By Maddy Vitale
Six-year-old Lola Ciseck and her 4-year-old brother Charlie raced up a walkway Sunday in Sea Isle City, with something not so typical in tow for the beach.
They each had sleds to welcome the first snowfall of 2019.
Their mother, Lauren Ciseck, hurried behind them.
“This is their second time out today,” Ciseck said.
“Wait for me!” shouted Charlie to his sister.
Lola waited a few seconds.
Then they were off.
“They love sledding,” Ciseck said. “They couldn’t wait to get back out.”
A few minutes later some friends joined them.
The snow was described as slushy, heavy and messy for people who had to shovel it.
But for others, such as the Cisecks, it made the perfect snow for sledding. Others said the snow was great for making snow balls, building snowmen and plopping down onto the flakes to make snow angels.
Police Chief Tom McQuillen said everything was going smoothly with the storm cleanup Sunday afternoon.
Sea Isle had accumulations of about 4 inches.
McQuillen commended the work of the Department of Public Works crews, whom he described as “on it and little by little plugging away.”
He said there were no major events as a result of the storm.
The overall scene was very serene in the shore town. Few people strolled on the Promenade as the winds picked up in the afternoon and sleet coated the roadways and sidewalks.
Stores were also quiet. Customers were scarce. Even the typically busy convenience stores, such as Wawa on Landis Avenue, had only a few cars in the parking lot.
Richard Malinowski, of Fairton in Cumberland County, came down to spend the weekend at his vacation home on 41st Street.
He cleaned off his SUV with a broom, while parked on Landis Avenue near his vacation home.
Malinowski was proud to show off a pair of rubber boots he sported for the occasion.
“They are my fishing boots,” he said with a smile. “They keep me dry.”
He and his wife, Yvonne, decided to venture down for the weekend despite the snowy forecast.
“We knew it was going to snow, but we didn’t think we were going to get so much,” Malinowski said.
Nevertheless, he said, he and his wife head to Sea Isle every chance they get year-round.
“We really like Sea Isle in the winter,” Malinowski said. “It’s quiet.”
Michael Rutledge, of Ocean View, didn’t mind visiting Sea Isle for the day. He was born and raised in Sea Isle. He also worked in the city’s Department of Public Works for 27 years before retiring.
So, coming back to his hometown to help friends shovel their walkway at the corner of 39th Street and Landis Avenue was no problem. He enjoyed it.
“I come to help them clean up after snowstorms,” Rutledge said while not missing a beat in his shoveling.
He remembered a storm last year when the drifts were up to his head, Rutledge said while holding his hand above his head.
While this, the first snow storm of 2019, was far from the one Rutledge recalled, the snow was hard to shovel, he explained.
“It is real slushy and heavy,” he noted. “It is just unbelievably sloppy.”
