By: centraljersey.com
Hightstown and East Windsor are digging out again from another nor’easter that dumped more than a foot of snow across Mercer County and most of central and northern New Jersey. It was the second blizzard to hit the area since December.
The snow left from the historic Boxing Day blizzard never melted, and now an additional 12.5 inches is covering the ground, according to the National Weather Service’s reports from its Mt. Holly station.
Dave Scheibe, an observation team leader with the National Weather Service, said most of the snow fell between 6 p.m. and midnight Wednesday as part of a double-barreled blizzard attack.
A second storm hit earlier Wednesday that also left snow on the ground and made for a harrowing morning commute.
"I would think this is definitely a major snow fall, no question about it," Mr. Scheibe said of the Wednesday night blast.
Despite the heavy snowfall, Hightstown was spared the worst of the blizzard. Princeton and Hopewell received 17.1 inches, and Scheibe said some areas had as many as 20 inches of snow.
Plows were already out by Wednesday afternoon as residents shoveled out of the first wave. Between storms, the area was also hit with a freezing drizzle that made the cleanup more complicated and driving conditions brutal.
By Thursday morning, the major local arteries were mostly clear, but many of the side streets were still whiter than some driveways as residents again deployed their snow blowers and shovels.
East Windsor Regional Schools were closed Thursday. The blizzard also delayed municipal office openings, postponed East Windsor garbage collection until Monday and forced libraries to open late.
East Windsor resident Robert Bosi took it in stride as he worked his way toward the waist-high wall of snow blocking his cars from the street.
"Guess I don’t need to go to the gym today," he laughed as he cleared the snow from behind an SUV in his driveway.
A dispatcher from the Hightstown Police Department said they have not had any spike in the number of calls they received during the snow storm. [email protected]
