Severe storm hits the Five Towns

More than 13 inches of snow fell on the Five Towns, according to the National Weather Service following a storm that forced schools to close and Gov. Andrew Cuomo to impose a travel ban due to hazardous conditions that also shutdown Long Island Rail Road service and the New York City subways.
The Hewlett-Woodmere and Lawrence school districts were closed on Tuesday, as well as The Brandeis School and Rambam Mesivta High School, both in Lawrence, and all divisions of the Hebrew Academy of Long Beach, including David Renov Stahler High School for Boys in Woodmere and Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls in Hewlett Bay Park, and Lawrence Woodmere Academy.
Area villages such as Lawrence, Cedarhurst and Atlantic Beach had employees salting, plowing and shoveling continuously to keep roads and parking lots clear of snow. Lawrence Mayor Martin Oliner declared a snow emergency on Monday at noon that remained in effect until Wednesday at 6 p.m. “Under the term of a snow emergency parking is prohibited on all village street,” Oliner said.
Village officials said they were fully staffed with heavy trucks and pickup trucks equipped with plows to cover the village, which budgets $50,000 a year for snow clean up.
In Cedarhurst, where a snow alert was declared on Monday, eight plows, three small bulldozers and payloads, “did a superb job of plowing and carting away snow and salting road,” said to Mayor Andrew Parise. “We are on top of it, we have plenty of equipment and enough manpower.” The village annually budgets $60,000 for snow removal and clean up. The mayor said that crews continued to work through Tuesday to clear the snow.

Mayor George Pappas said that Atlantic Beach was “very well prepared” for the storm and that all available manpower and equipment was out plowing under the direction of Steve Cherson the village’s public works superintendent. Atlantic Beach budgets $22,000 for snow removal.
The storm also interrupted Sanitary District 1 service as all Tuesday pick up was suspended as was Wednesday’s recycling pick up. Regular service was to resume on Thursday, said Pappas, who serves as the district’s superintendent. S.D. 1 picks up the trash and recyclables in the Five Towns and portions of the unincorporated areas of Lynbrook and Green Acres. Pappas said that residents should either clear a path for district workers to get to the trash or place garbage cans by the street.