Philly got its biggest snowfall in 2 years, but Saturday may be even harsher

After experiencing the closest thing to an old-fashioned snow day in two years, the Philly region may have to contend with an unfamiliar nemesis on Saturday — blowing snow that could recoat some of the region’s roads on a day when wind chills will be in the single digits.

That dry, fluffy snow — a half-foot in some parts of the region, according to the National Weather Service, with 4.6 inches officially at Philadelphia International Airport — so easy on the shovel, is going to show an ugly side with strong, snow-stirring winds from the northwest, perhaps gusting 30 to 35 mph.

“It’s going to lead to some snow blowing back on the roads,” said Alex Staarmann, meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly.

After temperatures drop to the mid-teens Saturday morning, they’ll top out in the low and mid-20s later in the day, not quite ideal shoveling weather.

In what may have been an only-in-Philly moment, Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel implored the citizenry not to let their tempers get the best of them in the Philadelphia tradition of “savesies,” in which locals use traffic cones and folding chairs to reserve shoveled-out spaces, noting that in the past, the practice has led to a certain unpleasantness.

“At the end of the day, it’s a parking space. It’s not worth the confrontation,” he said.

This one will not make the Philadelphia snowstorm hall of fame, but it did leave a considerable amount of snow to remove, and did cause some problems.

Some intake centers set up to help people experiencing homelessness closed during Philadelphia’s snow emergency Friday, outreach workers told The Inquirer, leaving some providers unsure of where to send people in need of shelter.

» READ MORE: Philly says there’s space for the homeless despite some full shelters and confusion about where to turn

At a briefing later, Philadelphia Managing Director Adam K. Thiel insisted that the city did have adequate facilities available. “We absolutely have homeless beds and homeless services and intake services available,” Thiel said. “We have warm beds available for everybody who needs them.”

Friday wasn’t Philadelphia International Airport’s best of days, said spokesperson Heather Redfern.

“It was pretty easy this morning,” she said, “and then the snow came in and things went downhill.”

The snow started lightly before daybreak, and picked up intensity by midmorning, as did the problems. As of 8 pm. Friday, Redfern said 428 delays and 51 cancellations were reported in and out of Philly. The FAA ordered all inbound flights grounded until 10 p.m.

She said the problems also had a lot to do with nasty weather in other cities, including Toronto and Buffalo.

Plus, some cities in the South, such as Nashville and Houston, have been dealing with extreme weather all week, as much of the nation has endured a major Arctic outbreak. The Philly region was just the latest to get a taste.

About 30 bus routes were on detour Friday night, SEPTA said, but most services were operating on or close to schedule.

Some Philadelphians learned that they will have to spend another week bonding with their trash, as an already holiday-delayed pickup would get pushed back to next Friday.

But even though the region has been grossly out of practice, it evidently survived two significant snowfalls in five days without much in the way of trauma.

PennDot, which was approaching the amount of salt it had used all last winter, when all of 0.3 inches fell during the entire season in Philly, reported no major issues, and speed restrictions were lifted at 4 p.m., said spokesperson Brad Rudolph. By day’s end, the city reported that it had treated 75% of its streets.

The overall lack of disruption likely had something to do with the fact that after days of snow advisories, not many folks were out and about.

With winter storm warnings issued Thursday afternoon, just about every school building was closed, with districts opting for virtual learning or deciding to let kids have a play-in-the-snow day.

» READ MORE: Why did some kids around Philly have snow days, while others logged on for lessons?

Among those who did decide to brave the elements were the people who attended the Philadelphia Orchestra concert Friday afternoon.

The matinee at the Kimmel Center went on as scheduled, though the weather took a toll on attendance. The concert, with Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue featuring the Marcus Roberts Trio, had been nearly sold out.

Yet only 761 listeners turned up in 2,500-seat Verizon Hall, an orchestra spokesperson said. Orchestra music and artistic director Yannick Nézet-Séguin told the audience that, as a Canadian, he was not impressed by the winter storm, but he thanked those who braved it nonetheless.

”You all are the lucky ones for whom we are going to play our hearts,” he said.

With winds light, the snow was able to accumulate on trees and find its way into architectural details, turning the region into an enchanted landscape for a day.

» READ MORE: Not everyone loves it, but the magic and mystery of snow endure

However, the snow is about to undergo an aesthetic transformation as winds Saturday could gust to 35 mph, said Dave Dombek, senior meteorologist at AccuWeather Inc., whipping it into modest drifts and blowing it back on to sidewalks and driveways.

The snow will stick around on the ground for the weekend, as temperatures are forecast to stay below 30 degrees all day Sunday.

» READ MORE: Why the Philly area’s National Weather Service office is in Mount Holly

They finally will get above freezing Monday, and then into the 40s the rest of the week, with rain possible Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the weather service says.

Now, that we should be used to.

Staff writers Peter Dobrin, Beatrice Forman, Oona Goodin-Smith, Maddie Hanna, Anna Orso, and Aubrey Whelan contributed to this article.