At least they cancelled school well in advance. Snowstorm predictions are notoriously tough to get right, but the “bomb cyclone” of Jan. 4 is delivering on the chilly promise of falling flakes throughout the Mid-Atlantic.
Timing shifted a bit from initial forecasts, so the bulk of the snow hit Philly during the mid-morning hours instead of overnight. Which made it an even tougher day for commuting — or getting almost anything else done.
Prison visits were cancelled, and so was trash pickup, but lots of other city services were still on. Almost all SEPTA buses, trains and Regional Rail lines were in operation, with some delays. Municipal employees all had to go to work. People who had jury duty also had to show up, although the courts later tweeted they would be closing at noon.
Also working amid the flurries were people like these staffers for Mambo Movers:
And this isn’t even the first time they’ve been called to duty in inclement weather. “I’ve moved people in a blizzard!” said a worker as he pulled on his ski goggles and prepared to hoist a file cabinet.
Here are 12 more pics of Center City in the snow.
Bicycling in the snow?!? Several intrepid cyclists were out, in fact, moving slowly but steadily through the growing slush. This particular gentleman had biked about a mile when he pulled over for a stop at Square One Coffee in the Gayborhood, he said.
Of course Whole Foods employees rode their bikes to work in the snow.
If you were walking, an umbrella didn’t really help much — wind was blowing the snow almost horizontally. But it’s probably like a security blanket. If you believe you’re getting less wet, you’ll feel less wet.
UPS is still making deliveries — gotta get those Amazon orders out on time. The professional drivers were going slowly and steadily, unlike several people spotted rolling through red lights in their personal cars.
This gent was blowing snow off the street not for the city, but for the landlord of the apartment building located here.
Lots of people did not get the “no trash pickup today” message. Somewhat understandable; the schedule was already offset one day because Monday was a holiday. But now there’s an extra twist:
If your regular pickup is Thursday (i.e. this week you thought it would be on Friday), it’s totally cancelled and you’ll have to hold your trash till next week. The stuff that’s already out there (regular Wednesday pickup) will be collected on Friday, and Friday’s pickup is still on for Saturday. Got all that?
Tempting to blame the snow for this, but this overflowing mess is actually a common state of existence for many of the city’s Bigbelly trash compactors.
Noooooo! This tree really would have been better dropped off at a recycling center.
Happily, a lot of Center City businesses put out pet-safe blue salt, which is less harsh on dog’s poor, bare paws.
Surprisingly, the Wawa at Broad and Walnut wasn’t very busy. Maybe that’s why workers were so chipper. One was heard singing along to Whitney Houston as she worked.
Philly’s historical markers look even more classy in the snow, somehow. It’s great how each embossed letter catches its own ridge of flakes.
The Center City District customer representatives were still out in full force during the storm. Wouldn’t want a tourist to be cold, wet AND lost on a day like this.
