said. "And I will support whoever that nominee is." Daily News
Details of the visit remain shrouded in secrecy. The U.S. Secret Service has been in Winnipeg for several days making sure all the details are under control. Clinton will arrive by private plane sometime on Tuesday. He'll attend a private dinner for 30 people at a local restaurant; tickets for the meal were $1,100 per person and have sold out.
Next, Clinton will go to the Winnipeg Concert Hall for a sold-out meet-and-greet with 150 people. After shaking hands and taking photos, he will give a speech on "embracing our common humanity, security and prosperity in the 21st century" [Same old blather] as part of the My Life Our Times speaker series, which brought Dr. Ruth Westheimer to town last month and will bring Ed McMahon and Wolf Blitzer next year. [Wow, he's really among some luminaries, the brightest lights in the intellectual constellation!]
About half of the 2,100 tickets for the speech are still available for between $150 and $250 each. ... full story
We had an earthquake yesterday. I left California and moved to Virginia to escape earthquakes. I think they're following me, LOL.
Uh-oh. We were supposed to have felt it down here. Didn't feel a thing. I was in my evil SUV dropping off kids to various locations.
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