With a powerful winter storm set to disrupt the Delaware Valley overnight Wednesday and into Thursday, the city of Philadelphia has declared a snow emergency effective at midnight.
As Philadelphia and the surrounding counties prepare for as much as 5-7 inches of snow, city officials are implementing safety procedures and service adjustments to address the storm.
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Both the School District of Philadelphia and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced their schools will be closed Thursday, including after-school activities.
Snow emergencies require that citizens remove parked cars from all snow emergency routes, which can be found on the following map. Vehicles that remain on these routes will be moved to other spots to assist in plowing operations. If cars are moved, residents are instructed to call (215) 686-SNOW – not 911.
All sanitation and recycling collections will be suspended for Thursday. Residents impacted by the canceled collections are asked to hold their trash and recycling until next Thursday. Crews are already delayed in their pickup schedule from the New Years holiday and will resume collections, with delays expected, on Friday.
The Philadelphia Streets Department will begin a salting operation around midnight Thursday. Plowing will start as soon as snow begins to accumulate. Officials said side streets and neighborhood streets will be treated and plowed as conditions permit. At the peak of the storm, 375 pieces of equipment will be deployed and 40,000 tons of salt will be available.
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If residents are concerned about someone who is homeless, they are asked to call the Outreach Coordination Center at (215) 232-1984 at any time to help these individuals reach the city's Code Blue shelters.
Even beyond Thursday's storm, Philadelphia plans to keep open its warming centers throughout the upcoming weekend as the region's deep freeze continues.
Those traveling locally via public transit are asked to monitor SEPTA's real-time travel updates for the latest information.