PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) -- Snow came down fast and hard in the Philadelphia region on Thursday. Some areas got as much as 9 inches or a foot of snow. Light snow and freezing rain is expected overnight, as well as the potential for additional accumulation of another inch or two.
Driving has been dangerous all Thursday, with the KYW Traffic Center reporting spin-out accidents on the major roads. Speed limits are reduced on the highways.
Icy conditions are expected heading into Friday, especially on elevated surfaces.
And it's cold. Highs will stay in be in the mid to upper 20s through the night.
"The worst of this storm looks to be coming through this morning and early this afternoon," NBC 10 First Alert meteorologist Bill Henley said Thursday morning.
The city declared a snow emergency for Thursday. City-run vaccination clinics were closed, and anyone with a Thursday appointment will need to reschedule. Trash collection, already delayed by the Monday holiday, will now be pushed out a second days, according to the Streets Department. Wednesday collection will now happen Friday. Thursday collection will happen Saturday.
But there was no snow day for Philadelphia students. Philadelphia School District buildings were closed, but online learning continued. And Philadelphia Archdiocesan elementary schools had online learning, while high schools had flex online learning.
Essential workers didn't get the day off either. Rupal Parikh, who works in health care, traveled to work Thursday morning on an electric scooter.
SEPTA is keeping regular service schedules in effect, but the Cynwyd and Chestnut Hill West regional rail lines are suspended, and several bus routes have been suspended or detoured.
The Philadelphia suburbs got the heaviest snow, with upwards of a foot of snow in the north and west. By 8:30 a.m., King of Prussia in Montgomery County was reporting 6.5 inches, and Feasterville in Bucks County was reporting 7 inches.
A wintry mix in South Jersey and Delaware will limit the totals there but will make for crunchy, slippery travel.
Due to the severe weather, Chester County and Montgomery County government offices, facilities and courts were closed. Anyone with a COVID-19 vaccination appointment for Thursday in Chester or Montgomery county was told to check their email, because those appointments have been rescheduled.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says the snow is having an impact on vaccination efforts at the state's mega sites. The Moorestown Mall site is closed, and anyone who had an appointment should have been called to reschedule. The mass COVID-19 vaccination sites in Burlington and Gloucester counties are closed, as well, and appointments will be rescheduled for new times spread through Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Murphy also encouraged people to stay home if they don’t need to be on the road and to report any power outages right away.
PECO, PSEG and Atlantic City Electric are reporting no significant amount of power disruptions.
“The heavy wet snow can bring damage to trees and bring down limbs,” said PECO’s Tom Brubaker.
He said we’re not out of the woods yet when it comes to power outages.
“One of the things we want to make sure is that our customers are prepared during storms. So simple things like charging mobile devices, keeping fresh batteries for flashlights and picking up additional safety tips at PECO.com/storm,” he said.
Lauren Ugorgi ith PSEG said if the electricity is out, to report it.
And power companies are stressing not to approach any down power lines as they all should be treated as energized — instead, call them and report it.
Stay with KYW Newsradio for the latest on road conditions and weather updates around Philadelphia and the suburbs.