Snow hits 33 inches in parts of Morris as residents dig out

Sunday was all about digging out for most Morris County residents after a historic storm dropped more than 30 inches of snow in some towns.

The highest snow fall total was reported at 10:30 p.m. Saturday when a trained spotter reported accumulation of 33 inches in Morris Plains, according to the National Weather Service.

Northeast Morris County did not appear to be hit quite as hard, as another trained spotter reported 22.5 inches in Butler at about 8:05 p.m. Saturday.

The winds, however, caused snow drifts as high as 10 feet in some areas.

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While the Blizzard Warning for the area remained in effect until 6 a.m. Sunday, snowfall stopped in Morristown just before midnight Sunday, more than 24 hours after it began Friday night.

Road crews spent much of the day Sunday clearning local roads and highways, which were mostly clear by the end of the day. New Jersey Transit busses and trains began to run again Sunday afternoon after being suspended for most of the day Saturday.

Some school districts, however, were planning on delayed openings or closing altoghter. Randolph announced a 90 minute delayed opening while Morris Hills Regional School District called for a two hour delay. The Morris School District said it would be closed Monday to facilitate further snow removal.

With less than a quarter-mile of visibility, highways were nearly impassible Saturday. By 7 p.m., New Jersey State Police reported handling 231 crashes and 1,047 motor vehicle aids since the start of the storm.

Multiple employees of the county buildings and grounds division were on the job Sunday, snow-blowing and shoveling around the county administration complex, and collecting snow with bucket loaders for unloading on park fields in Morristown.

Morris County Administrator John Bonnani said Sunday morning that buildings and grounds employees were back at work removing “a colossal amount of snow” from walkways and streets -- including Ann Street, Court Streets and Schuyler Place -- that surround the county courthouse and administration and records building.

Bonnani said Sunday that all non-essential employees of both the Superior Court and county are on a delayed opening Monday and should report for work at 10 a.m. The classification of non-essential pertains to those in non-supervisory positions or workers who are not otherwise responding to the blizzard aftermath.

Elsewhere in Morristown, people began to venture outdoors by mid-morning, some stopping for coffee, and a few even finding parking spaces plowed out along the Green.

Crosswalks and sidewalks in front of some businesses were not shoveled Sunday morning, which made walking difficult in some areas of town. Some two-lane roads were temporarily trimmed to one, as plowed snow took up a full lane. As the day went on, more and more snow was cleared.

While outages climbed into the six figures in New Jersey Saturday, Morris County came out relatively unscathed, with most occurring in Ocean and Monmouth counties.

As of 11 a.m. Sunday, more than 4,310 customers were without power in the state, with more than 4,000 coming from Ocean County, according to Jersey Central Power & Light’s outage map.

Thirty customers were without power in Morris County Sunday morning, with 28 outages occurring in Hanover Township. The other two were in Morris Plains and Rockaway Borough. Power was expected to be restored by Sunday afternoon for those homes, according to the outage map.

Only about 100 people sought public shelters. Others who were evacuated because of the storm and power outages stayed with friends or in hotels.

Sun and warmer temperatures should help with melting this week, save for potential Tuesday morning snow showers.

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The high Sunday was about 32 degrees under a sunny sky, with an overnight low of about 15 degrees expected, according to the Weather Service. Winds between nine and 13 mph are still expected throughout the day.

The high will reach 35 degrees, with an overnight low of 25 Monday, while remaining sunny during the day with lighter wind, the Weather Service said.

There is about a 20 percent chance of precipitation Tuesday morning. Snow showers are possible between 8 and 11 a.m., with rain possible after, as the high for the day will hit 41 degrees, according to the Weather Service.

For Wednesday to Saturday, no precipitation is expected, and though mostly cloudy during the latter half of the week, temperatures in the high 30s to low 40s should continue to help melting.

New Jersey fared extremely well during the blizzard, largely because the state’s residents heeded the warnings of emergency management officials and stayed home, Gov. Chris Christie said during a news conference.

“We have had no deaths from this storm. I would hate for it to happen today,” he said Sunday.

Staff Writer Michael Izzo: 973-428-6636; mizzo@GannettNJ.com