Shaler Area residents and municipalities were digging out and coping with the lingering effects of Sunday’s snowfall in the Pittsburgh area.
The National Weather Service in Moon measured 11.2 inches at its office, where records are recorded, shattering the record of 5.2 inches for Jan. 25 that had stood since 2014.
A summary of information residents need to know as they dig out:
Shaler Area School District
The Shaler Area School District will operate on flexible instructional days Monday and Tuesday.
Students and staff will follow the flexible instructional schedule for remote learning, the district announced.
All activities for Monday were canceled.
Etna
Etna was repairing some of its trucks that were out for 17 hours plowing roads on Sunday, Mayor Robert Tuñón said.
The borough runs a variety of truck sizes, from typical plows and skid steers to smaller vehicles for alleys, he said. Main roads were being cleared, but many roads remained slick with compacted snow Monday morning.
The borough’s fire department, medics, police and public works were prepared to respond together to any calls, and did so successfully several times on Sunday, Tuñón said.
“We had a lower than typical call volume because people did the right thing and stayed home when they could,” the mayor said. “They kept roads clear so our crews could be working. Big time thanks to our residents for staying put when they could.”
Tuñón said he also has seen residents help each other dig out, including younger residents helping seniors.
“It’s been great to see,” he said.
Etna is extending the time residents have to clear sidewalks from 24 hours to at least 48 hours, by 9 a.m. Wednesday. Residents are asked to not push snow into the streets, and to stack snow from vehicles closer to sidewalks so streets remain clear.
“All of this is done under the complete understanding of how challenging the situation is right now — so this is not about enforcement as much as it is trying to create a clear pathway for pedestrians and vehicles and overall, helping one another,” Tuñón said.
Garbage collection in Etna will be delayed a day, from Wednesday to Thursday.
“Stay safe. Stay put when you can. Check on your neighbors,” Tuñón said.
With the upcoming extreme cold, he said residents can help prevent pipe freezing by opening cabinet doors and running water periodically to keep it flowing.
Millvale
Millvale was doing the best it can with its limited resources to open roads and get things moving in the borough, interim Manager Joe Kypta said.
“We’re trying to move forward the best we can in our situation,” he said.
Main streets were down to asphalt and slushy, while side streets were passable, he said. After crews are caught up, they will start widening roads to make room for parking.
Residents are being asked to help by not shoveling or blowing snow back into the roads.
While the borough was waiting on salt deliveries, Kypta said it may not work very well with the extreme cold that is expected. The National Weather Service has issued an extreme cold warning that will be in effect from 7 p.m. Monday to 11 a.m. Tuesday.
“We’re trying to do the best we can with the hills and all that,” Kypta said.
The borough office is open Monday, with limited staff.
Garbage collection will be delayed a day, from Friday to Saturday, Kypta said.
Reserve
Roads are passable in Reserve, where crews were concentrating on the main roads, township Manager Jan Kowalski said.
However, she asked residents to stay off the roads as crews continued to clear them.
“We have not been using salt, but we will start using that today,” she said. “We have to get the roads cleared first.”
There are multiple private roads in Reserve that the township does not maintain. It has received multiple requests to plow them but is not able to do that, Kowalski said.
“We will spend the rest of this week finishing getting the roads cleared,” she said. “Cul de sacs and driveways are obviously plowed in with snow because there’s nowhere to put the snow. That becomes a problem when there’s this much snow.”
While Reserve has additional buying power through a disaster declaration, Kowalski said she does not expect to need to use it. More than a dozen Allegheny County communities took the same action in advance of the storm.
“Residents were very patient,” she said. “Since we had so much advance warning, it went as well as it could possibly have gone.”
The township office is closed to the public Monday, although some staff are present.
Garbage collection is delayed by one day, from Thursday to Friday.
Shaler
Shaler is continuing to address road conditions following the “unprecedented snow event,” township Manager Judy Kording said in a statement.
“There were times that we had a hard time keeping up with the volume of snow coming down, but after hours of relentless efforts, we are finally making some headway on road conditions,” she said Monday morning.
In addition to thanking the efforts of the township’s public safety employees, mutual aid agencies and volunteers, Kording thanked residents who heeded advice and stayed home Sunday.
“The fact that there was minimal traffic on the roadways allowed our crews and emergency vehicles to do what they do best,” she said.
Kording noted there is a great deal of snow blocking driveways and mailboxes, and that roads were not in ideal condition.
“With the volume of snow received in a short period of time, our crews did not have alternatives for the placement of snow,” she said. “Please note that we will not be able to open driveways or clear mailboxes for our residents. It is just not possible for us to address situations on an individual basis.”
Garbage collection is delayed by one day through the week.
The township office is open Monday to address residents’ concerns, and officials were compiling a list of issues to address.
“We will be doing the best we can, but we need to get our crews home to rest and recover from this weekend’s long event,” Kording said.
This report may be updated as new information becomes available.