City declares disaster emergency, awaits 6 to 10 more inches of snow

City Council declared a disaster emergency today as meteorologists predicted that more snow… City Council declared a disaster emergency today as meteorologists predicted that more snow will hit Pittsburgh tomorrow morning.

Lou Giordano, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said a storm coming from the South should hit Pittsburgh around midmorning tomorrow and could have an impact “just as great” as this weekend’s. The storm will drop about 2 inches of snow throughout the day and another 3 to 4 inches during the night.

Snow will continue into Wednesday and possibly Thursday, bringing the total accumulation to between 6 and 10 inches, Giordano said.

“Considering the road crews are still cleaning up from the last one, the impact could be just as great for this one as for the last one,” he said. “Any of the problems you already had, they’re just going to be compounded.”

The disaster emergency declaration will allow city officials to buy snow removal supplies and hire extra workers quicker than it normally could.

“There are over 1,200 miles of narrow and sloped city streets that need attention. That is the equivalent of plowing snow from here to Miami. Add in 20 inches of snow, downed trees and power lines and you have a disaster that takes time to clean up,” a news release said.

Giordano said temperatures will probably stay below freezing until at least next week. Pittsburgh could get more snow showers this weekend.

City Council will move its meetings this week to Thursday. The legislative meeting will begin at 10 a.m. and the committee meetings will begin at 1 p.m.

Pitt has not yet announced its decision regarding its operations tomorrow.