HARTFORD, Conn — Connecticut is waking up to a lot of snow Thursday morning. Here are the latest updates:
December 17
Governor Lamont provides an update on storm response
Portions of Connecticut saw heavy rates of snowfall during the overnight hours at rates of up to two inches per hour for several hours with northeast wind gusts reaching 30 to 40 miles per hour along the coast.
“Our Department of Transportation crews and their contractors have been out all night long clearing the roads, and I must express my gratitude to them, as well as the many residents who heeded our advice and stayed home during the peak hours of the storm, helping reduce the number of accidents,” Governor Lamont said. “I also want to thank the Connecticut State Police who have been out on the roads responding to calls and helping to ensure everyone’s safety. While the storm is not over just yet, I encourage everyone to stay home if you can, and if you must go out use extreme caution.”
As of 9:00 a.m. today, the Connecticut State Police responded to 583 calls for service, 46 motor vehicle accidents, and 131 motor vehicle assists.
As frigid temperatures are expected to continue, Governor Lamont this morning ordered the state’s Severe Cold Weather protocol, which he activated as of 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, to be extended through 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 19. Approximately 30 shelters are open throughout Connecticut. Anyone in need of shelter should call 2-1-1 to be connected to these services.
The tractor trailer and tandem trailer truck travel ban on limited-access highways statewide that went into effect at 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday has been lifted as of 9:00 a.m. this morning. During the duration of the travel ban, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection allowed interstate truck drivers to park their trucks at two state parks, including Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison and Sherwood Island State Park in Norwalk.
All bus and paratransit services statewide are expected to resume today at 12:00 p.m. CTtransit, CTtransit express, CTfastrak, and transit district bus services will operate with the first bus on each route scheduled for 12:00 p.m. or later.
Westfarms Mall will have a delayed opening today. It will open its doors at 1:00 PM.
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Update from Connecticut State Police:
Troopers have responded to Calls for Service: 755
Accidents No injuries: 50
Accidents with Injuries: 4
Motorist Assists: 197
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From the City of Bridgeport:
"City of Bridgeport services will be closed until 12:00 p.m. due to the snow emergency in effect since 8:00 a.m., December 16, 2020. Due to the inclement weather and for the safety of City staff, non-essential employees may report to their duties starting at noon. This may be subject to change as weather and road conditions develop."
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Traffic Incidents from CTDOT:
SALISBURY - US44 CLOSED by Under Mountain Road due to a tree and wires down.
Noreaster December 16-17
Roads Thursday morning were covered in snow. Check out this Facebook live video from FOX61's Keith McGilvery in the Stormtracker.
December 16
On Wednesday, Metro-North announced that PM busing has been canceled at the Waterbury Branch. The Waterbury Branch train service will operate as normal at this time.
Mitch Gross of Eversource called in this morning to discuss the company's preparations to handle outages during the storm.
State Police have provided tips for motorists during this storm:
"Drivers are urged to stay off the roads if at all possible, to allow DOT drivers to clear highways.
If you must drive, Troopers urge extreme caution! With snow expected to start falling Wednesday night, Troopers remind motorists to adhere to these winter driving tips:
- Check the weather forecast and road conditions before heading out
- Give yourself plenty of extra time to arrive at your destination.
- Keep headlights on at all times
- Bring a fully-charged cell phone
- Carry extra water, snacks and blankets, and a shovel
- Reduce speed, expand distances between vehicles.
- If you become stranded in your vehicle in a snowstorm, stay with your vehicle, do not try to walk to safety. Call 911 for help. Run the motor for heat, but open a window slightly for fresh air."
Here are steps the Department of Transportation has taken to ensure readiness include:
- 1,600 workers within the Highway Operations team have been activated, including more than 1,300 operators and supervisors across the state.
- Roughly 200 contractors are on standby and ready to supplement and augment the state plowing fleet, as has been done in previous storms and winter seasons.
- 634 state plow trucks, 18 industrial loader-mounted snow blowers, and over 100 front-end loaders are ready for deployment.
- Materials, equipment, and spare parts have been stocked at roughly 50 satellite Department of Transportation facilities across the state.
- 30 automated Roadway Weather Information Systems remotely located across the state will continue to provide and stream real-time roadway and atmospheric data to Department of Transportation crews to assist in best reacting to changing weather and road conditions.
- 125 trucks are outfitted with technology – such as road and air temperature sensors, vehicle location, camera windshield imaging – that report real-time road conditions into a newly implemented Maintenance Decision Support System, which helps better inform operating decisions and the deployment of Department of Transportation resources.
