Pocono News Section

Poconos Pulverized By Early Snow

Poconos Pulverized By Early Snow - Wednesday, October 29, 2008 at 12:03PM EST

Reported by: Joe Holden
Wednesday, Oct 29, 2008 @ 12:03am EST

LACKAWANNA, WAYNE and MONROE COUNTIES- With little time to prepare, thousands of people across four counties in Northeastern Pennsylvania got a shock in the form of more than a foot of snow. The October winter weather tracked across the area dumping heavy, wet snow in the higher elevations.

The Pocono Mountains were hard hit, with thousands of people left in the dark as power lines broke under the weight of fallen trees. PPL reported hundreds of teams were dispatched to power-less neighborhoods. At the height of the storm, some 20 thousand homes had no power. Early indications suggest some places might not see power until Thursday.

Interstate highways and local roads were slickened by fast-falling snow. I-84 in Mattamoras was closed when high tension power lines draped the four-lane roadway. Truckers told Eyewitness News they'd wait out the road closure at local truck stops.

By late Tuesday night, most major roadways had been cleared of snow. But wind continued to present a problem, blowing snow drifts around.

A shelter was opened inside a Tobyhanna school. Only a handful of people showed up.