Maplewood And South Orange Prepare For Blizzard: Schools, Parking, Garbage, Power Outages

SOUTH ORANGE-MAPLEWOOD, NJ — New Jersey is under a state of emergency as a severe winter storm bears down on the state, including Maplewood and South Orange.

The National Weather Service is predicting that up to two feet of snow may fall in Maplewood and South Orange on Sunday and Monday (see local forecast below). Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s state of emergency declaration took effect at noon on Sunday.

“I am announcing speed restriction of 35 miles-per-hour, which will take effect at 3 p.m.,” Sherrill said. “A commercial vehicle ban will also take effect at 3 p.m. [Sunday] on all our highways – except the Turnpike.”

>> READ MORE: Highway Speed Restrictions, Travel Bans In Place As Brutal Blizzard Barrels Into NJ

The National Weather Service has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for Maplewood and South Orange, with a Blizzard Warning for the towns lasting until 6 p.m. on Monday.

Here’s the 48-hour local forecast for Maplewood and South Orange, as per the NWS:

Sunday Afternoon - Snow. Steady temperature around 33. Wind chill values between 20 and 25. Northeast wind 11 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Sunday Night - Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Areas of blowing snow after 1am. Low around 27. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. Windy, with a north wind 18 to 23 mph increasing to 25 to 30 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 46 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 11 to 17 inches possible.

Monday - Snow, mainly before 1pm. The snow could be heavy at times. Areas of blowing snow before 4pm. High near 34. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. Windy, with a north wind 21 to 29 mph, with gusts as high as 46 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.

Monday Night - Cloudy, then gradually becoming partly cloudy, with a low around 20. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. Blustery, with a northwest wind 18 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph.

MAPLEWOOD AND SOUTH ORANGE BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES

The South Orange-Maplewood Public School District will be closed on Monday, Feb. 23. “Please stay warm and avoid unnecessary travel when possible,” administrators said.

Township officials in Maplewood and South Orange have issued storm updates for local residents, which include information about parking, shoveling, garbage collection and power outages.

>> Read Maplewood's storm advisory here

>> Read South Orange's storm advisory here

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