By MADDY VITALE
A snowstorm coated the shore Friday with a glistening layer of snow. And Sea Isle City definitely got its share of it.
From the streets and sidewalks to the Promenade and the beaches, it seemed snow was everywhere.
Monday and Tuesday’s storm left a dusting of snow and was merely a dress rehearsal for what was to come Friday.
Winter is here.
“Originally, we were supposed to get one inch and visually it is about two to three inches, and it is still coming down, but very lightly,” said Mike Jargowsky, Sea Isle’s emergency management coordinator. “They were saying we would get a mixture, but it never did become a mix.”
While the National Weather Service issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the resort until 10 p.m. on Friday, due to freezing temperatures throughout the weekend people are urged to use caution when traveling.
By Friday afternoon, Jargowsky noted that the roads were clear, but it does not mean motorists should be on the roads.
“The roads are clear, but they have slush on them. No one should be going out,” Jargowsky cautioned. “The issue is, it will be very cold and there is black ice. I really caution people from driving tonight or tomorrow. They did brine the roads but that only lasts a short time. It should get cold tonight and tomorrow.”
In addition to slick roadways, residents and second homeowners had to worry about the one thing that they do every time temperatures dip – freezing and sometimes burst pipes, he noted.
“I know they (emergency responders) received some calls about burst pipes from the cold snap,” Jargowsky explained. “That is just to be expected and usually they are the outdoor showers and that sort of thing.”
He also was philosophical about the weather: “It is January, and it is a long time coming for this.”
Temperatures were predicted to rapidly drop into the teens late Friday night. Any untreated roads will become icy and dangerous, Sea Isle City police said in an earlier weather alert.
In addition, make sure thermostat settings in unoccupied homes are above 60 degrees, and check on neighboring homes for frozen pipes.
And as always with storms, homeowners are urged to write down emergency contact numbers for local utility companies in case they experience outages or other problems during winter storms.
The utility companies recommend that homeowners contact them directly as soon as problems occur so that they can properly track outages and repairs.
Call 511 for information on the latest road conditions in New Jersey. For police or fire emergencies, call 911. For non-emergencies, call the Sea Isle Police Department at (609) 263-4311.
