Winter storm strands hundreds of motorists on Pa. Turnpike
Winter Storm Jonas barreled through Western Pennsylvania this weekend, stranding hundreds of turnpike motorists for long hours without food, drink or bathroom access as they waited for state police and National Guard relief.
“I've been driving a truck since 1998 and I have never been stuck for more than four or five hours before,” Mark Lusk, 45, of Charleroi told the Tribune-Review by phone from his rig Saturday. “This is crazy. By the time they get everyone moving, I assume it will be 24 hours for me sitting in one spot.”
Lusk nibbled on peanut butter and crackers for sustenance and found a pine tree outside for bathroom breaks.
He wasn't the only one.
Gov. Tom Wolf estimated the Pennsylvania Turnpike traffic jam snared as many as 500 vehicles. By 7 p.m., most vehicles and passengers were either moving or headed to a shelter, the governor's office said.
However, the turnpike was still closed in both directions late Saturday between New Stanton and Breezewood.
Turnpike workers were using heavy equipment to lift concrete barriers that separate the eastbound and westbound lanes. That enables vehicles in the westbound lanes to make U-turns onto the eastbound lanes and get off at the Bedford interchange, said Renee Colborn, turnpike spokeswoman.
Most of the passenger vehicles, except for about 20, have gotten off the turnpike.
Tractor-trailers and buses have been more difficult to move because they are larger, some of their brake lines are frozen and some have jackknifed, Colborn said.
As of about 8:30 p.m., about 300 tractor-trailers were still on the turnpike, she said.
The vehicles are stuck on a 16-mile stretch between mile post 122 at the Allegheny Tunnel westbound and mile post 138, said Carl DeFebo, turnpike spokesman.
Some of the trucks that could not make it up the mountain near the Allegheny Tunnel are being towed, he said.
Volunteers and employees of the Altoona Salvation Army Worship and Service Center prepared 3,700 complete meals plus multiple cases of water and cases of snacks. The National Guard was delivering them to people stranded on the turnpike Saturday night, the Salvation Army said.
“This is a huge challenge for Pennsylvania,” Wolf said Saturday afternoon.
The Duquesne University's men's basketball team was among those stranded. The Dukes won their game Friday in Fairfax, Va., and drove until 9:15 p.m. before coming to a halt near Bedford.
Players embraced the novelty at first. But by mid-afternoon Saturday, when it began to look as though the team would spend another night on the turnpike, the mood turned to frustration.
“It's beyond ridiculous now,” team spokesman Dave Saba said. “I bet there's a good 2 feet of snow outside the bus. I'm talking on the turnpike surface.”
More than 250 first responders, some riding all-terrain vehicles, turned out to rescue motorists and give them refills of gasoline and water. By 4 p.m., traffic was moving slowly.
“We've been able to turn a lot of cars around and get some buses moving to temporary shelters so that people can use bathrooms and get food,” turnpike spokesman Carl DeFebo said. “We're chipping away at it. Literally every resource and every person available is on site to assist.”
The Red Cross opened emergency shelters for up to 750 people at Bedford United Methodist Church, Bedford High School and Bedford Middle School. Supplies came from Pittsburgh, Altoona and Westmoreland County.
The storm dumped more than 2 feet of snow in parts of Westmoreland and Fayette counties.
Many stranded motorists took to social media to document their idle time.
The Temple University women's gymnastics team was on its way to a meet at the University of Pittsburgh when its bus came to a halt on the turnpike about 80 miles from Pittsburgh. Team members tweeted that they had been on the bus for 24 hours.
Also stranded were 37 high school students and 10 adults on a charter bus from Owensboro Catholic High School in Owensboro, Ky. The students traveled to Washington to attend the March for Life rally, departing for home at 1:30 p.m Friday.
The Rev. Ken Geraci of the Owensboro Fathers of Mercy chapter, who helped chaperone the trip, said Saturday morning the group hadn't moved since 7:30 p.m. Friday.
“It's basically gridlock as far as the eye can see,” he said.
The students hadn't eaten a meal since lunch Friday, and the bus' bathroom had reached capacity, he said, but everyone was maintaining their spirit.
The positive vibes paid off about 4 p.m. Saturday, when emergency crews cleared a path for the bus to drive 10 miles to the Somerset exit. Geraci shared a smartphone video with the Tribune-Review that showed the students singing and cheering.
Their first stop: Eat'n Park. Then they planned to spend the night at a hotel in Somerset.
“The kids are thrilled,” he said. “And the staff is bending over backwards to accommodate us.”
David Sowers was hauling mail from Johnstown to Pittsburgh for AEH Trucking on Friday night when police told him to exit the Turnpike.
Sowers spent the night in the cab of his truck parked at the Holiday Inn Express near the Donegal exit. On Saturday afternoon, he began shoveling snow that had accumulated around the trailer in hopes the road would reopen.
“I've been running this route for seven years,” he said. “... I've never seen it like that.”
Would-be skiers Mike and Steve Karaffa of Moon watched the end of the Penguins game while sipping coffee in the hotel lobby. The brothers had planned a day of skiing at Seven Springs but weren't able to make it there because of the road conditions.
It was unlikely they'd get a room at the hotel. Manager Timothy Pisula said it was running a waiting list for rooms.
“We've been sold out,” he said.
Robin Jennings, spokeswoman for Excela Health System, which has hospitals in Greensburg, Mt. Pleasant and Latrobe, said security workers brought some staff in to work because of the treacherous roads. Additionally, some staff stayed overnight Friday to help Saturday. Jennings said the hospitals saw only minor injuries tied to the weather.
The Arnold Palmer Regional Airport near Latrobe closed Saturday but intended to resume commercial flights Sunday.
Pittsburgh raised its response to the storm as the snowfall reached 6 inches in parts of the city, where the forecast had called for no more than half that much. Public Works focused on primary and secondary routes, and pledged to clear all streets within 48 hours of the snowfall's end.
Unofficially, in Allegheny County, West Elizabeth topped the list for snowfall, getting 9 inches, according to the National Weather Service. Mt. Washington in Pittsburgh got 6.
Westmoreland residents in Champion got 28 inches, and Latrobe got 15. Fayette County's Uniontown got hit with 2 feet.
James Dahlman of Hempfield's Middletown section said he began driving a snowplow for a contractor about 7:30 p.m. Friday, then took a short break in the middle of the night, only to return at 3 a.m.
Brian Klein stopped at Bortz Hardware in Greensburg to buy salt and a new shovel.
“It was snowing as fast as I can shovel it,” Klein said.
Speed and truck and trailer restrictions for the turnpike were lifted Saturday night.
State police in Allegheny, Westmoreland and Fayette counties reported multiple minor accidents.
Staff writers Tory N. Parrish, Renatta Signorini, Joe Napsha, Brad Bumsted and Chris Harlan contributed. Ben Schmitt is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-320-7991 or bschmitt@tribweb.com.
