NE USA HIT BY WINTER STORM - NCDOT

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- A massive late winter snow storm roared out of the Southeast and into the Northeast overnight, idling hundreds of flights and making Monday's morning rush treacherous as motorists contended with nearly a foot of snow in spots.

Winter storm warnings were issued from North Carolina to New Hampshire, with most areas expected to see 8 to 12 inches of snow and higher amounts possible in northern areas.

"It's the first of March, which, as you know, is the month that we say comes in like a lion and out like a lamb," New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday. "It's pretty clear that the lions are getting ready to roar."

The blizzard-like snow - together with sleet, freezing rain and wind gusts of up to 30 mph - contributed to four deaths on roads in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and on New York's Long Island.

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More than 100 flights were scrubbed Sunday at Boston's Logan International Airport. Hundreds more flights were canceled at the New York region's three major airports, said Jennifer Friedberg, a spokeswoman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

More than 10 inches of snow was on the ground in New Jersey's Atlantic and Cumberland counties by 7 a.m. Monday, while South Carolina was dealing with 8 inches. Forecasters warned that the snow may temporarily stop for a few hours before starting up again by midmorning.

Nearly 335 flights scheduled to fly in or out of Newark Liberty International Airport had been canceled by Monday morning, and more cancellations were expected. In New Hampshire, Manchester-Boston Regional Airport listed about a dozen canceled arrivals Monday morning and close to 20 canceled departures.

Greyhound and Peter Pan bus lines canceled trips affecting travelers in and out of New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New Jersey.

Philadelphia declared a Code Blue weather emergency, which gives officials the power to go out onto the streets and bring in homeless people to shelters because the weather conditions pose a threat of serious harm or death.

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New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine said the storm could cost the state anywhere from about $2.5 million to $7 million, depending on its severity. So far, New Jersey has spent about $22 million on this winter's "frequent snow events," an amount that's about twice as much as what was budgeted for this year.

Those who had to be on the road Monday were told to allow extra travel time because streets were expected to be slick and slippery and visibilities were likely to be limited.

All New Jersey state offices will hold a two-hour delayed opening on Monday and the state Senate canceled all its scheduled committee meetings. Connecticut state employees were also given an extra 2 hours to get to work on storm-slick roads. South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford delayed the opening of state offices in 28 counties in the central and northern parts of the state.

Dozens of schools across North Carolina, South Carolina and New Jersey also gave children a snow day. Public schools in Philadelphia, New York City and Boston did the same.

"We are urging residents to stay off the streets during the snowfall, if at all possible," Clarena I.W. Tolson, commissioner of Philadelphia's Streets Department.

New York City had 1,300 sanitation workers spreading salt and plowing streets Sunday night, and more than 2,500 were to be on duty on Monday, Bloomberg said. More than 100,000 tons of salt will be on hand.

It was likely to be the largest storm of the year, said city Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty, who warned that commuters should plan for complications.

"It's going to be a difficult morning for public transportation. We're going to be making every effort to have the roadways open," he said.

So far, the city's bus and subway service was running near normal with scattered delays on Monday morning, said NYC Transit spokesman Paul Fleuranges.
Forecasters said up to 10 inches could fall in parts of New York's Dutchess County, where eastern areas near the Connecticut border already had 8 inches by 7 a.m. Monday.

Duke Energy reported about 100,000 customers without electric service early Monday in North Carolina and another 78,000 in South Carolina. Progress Energy reported more than 5,300 customers lost service in North Carolina.

In Virginia, Dominion Virginia Power said nearly 114,000 customers were without power, with more than half in the Richmond metropolitan area. Appalachian Power, which serves southwest Virginia, reported about 5,600 outages.

Maryland has already spent more than $40 million responding to bad weather in what's been a colder-than-usual winter, Gov. Martin O'Malley said Sunday. Any money spent on digging out from the rare March storm will further burden a state that's facing a $2 billion budget shortfall.

"I don't like snow," O'Malley said.

