State Of Emergency Declared In Westchester County Due To Winter Storm
WESTCHESTER COUNTY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Hour by hour, inch by inch, Monday's long-duration storm is delivering some impressive snow totals.
Crews have been working around the clock to clear roads in Westchester County.
Taking your car out for a spin in this weather could leave you spinning your wheels and needing a tow, CBS2's Tony Aiello reported.
"What are the drivers who are stuck telling you," Aiello asked Brandon Duran, a tow truck driver.
"That they can't make it up any of these hills," Duran said. "Honestly, I hope everybody stays home today. It's pretty crazy out here. I didn't know it was going to be this crazy today."
Watch Tony Aiello's report:
In New Rochelle, plow crews have spent long hours behind the wheel, dumping tons of salt and sand onto main roads to try to keep them clear.
"How do you handle a 16-hour shift?" Aiello asked Cevia Dalton, a plow driver.
"A lot of coffee, a lot of rest... Determination, man," Cevia said.
LINK: Check The Latest Forecast
"Most people should probably just stay home. There's nowhere to go anyway," said New Rochelle City Manager Chuck Strome. "Most everything is closed. We're gonna hit it as hard as we can and keep it going."
Still, dozens of drivers in the county needed help when they got stuck in the snow, CBS2's Dick Brennan reported.
Watch: Drivers Stuck Digging Out Cars In Mount Vernon --
"Most of the rescues have occurred, I think that the total number we have... is 54 distressed or stranded drivers, which is not an insignificant amount of people when you consider that the traffic is dramatically down out there tonight," Westchester County Executive George Latimer said.
"The services of government and the private sector services have all shut down. We have no bus system tonight, Metro-North has stopped running. You're really on your own out there if you decide to go back out in the weather. Better to stay home and take care of things around your house," Latimer said.
The plows were out in force, but only making things worse for some people digging out.
Robert Carter of Mount Vernon was worried about what will follow the snow.
"If it hails or sleet on two feet it's over. I won't get this car out until spring," Carter said.
Some main roads, including I-287, were in pretty good shape early Monday evening. But entrance ramps were slick.
Latimer declared a state of emergency, set to end at 1 p.m. Thursday.
PHOTOS: Winter Storm Socks Tri-State Area
Some people stayed home Monday, and cooked up a storm of their own.
"Chicken soup, chili, maybe a homemade pasta sauce, just keep it going," said Anna Rodriques. "My husband thinks I'm cooking for an army. But it's just the thing to do when you're stuck at home in this kind of weather."
In downtown White Plains, snow was steadily coming down all day. By the early afternoon, there was at least 5.5 inches, and 30 mph winds were whipping it up.
Watch Natalie Duddridge's report:
Crews have been working hard to keep up.
Starting at 4 a.m., two friends bundled up and hit the street, shoveling for extra work.
"Shovel the snow, make sure it's safe in the city for everyone to walk around," said Jean Joseph.
"Are you layered up?" asked CBS2's Natalie Duddridge.
"Yep. Have about four shirts on, my jacket. Good to go," he said.
The plows were in full force by midnight, working 16-hour shifts to keep the streets clear.
One man was gassing up his car to take his wife to her job as a frontline worker.
"With this car without four-wheel drive, it's bad. And I have to pick her up later, so I know I'm going to be in the middle of the worst part of it," he said. "So I'm a little worried. I have two kids that have to go back in the car."
LINK: Winter Storm Survival Guide
Most kids got an official snow day, with the majority of schools in Westchester closed, and just a small handful moving to remote learning.
The few people that did venture outside layered up.
"Wearing a sweater, a hoodie, sweatshirt, undershirt, and another undershirt, and another," said Roland Matthews.
CBS2's Natalie Duddridge, Tony Aiello and Dick Brennan contributed to this report.
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