Storm Topples Trees Throughout Berks, Causing Power Outages

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The heaviest precipitation that will hit Berks County today is over, but the storm has toppled numerous trees in the area, blocking roadways and causing power outages.

Nearly 9,000 customers are without power in the Met-Ed and PPL service areas in Berks.

As of 10 a.m., Met-Ed reported there were 5,500 outages in Reading and eastern and northern Berks, while PPL reported 3,200 customers were without power in Wyomissing, western Berks and the Morgantown area in southern Berks.

PPL reported 60,679 of its customers in a 16-county area of the state were affected by outages, while Met-Ed’s parent company, FirstEnergy, said there were 78,000 Pennsylvania customers affected.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/news/article/storm-topples-trees-throughout-berks-causing-power-outages#.UvKMBWOPKM8

Snowstorm Leads To Closures, Traffic Accidents Throughout Berks

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

That darn groundhog.

Within 24 hours of forecasting six more weeks of winter, large dense snowflakes began falling in Berks County early Monday, and the storm continued to drop about an inch an hour before tapering off to flurries about 2:30 p.m.

Blame Phil if you were stuck in traffic behind one of the numerous crashes that occurred through the day or lost power from outages, but remember he wasn’t the only messenger.

Forecasters at AccuWeather, near State college, predicted this storm would bring wet, heavy snow that would affect the morning commute, and did it ever. By 11 a.m., with temperatures hovering around 32 degrees, at least a half a foot of snow had fallen in Berks County.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/news/article/snowstorm-leads-to-closures-traffic-accidents-throughout-berks#.UvA5BvRDsxI

Electricity Capacity Is Maxed Out Near Reading Regional Airport

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Berks County‘s next industrial park sits in an area ripe for development. It’s 155 acres close to Route 222 and surrounded by many potential workers.

Now that Berks Park 78 has opened, this industrial site near Reading Regional Airport is the next big economic development project community leaders hope will attract jobs, tax revenue and business investment.

First, though, this underdeveloped area in Bern Township needs more electricity and gas to become shovel-ready.

“You need to have an adequate amount of electric and gas for the prospects that might be coming to your industrial park,” said Thomas C. McKeon, executive director of the Berks County Industrial Development Authority. “It’s essential to have the infrastructure, to have an adequate amount of it in the ground and readily available so that there’s no questions for anybody when they come.”

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article/20140121/BUSINESSWEEKLY/301219999/1052#.Ut6oxvQo6c8

Storm Expected To Dump 2 To 4 ‘Slushy’ Inches On Berks

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Spring may be just around the corner, but winter weather is still here.

A heavy, wet snow that will start early this morning and end about midnight is expected to drop 2 to 4 inches on Berks County, according to forecasters with AccuWeather near State College.

“The snow will be heavy and mixed with rain,” said Mike Pigott, an AccuWeather senior meteorologist.  “It’s going to be that backbreaking kind of slushy snow that’s hard to clean up.”

The temperature is expected to drop to 32 degrees tonight, so icy patches on roads are likely into Thursday morning, Pigott said.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=456999

PA-NY-NJ Picking Up After Hurricane Sandy’s Epic Devastation

The sodden, wind-blown tri-state region of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania began an arduous journey back to normal on Wednesday after mammoth storm Sandy killed at least 82 people in a rampage that swamped coastal cities and cut power to millions across the Northeast.

Financial markets reopened with the New York Stock Exchange running on generator power after the first weather-related two-day closure since an 1888 blizzard. Packed buses took commuters to work with New York’s subway system idle after seawater flooded its tunnels.

The U. S. Navy said it was moving ships closer to areas affected by the disaster in case they might be needed, including the helicopter carrier USS Wasp.

Sandy killed 69 people in the Caribbean as a hurricane before crashing ashore just south of Atlantic City, N.J. Monday night as Post-Tropical Cyclone Sandy, which became a rare hybrid superstorm after merging with another weather system to deliver 80 mile-per-hour winds and record storm surges.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-ny-nj-hurricane-sandy-update-1101-20121101,0,5611775,full.story

Berks County Likely To Be Among Hardest-Hit Inland Areas

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

High winds and heavy rains leading to power outages and flooding are expected to slam Berks County today as residents endure the onslaught of Hurricane Sandy.

Berks will likely be among the hardest-hit inland areas, and officials urged residents to prepare for the worst.

“This storm has not been overhyped,” Berks County Commissioner Christian Y. Leinbach said today.  “It will have significant impact.”

Leinbach said residents should have up to three days of food and supplies should there be widespread power outages.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=423954

Monster Storm Closing In On Lehigh Valley Region

Icon for a Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale Category 1 hurricane. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After almost a week of ominous forecasts, the weather system born of a giant hurricane, a winter storm and an arctic air mass is upon us.  And it’s not going anywhere fast.

Across the Lehigh Valley, residents and government officials worked through the weekend to protect lives and property as Hurricane Sandy morphed into a gargantuan storm that will affect every part of the Northeast.

Although Sandy, which remained a Category 1 hurricane, was not expected to make landfall on the New Jersey coast until late Monday night or early Tuesday morning, the storm’s effects have been felt since Sunday evening.  Ahead of Sandy’s landfall, every school district in the Lehigh Valley canceled Monday’s classes.  Some colleges closed through Tuesday.

The worst of the weather will persist throughout the day Monday, with sustained winds from 35 to 45 mph and gusts up to 55 mph.  That will bring down tree limbs and small trees causing power outages and property damage.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-hurricane-sandy-impact-20121028,0,6460543.story

Berks County Braces For Hurricane Early Next Week

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Almost a year after a freak Halloween snowstorm buried Berks County, utility companies are preparing for the possibility of more rare weather: a hurricane that forecasters say could cause trouble here early next week.

Hurricane Sandy was still a long way off northeast of Cuba on Thursday, but it seemed to be heading this way with strong winds and heavy rain that could bring flooding, property damage and power outages, AccuWeather said.

There could be wind gusts of at least 50 mph and several inches of rain, meteorologist Tom Kines said.

The worst case is that it continues on its current northward track, while the best case is that it heads east out to sea, resulting in only a normal rainstorm, he said. If severe weather comes, it will most likely arrive Monday night or early Tuesday.

Reading Eagle: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=423464

Bicyclist Hit By Tree On Thun Trail During Last Night’s Violent Storm

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A man riding his bicycle on the Thun Trail next to the Schuylkill River was hit on the head and knocked down by a falling tree Thursday night as a powerful thunderstorm roared through Berks County, felling trees, power lines and even street signs.

The rider, a middle-aged man who was not identified by emergency personal, managed to call 9-1-1 for help from under the large tree, which shattered his helmet and mangled his mountain bike.

The accident happened at 7:20 p.m. as the storm knocked down trees and wires across Berks. Transformers blew up, alarms went off in homes and commercial buildings and the lights flickered in the city.

County emergency dispatchers were able to direct city firefighters to a general area along the trail after using cell towers to triangulate the location of the injured man’s cellphone.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=403839