Here is the WEATHER WARNING FROM NCDOT

WINTER WEATHER AFFECTING TRAVEL IN NORTH CAROLINA

Winter weather is affecting travel throughout NC from I-95 to the Tennessee/North Carolina State Line. Many accidents are being reported throughout the state due to the winter weather. Motorists are advised, for their safety, that if they do not need to be out traveling to please stay off the roads.

Winter storm warnings are still in effect for some areas of North Carolina from I-95 to Western North Carolina. Snow is expected to fall until mid morning on Monday, March 2, 2009. It is recommended to limit travel as much as possible.

Here is a LIVE TRAFFIC CAMERA FROM THE NORTH CAROLINA REGION NCDOT

SUNSET at WINSTEAD ROCKY MOUNT NORTH CAROLINA
This is a LIVE NCDOT TRAFFIC CAMERA showing the WINTER STORM.
CLICK HERE TO REFRESH LIVE TRAFFIC CAMERA IMAGE

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No injuries were reported, but dozens of people were spending the night at an American Red Cross evacuation center set up in the Hualapai Tribal Gymnasium in Peach Springs, Ariz..

Rescuers worked throughout Sunday to locate campers and Supai Village residents and safely transport them to the top of the canyon. About 400 Havasupai tribe members live in the village.

Rescuers will evaluate weather conditions and the level of floodwaters Monday morning to decide whether they can safely resume air evacuations, said Grand Canyon National Park spokeswoman Maureen Oltrogge.

Some individuals who were believed to be in the canyon at the time of the flooding are unaccounted for, according to a park service news release.

There were no confirmed reports of damage in Supai, which is on high ground, said Gerry Blair, a spokesman for the Coconino County Sheriff's Department. Many residents and campers chose to stay there, he said.

"We're not as concerned about it as we initially were," he said.

Still, a flash flood warning remained in effect, and search and rescue teams planned to stay in the village overnight as a precaution.

Some hiking trails and footbridges were washed out after the dam breach about 45 miles from Supai, park officials said. Some trees were uprooted, the National Weather Service said.

The Redlands Earthen Dam broke about 6 a.m. Sunday, park officials said. The dam breaching was only one factor in the flooding, Blair said. The dam isn't a "huge, significant" structure, he said.

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The area got 3 to 6 inches of rain Friday and Saturday and about 2 inches more on Sunday, said Daryl Onton, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Flagstaff.

"That's all it took — just a few days of very heavy thunderstorms," he said.

Supai is about 75 miles west of the Grand Canyon Village, a popular tourist area on the South Rim.

The flooding came on a weekend during the busy summer tourist season, when thousands of visitors a day flock to the canyon.

In 2001, flooding near Supai swept a 2-year-old boy and his parents to their deaths while they were hiking.

Deadly TYPHOON FENSHEN hits Manila and Kills 100's while over 800 from a CAPSIZED FERRY are missing and feared dead

Typhoon Fengshen has killed 155 people in the Philippines in a torrent of flashfloods and landslides, the head of the Philippines Red Cross, Richard Gordon, told local radio on Sunday.

The death toll from the typhoon was earlier pegged at around 85. It could rise sharply after a ferry with more than 800 people are missing and many feared dead from a ferry that capsized and sank as Typhoon Fengshen continued to batter the Philippines, hampering rescue efforts.

Four bodies were recovered by police rescuers from the MV Princess of Stars, police spokesman Nicanor Bartolome said today in a telephone interview. Three survivors had been found, Senator Richard Gordon, who's also chairman of the Philippine Red Cross, said this afternoon at a news briefing. There were 747 passengers and crew aboard, according to the coast guard.

Two navy ships were on their way to the area near Romblon in the central Philippines where the ferry capsized at about 6 p.m. yesterday, and were expected to arrive there at about 2 p.m. local time, Navy spokesman Edgard Arevalo said. Rescue attempts were being hampered by ``gigantic waves, pounding rain and gusting winds,'' he said. The ferry was en route from Manila to Cebu in the central Philippines when it sank.

