Snow No Problem In Shore Towns

The Shore area woke to an inch or so of heavy wet snow on Saturday, the first accumulation of 2012, but it was expected to be short-lived, as rain began to wash it away early Saturday afternoon.

While other areas of the state were dealing with a multitude of accidents and fender benders, area police reported there were no significant incidents reported on local roads. 

A tractor-trailer jacknifed on the southbound Garden State Parkway near exit 88 about 4 a.m. on Saturday, an accident attributed to the snowy, slick conditions at that hour, but most of the highway problems reported were north and west of the immediate Shore area.

With predictions of temperatures that are expected to drop well below freezing on Saturday evening, however, police are reminding drivers everywhere to exercise caution.

The National Weather Service in Mount Holly reported that about an inch of snow fell in Monmouth and Ocean counties, with amounts greater farther from the coast. By 9:30 a.m. much of the snow had turned to rain that was washing whatever snow remained off the roads, leaving wet conditions.

Those wet roads could turn icy as the day progresses, however. Lee Robertson, a meteorologist in the NWS’s Mount Holly office, said temperatures, which had been above freezing in the morning, are expected to fall into the mid- to low 20s overnight. They were hovering around freezing in the early afternoon.

Toms River Police Chief Michael Mastronardy said there were no weather-related incidents reported to his department. But the dropping temperatures are a concern.

“Whenever people drive they should be alert and use caution,” he said. “With possible icy conditions they need to be extra careful.”

Brick Township police were reporting an accident under investigation around 1 p.m., but no further details were immediately available. That was the only incident that was weather-related, they said.

Temperatures are expected to warm back into the upper 30s and 40s on Sunday, Robertson said, so meteorologists don’t expect there will be issues of significance then.