If you brushed off Monday morning's warning of an approaching snowstorm as a bit too early to get those shovels ready, the update isn't pretty: the snow is definitely coming and there will be a lot of it.
With snow still piled up in areas from the powerful blizzard two weeks ago, Long Island is set to get socked with another white punch as the National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday through 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Weather service officials said Nassau County could get blasted with between 12 and 18 inches of snow, along with winds gusting up to 35 mph. Those snowfall total predictions are on the rise as earlier forecasts called for up to a foot.
"There is going to be some heavy, heavy bands of snow," said Marcie Katcher, a spokeswoman at the weather service's Bohemia office.
Snowfall is expected to be the heaviest late Tuesday night into early Wednesday, Katcher said.
The storm, which approaching the area after dumping snow and ice as far south as Florida, will not come close to rivaling the Dec. 26 blizzard, Katcher said, but she still advised residents to "take all precautions necessary to insure that you are safe during that type of weather."
Nassau County's non-emergency hotline–1-888-684-4274–will be activated at 8 p.m. Tuesday for assistance with any snow-related situation that is not life-threatening or an emergency.
“The lines of communication in Nassau County are open,” County Executive Ed Mangano said. “We want to ensure every resident is safe, and we are made aware of any situation that could create danger in the community.”
Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray said that the municipality is ready to deal with the storm.
“At the first sign of snow, over 225 pieces of equipment will begin spreading salt on roadways and preparing to plow the 1,200 miles of town streets in the heart of Long Island,” she said in a statement Monday.
The town is requesting that residents not leave their cars parked on the streets and to leave shoveled snow on the right of a driveway, Murray said, to avoid having their driveways “plowed in.”
“Neighbors should take advantage of the time today to prepare for the storm, purchasing groceries, buying ‘ice melt’ and locating shovels and ice scrapers,” Murray said. “Once the storm hits, I encourage residents to limit travel by car as roadways can become slippery and heavy snowfall can limit visibility.”