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Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo demanded to know why the ferry was allowed to sail as the typhoon bore down on the islands. She spoke from the U.S., where she is on an official visit, with civil defense and coast guard authorities in a meeting that was broadcast on nationwide radio. ``Why did you allow it to sail and why was there no ample warning?'' she said.

Elsewhere, 82 people may be dead from flashfloods and landslides caused by the typhoon, although only eight were confirmed, according to National Disaster Coordinating Council Executive Director Anthony Golez. More than 366,000 were affected by the storms and of them, 70,717 had been evacuated, according to an earlier report from the council.

Storm Track

The eye of Fengshen, the seventh storm of the northwestern Pacific cyclone season, was over Tarlac province, northwest of the capital city of Manila, packing winds of up to 120 kilometers per hour at 4 p.m. local time, according to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration. It is moving toward the northwest coast of the main island of Luzon, the weather bureau said.

Storm debris is hampering restoration of power to areas of the capital blacked out when the storm blew through. Manila Electric Co., which serves the capital and nearby provinces, said a 10th of its total network remained without power as of 3 p.m.

Power has been restored to mass transit lines in Manila, the electricity company said.

Some power lines in southern Luzon are still being repaired, the state-run power transmission company said. Service has been fully restored on Cebu and Bohol islands in the central Philippines, according to National Transmission Co.

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Flooded Iloilo

At least 30,000 residents of Iloilo City were stranded on their rooftops after the typhoon caused a dam to overflow and sparked power outages across the province, the Philippines Inquirer reported citing Jed Mabilog the city's acting mayor.

In the eastern Bicol region, the storm forced more than 200,000 people to evacuate their homes, the newspaper said, citing a civil defense official.

Arroyo arrived in the U.S. last night for a 10-day visit, according to the report. Yesterday she ordered warnings to be issued to all provinces in the storm's path.

The Philippines is regularly hit by typhoons and tropical storms that gain strength over warm waters of the Pacific before lashing the coast. At least 26 people died in November last year when two typhoons struck the country.

Fengshen is named after the God of Wind in China, according to the Web site of the Hong Kong Observatory, which lists names used for tropical storms and typhoons formed in the northwest Pacific.

Typhoon "Fengshen" passed the east of Metro Manila early Sunday and headed toward central Luzon in the vicinity of Clark in Pampanga province, 70 kilometers north of Manila, said the state weather forecasters Sunday.

"Fengshen" is expected to reach Pangasinan province 200 kilometers north of Manila in the afternoon, said the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration. The typhoon packed maximum sustained winds of 120 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 150 kph, and was moving north-northwest at 15 kph.

Metro Manila was invaded by flood waters brought about by typhoon "Fengshen" on Sunday, after one night's heavy wind and rains. All domestic flights for Sunday were canceled and international flights were delayed, according to local radio reports. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said gutter-deep flood waters submerged several thoroughfares in Metro Manila, while some streets in Manila were submerged with knee-deep water. Some parts of the capital region came under power outage for several hours Sunday morning due to toppled electricity posts and damaged transformers.

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By Monday morning, "Fengshen" is expected to be 100 km west of Vigan, Ilocos Sur in northern Luzon. By Tuesday morning, "Fengshen" would be 300 kilometers west-northwest of Basco, Batanes in the northernmost Philippines, and by Wednesday morning, it would be 470 km north-northwest of Basco, Batanes.

Severe Storm hits Texas

Thousands of customers remained without power Thursday morning as severe storms swept through North Texas the night before, damaging about two dozen homes near Crowley.

Several of the damaged homes were on Sharondale Drive in unincorporated Tarrant County near Crowley, authorities said. Two minor injuries were reported.

Most of the damage appeared to be wind-related, Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Terry Grisham said.

In Tarrant County this morning, scattered debris and missing roofs could be seen in the hard hit areas.

The American Red Cross said its crews had found six families whose homes were badly damaged in around Crowley. More teams were heading to the area to assess damage and provide assistance to affected residents.

The National Weather Service in Fort Worth said survey teams would be heading to Johnson, Hood, Erath, Palo Pinto and Tarrant counties Thursday to confirm whether tornadoes had touched down.

