Number of crashes in Butler County spiked Sunday, attributed to snow
Sunday's snowfall may have led to a number of crashes, most of which appeared minor, according to authorities.
"It appears there was an increase in vehicle crashes," said Rob McLafferty, Butler County 911 coordinator. "They mostly involved low speeds and impacts."
According to Butler County dispatch reports, emergency crews were dispatched to 26 crashes Sunday. McLafferty said that is about double the normal average number of crashes.
One of the first crashes of the day was around 10:32 a.m. near the Brush Creek Treatment Plant on Powell Road in Cranberry Township.
Cranberry Township Division Fire Chief Michael Hanks said he and his team responded to the crash involving two vehicles.
"The driver reported to police that she was coming down the hill and lost control," Hanks said.
Hanks said the driver was in an SUV and hit the side of a pickup truck. Hanks said one patient was taken to the hospital for neck and back pain.
"The patient was conscious, alert and oriented," Hanks said.
Hanks said the other driver was uninjured and picked up by a family member.
Hanks said snow continued to fall as they worked the scene, but Cranberry Township road crews had actually passed the scene while conducting routine plowing and salting. Overall, he said, the road crews appeared to keep up with the wintry conditions.
"That snow kind of hit us quickly yesterday," Hanks said.
Cranberry Township firefighters were dispatched two more times to vehicle crashes, but Hanks said they were called off from both, one being too minor to require their assistance and the other being an alarm call instead.
Christina Gibbs, community relations coordinator for PennDOT District 10, said the snow came in harder than expected Sunday night.
“We’ll have crews out 24 hours ... By the time (trucks) come back around on their route the road could be covered,” Gibbs said.
According to Gibbs, accumulation is hard to beat when it falls at one to two inches per hour.
“The county has 1,613 snow lane miles to cover with 42 plow trucks,” Gibbs said. “A truck may have a two-hour long route, which is why it may seem like you don’t see them as often as you’d like.”
Throughout Butler County, snowfall reports varied between 3 and 5 inches Sunday, according to David Shallenberger, meteorologist for the National Weather Service of Pittsburgh.
The weather service initially called for a milder storm, but then placed the county in a severe weather advisory that ended around 7 p.m. The weather service again called for more snow Monday night.
"We are looking at a little bit less snow," Shallenberger said. "For Butler, we're looking at between 2 and 2 1/2 inches."
The service has placed counties surrounding Butler in severe weather advisories, including Clarion, Mercer and Venango counties, among others.
Shallenberger said the service had better models for Monday night's storm, guiding their decision not to place Butler County under an advisory.
Shallenberger said following Monday's storm, the region will receive a brief reprieve from snow. He said the county will likely be without more snow Tuesday, Wednesday and part of Thursday.
"Thursday night and into Friday, we have another clipper-type system moving in," Shallenberger said.
According to Shallenberger, a clipper storm usually comes in smaller bands with cold arctic temperatures as their driving force. He said those low temperatures create dry, powdery snow and lots of it.
"It usually deals with colder temperatures, so you get that really light fluffy snow," Shallenberger said. "You usually get that accumulating on the roads fairly quickly."
Gibbs said the community can check the website 511PA.com and the app for updates on road conditions and even the positions of plow trucks during winter weather.
