READING EAGLE
Reading, Pennsylvania l www.readingeagle.com
SNOWBOUND
MASSIVE STORM CRIPPLES BERKS COUNTY;
SHUTS DOWN MUCH OF NORTHEAST
Janice L. Smith begins the arduous task of excavating her car Monday from mounds of snow in the 1200 block of Spring Street.
Storm kills 20, cuts
power to thousands
The worst blizzard since
1996 closes airports and
disrupts bus and train
service from Washington
to New York.
The Associated Press
The worst blizzard in seven
years shut down much of the
Northeast on Presidents Day
with blinding, windblown snow
that piled up as much as 4 feet
deep and left nearly a quarter of
a million homes and businesses
shivering without power.
At least 20 deaths had been
blamed on the storm system
since it charged out of the
Plains during the weekend, pil-
ing snow in the Ohio Valley,
producing mudslides and
floods in the southern Ap-
palachians, and making layers
of ice that snapped trees and
power lines.
The storm was headed for
New England, where Massachu-
setts expected up to 2 feet of
snow and minor coastal flooding.
Airports for Washington, Bal-
timore, Philadelphia and New
York largely shut down, strand-
ing thousands of passengers
trying to leave and get into the
region. Amtrak’s north-south
WINDOWS
TO TODAY’S NEWS
Low High
19 30
Some snow early; mostly
cloudy. Details, A14
© COPYRIGHT 2003 READING EAGLE COMPANY
service was halted between
Washington and Richmond, Va.,
and regional bus service
stopped in many areas.
The holiday meant there
were few commuters, but po-
lice from Kentucky to Massa-
chusetts pleaded with mo-
torists to just stay home and
some counties banned non-
essential travel so they could
clear the roads.
“This is going to be days
worth of cleanup,” said Mary-
land Highway Administration
spokesman David Buck.
The western tip of Maryland
was buried, with 49 inches of
snow in Garrett County on top
of 30-foot drifts left by earlier
storms.
“It’s no man’s land out
there,” said Garrett County
state highway supervisor Paul
McIntyre, whose office window
in Keysers Ridge, elevation
2,900 feet, was entirely blocked
by snow. “It looks more like
Siberia than Maryland.”
It was one of the worst snow-
storms in a century in Washing-
ton, where 16 inches fell. For
the region as a whole, it was the
worst snowstorm since the bliz-
zard of 1996, when at least 80
deaths were blamed on the
weather.
Teens
tackle
changes
in their
lives
NEWS: 610-371-5000
l TUESDAY February 18, 2003 l 50 cents
Reading Eagle: Matthew J. Sroka
Record snowfalls
Monday’s snowstorm is tied for third deepest in Berks County’s official Presidents Day
record books ------ after the January 1996 blizzard ----- according to Accu-
Weather. Here are other notable Berks storms:
is unexpected
23” at
3 p.m. 34”
holiday for many
Monday Snowfall of 23 inches
24” 24”
closes most businesses
23”
20” 21” 21” and cancels events, but
few accidents or power
outages occur.
1978 1958 1994 1983 2003 1888 1993 1996 ©2003 Reading Eagle Company
By Steven Henshaw
Source: Accu-Weather, Reading Eagle archives Drifts up to 30 feet Reading Eagle: Matthew J. Sroka
and Jason Brudereck Mike Buono, a custodian at
Reading Eagle: Bob Schneider
Reading Eagle
Northeast Middle School, re-
A snowstorm that began flects on his snow-removal du-
more than 24 hours earlier ties along 13th Street.
wound down by Monday after-
noon, leaving Berks Countians
and road crews the rest of the Five pages of coverage
day and night to deal with the inside, staring on A3
aftermath of the 23-inch snow-
fall. content to remain at home.
What was a Presidents Day AccuWeather near State Col-
holiday for some people turned lege reported 23 inches as the
into an unplanned day off Mon- official snowfall accumulation
day for many others. in Berks County.
With many roads remaining Measurements recorded by
snow-covered well into the af- the Berks Area Rainfall Net-
ternoon, most businesses work included 23 inches in
closed and organizers post- Gibraltar; 221/2 in Vinemont; 14
The Associated Press poned scheduled events. in Pricetown; 201/2 in Lincoln
A woman pulls her luggage across Times Square in Manhattan But with about 2 feet of snow Park; and 26 in Leesport.
Monday. A blizzard shut down much of the mid-Atlantic region on piled in front of their
Presidents Day. doorsteps, most people seemed Snowbound continues on A3
Index
This edition: 3 sections, plus Voices
Early edition
This edition of the Reading
Advice . . . . A11
Bridge . . . . . C9
Entertainment C6
Horoscope . . B6
Eagle was printed several
hours earlier than usual be-
Business . . . C5 Lifestyle . . . A10 cause of the snowstorm.
Classified . . . C9 Lottery . . . . . A2
Elite fighters Fore the record Comics . . . . . B6
. . . . . . . . . . B7
Opinion . . . . . B8
Obituaries . . . B4
Psychiatrists have new evi- Tiger Woods is back after Crossword . C12 TV grid . . . . . C7
dence on what makes an elite winning the Buick Invitation- . . . . . . . . . C13
soldier tick. Lifestyle, A10 al. Sports, C1
y y m m y y k k
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