Freezing Rain, Ice Wreak Havoc On Roadways
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Saturday's snowstorm may have brought several inches of snow, but snow turned to rain and sleet overnight, creating dangerous roadways and causing a fatal accident.
As 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck reported, multiple cars were involved in a series of accidents Sunday morning at the same icy spot just before exit 14, near Newark Liberty International Airport. Several trucks jackknifed into the divider near the exit. A number of other vehicles then plowed into each other, Schuck reported.
One person was killed in the accident, CBS 2's Weijia Jiang reported. Police said after the crash, someone got out of their vehicle, and that's when the man was struck by another car.
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Freezing Rain, Ice Wreak Havoc On Roadways
State police shut down exit 14 in order to conduct an extensive investigation into the accidents. The closure forced drivers trying to make flights at Newark airport reroute to exit at 13A.
The weather forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights Saturday, including more than 300 at Newark Liberty International Airport alone, 1010 WINS reported Sunday. As of Sunday morning, all area airports were reporting average delays of 15 minutes or less for arrivals and departures.
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Power utilities appear to have handled the heavy, wet snow better than the airports. As of early Sunday morning, less than 1,500 outages were reported throughout New York City, Long Island, northern New Jersey and parts of Connecticut.
Officials and road crews are still urging residents to stay home and off the roads whenever possible.
The overnight conditions forced crews across the Tri-State to work around the clock in an attempt to keep roads clear of snow and ice.
Officials in New Jersey dispatched more than 1,500 plow trucks to clear state highways.
As CBS 2's Christine Sloan reported, a thick sheet of ice fell in Morristown, N.J., causing dangerous conditions on many sidewalks and a headache for people trying to clear a safe path for others.
Meanwhile in Connecticut, AAA said it had to respond to hundreds more calls than usual, WCBS 880's Ginny Kosola reported.
A representative from AAA for Greater Hartford in eastern Connecticut told Kosola it appeared people stayed off the roads during the height of the storm.
Connecticut See High Volume Of Accidents
However, Connecticut state police lt. Paul Vance said the police force responded to more than 200 accidents.
Westchester County was also blanketed with several inches of snow.
CBS 2's Janelle Burrell was in Mount Kisco where about seven inches of the white stuff fell Saturday. Overnight rain caused the snow to become compact and residents said it's difficult to shovel.
As of Saturday night, 7.6 inches of snow had fallen in Armonk, NY, 6.2 inches accumulated in Stamford, the Bronx saw 4.7 inches, and Massepequa had received 1.9 inches, CBS 2′s Lonnie Quinn reported.
CBS 2's John Elliot said temperatures will be warming up throughout the day Sunday, with only a chance for showers.
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