All remained relatively quiet in the outlying townships of Chenango County, officials said Wednesday, throughout the first intense and blowing snowfall of the winter.
As of 7 p.m., nine townships were able to confirm that power remained on and that highway departments were working around the clock in their areas.
“We’ve got a lot of snow,” said Town of Pharsalia Supervisor Dennis Brown. “The power is on and we are all warm, and we are all thankful for that.”
Aside from the cold winds and heavy snows, by Wednesday evening officials said there had been no significant developments during the storm up to that point. They all commended their plow teams – and motorists – for keeping the roads clear.
“We had a long day today,” said Preston Highway Superintendent Charles Stein, who sent his crews home at 5 p.m. after a 14-hour day, preparing for another today starting at 3 a.m. “Our crew was real professional today. We’re lucky to have the one we have. Chenango County is lucky to have all the highway crews they have and the work they do.”
Most departments began clearing paths between 2:30 and 3:30 a.m.
“They’ve done a great job keeping the roads open,” Brown said.
Forecasts predicted between 16 and 24 inches of for the area. According to the City of Norwich Emergency Management Office, spotters submitted reports to the National Weather Service in Binghamton indicating that 23 inches fell in Norwich and as much as 26 in Bainbridge.
All roads in the county were officially closed from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. as directed by a state of emergency that was declared by county emergency managers around 1 p.m.
Stein roughly estimated that Preston received 12 to 14 inches of snow as of 6:30 p.m. A mail carrier’s vehicle did catch fire and become “fully involved” on Barns Road earlier in the day, Stein said, but no injuries were reported and the mail was saved.
Supervisors from Greene, Guilford, McDonough, Norwich, Otselic, Oxford, Pharsalia and Smithville gave similar reports. Most said they were unaware of any significant accidents, adding that snows ranged in 15 to 24 inch range, but were hard to gauge because of heavy drifting.
“It’s more than I need,” laughed Smithville Supervisor Allan Johnson, who estimated that he probably had two feet at his home.
As of 3 p.m. McDonough Supervisor Homer Smith, owner of the Outpost Restaurant, said the town was still “doing well” over 12 hours after town plows went to work.
Otselic Supervisor David J. Messineo said traveling conditions were somewhat dangerous as of 6 p.m. in his area, but added that there were very few travelers.
“It’s pretty slippery out there,” Messineo said. “I think most people are staying off the roads.”
Messineo said the snow was waist-deep in some areas of his property.
However, several town leaders remained concerned about the high winds that are expected tonight and today that could create large drifts and unpredictable driving conditions.
“If winds pick up we will have problems with drifting snow,” said Al Doyle, Guilford’s town supervisor. “It will get nothing but worse.”
“We’ve got a lot of snow,” said Lawrence Wilcox, the Town of Oxford supervisor. “We’ve just got to keep at it.”