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Tom Sestito the making most of return to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

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Radicals fans roll in for breakfast

<p>A winter storm system left much of the Mid-West and East Coast covered with snow Saturday morning, which led to accidents and deaths across the country.</p><p>In the Wyoming Valley, residents were seen shoveling nearly 3 inches of snow off driveways, sidewalks and roadways. While there were no reports available for any major incidents locally, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation imposed speed reductions Saturday morning as a precaution.</p><p>The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for Luzerne County effective 7 p.m. Friday to 7 p.m. Saturday, and while the majority of snow came early Saturday morning, the NWS urged drivers to use caution when driving through Saturday night.</p><p>According to AccuWeather meteorologist Matt Greene, the system came in from the west, with precipitation moving north from the south.</p><p>PennDOT announced Saturday morning it reduced the maximum speed to 45 mph on Interstate 80 in Luzerne County, Interstate 81, south of the I-80 Junction, and Interstate 380 until 1 p.m. Agency officials urged motorists to be prepared for &#8220;probable&#8221; slick roads, especially on bridges on ramps.</p><p>Carl DeFebo Jr., director of Public Relations and Marketing at the Turnpike commission, said the speed reductions went into effect at 8 a.m. due to &#8220;multiple minor incidents.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;It was for the safety of our customers,&#8221; DeFebo said.</p><p>Statewide, DeFebo said, there were only four or five reports of cars spinning out, and that there were no serious or fatal incidents, noting he didn&#8217;t receive any reports close to Luzerne County.</p><p>There was one incident in Lancaster that caused an interchange to be closed, DeFebo said, but the speed reductions were mostly precautionary measures. They were lifted at 1 p.m., and DeFebo urged drivers to use caution when traveling in inclement weather.</p><p>He said drivers could encounter maintenance vehicles continuing to treat the roads into Sunday, when another system of rain is supposed to come through.</p><p>While snow stopped in the early afternoon, Greene said rain could continue overnight as temperatures rise.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not going to be dry (Saturday night),&#8221; he said.</p><p>In other parts of the northeast, fatal accidents had been reported. In Baltimore, a tanker carrying gasoline crashed off the highway and exploded, causing two deaths, 15 injuries and a 55-vehicle pileup on Interstate 80, the Associated Press reported.</p><p>The AP also reported that the Philadelphia International Airport said Federal Aviation Administration officials imposed a ground stop for flights headed to Philadelphia. That ban was lifted also, although flights were coming in over an hour late Saturday afternoon.</p><p>Looking ahead, the high for Sunday likely will reach 50, Greene said, but it will happen early in the day, with temperatures falling in the afternoon.</p><p>&#8220;By 5 or 6 o&#8217;clock, it will be down in the 30s,&#8221; he said.</p><p>The low for Sunday night will be around 14 degrees, and Green said drivers could encounter some icy roads as rain freezes.</p><p>&#8220;There could be some slick spots in the evening,&#8221; he said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Louis Forersch, of Harding, clears the lot surrounding his tree stand on the corner of Boston and Wyoming avenues in West Pittston on Saturday. <ins>Louis </ins>Forersch<ins>, of Harding,</ins> clears snow from the sidewalk around his tree stand<ins> on the corner of Boston and Wyoming avenues in West Pittston</ins>. The snow mound across the street was plowed from the Insalaco Shopping Center parking lot. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Dec-17-snow-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Louis Forersch, of Harding, clears the lot surrounding his tree stand on the corner of Boston and Wyoming avenues in West Pittston on Saturday. <ins>Louis </ins>Forersch<ins>, of Harding,</ins> clears snow from the sidewalk around his tree stand<ins> on the corner of Boston and Wyoming avenues in West Pittston</ins>. The snow mound across the street was plowed from the Insalaco Shopping Center parking lot. </caption0><photoCredit0>Tony Callaio | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Dec-17-snow-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">With traffic moving steadily on Wyoming Avenue in Exeter, residents utilized shovels and snow throwers Saturday morning to clear sideways after the 3-inch overnight snowfall. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Dec-17-snow-2.jpg</photo1><caption1>With traffic moving steadily on Wyoming Avenue in Exeter, residents utilized shovels and snow throwers Saturday morning to clear sideways after the 3-inch overnight snowfall. </caption1><photoCredit1>Tony Callaio | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Dec-17-snow-3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Louis Forersch, Harding, clears the lot surrounding his tree stand on the corner of Boston and Wyo. Aves. in West Pittston. The snow mountain in the background is from the Insalaco Shopping Ctr. parking lot in West Pittston. Tony Callaio | For Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_Dec-17-snow-3.jpg</photo2><caption2>Louis Forersch, Harding, clears the lot surrounding his tree stand on the corner of Boston and Wyo. Aves. in West Pittston. The snow mountain in the background is from the Insalaco Shopping Ctr. parking lot in West Pittston. Tony Callaio | For Times Leader</caption2><photoCredit2>Tony Callaio | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Brigid Edmunds</p><p>bedmunds@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Brigid Edmunds at 570-829-7242 or on Twitter @TLNews.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

NWS: Snow, ice make roads treacherous in NEPA, and wintry mix will continue