Wind estimates of about 60 mph swept through the region, said Jessica Schultz, a weather service meterologist. The strongest wind, 67 mph, was recorded in Granbury.

The winds knocked down trees in Collin and Denton counties and along the Erath-Palo Pinto line. But it was the heavy rains that appeared to do more widespread damage.

“In the metroplex, there’s more flooding than anything else,” said Vick Corbelli, a weather service meterologist.

Eight inches of rain fell on State Highway 174 in Burleson, and 1 1/2 inches of rain poured down at Alliance Airport within 15 to 20 minutes. Dallas received an inch of rain within 15 minutes.

Flooding was also reported in Tarrant and Denton counties. Flash flooding also was reported in Palo Pinto County.

About 55 flights were delayed and some cancelled at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, WFAA-TV (Channel 8) reported.

As of 6:30 a.m., about 24,000 customers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area remained without power, according to Oncor.

Hood County emergency management official Roger Deeds said some homes and a fire station were damaged as the storm moved through the region southwest of Fort Worth.

The thunderstorm also brought quarter-size to baseball-size hail to Stephens, Eastland, Erath, Palo Pinto, Hood and Parker counties, according to weather service reports.

Today’s weather is expected to be partly to mostly sunny with temperatures reaching 86 degrees.

The next chances for rain and possible severe storms are Friday and then again Saturday night into Sunday.

Tornado Survival and recovery tips

How quickly must I react to a tornado warning?
A tornado warning means a funnel cloud has been detected and you should take cover immediately.

Where should I take shelter?
The safest place to be during a tornado is underground—for example, in a basement. If you can't get to a basement, seek shelter in an interior hallway or small interior room with no windows, like a bathroom or a closet.

If I'm away from my home, what should I do?
If you're away from home when a tornado strikes, the same basic rules of survival apply: Remain calm and get to the lowest level possible, away from windows and free-span roofs.

If I'm in my car, what should I do?
If you're in an automobile when a warning is issued, you should get out of your vehicle and lie down in a low area away from your car, with your hands covering your head and neck.

Can a mobile home provide sufficient shelter?
Not necessarily. If you live in a mobile or manufactured home, even one with tiedowns, you should seek shelter elsewhere at the first sign of severe weather. Make arrangements in advance to go to a community shelter or stay with a friend or relative. As a last resort, go outside and lie flat on the ground with your hands over your head and neck.

If you must seek shelter outdoors, be alert for flash floods that often accompany tornadoes.

TORNADO! The very word strikes fear in many people. While a tornado is perhaps nature's most destructive storm, deaths and injuries can be prevented. By following Tornado Safety Rules, lives can be saved and injuries prevented.

Warning the public of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes is the National Weather Service's (NWS) most important job. To help the public prepare for tornado situations, the NWS has adopted a WATCH and WARNING program.

TORNADO WATCH: This means that conditions are favorable for tornado development. This is the time to prepare. You should keep alert by listening to NOAA Weather Radio, or the commercial media for the latest weather information.

TORNADO WARNING: This means a tornado has been sighted or indicated by radar. People in the path of the storm should take immediate life saving action.

IN SCHOOLS, HOSPITALS, FACTORIES, SHOPPING CENTERS AND OTHER PUBLIC PLACES: Move to designated shelter areas. Interior hallways on the lowest level are usually best. Stay away from windows and out of auditoriums, gymnasiums, or other structures with large free span roofs.

IN VEHICLES: Do not try to outrun a tornado. Abandon your vehicle and hide in a nearby ditch or depression and cover your head.

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Tornado Myths

MYTH: Areas near rivers, lakes and mountains are safe from tornadoes.
FACT: No place is safe from tornadoes. They can cross rivers, travel up mountains, and roar through valleys.
MYTH: Low pressure with a tornado causes buildings to "explode" as the tornado passes overhead.
FACT: Violent winds and debris slamming into buildings cause most damage.
MYTH: Windows should be opened before a tornado to equalize pressure and minimize damage.
FACT: Opening windows allows damaging winds to enter the structure. Leave the windows alone; instead immediately go to a safe place.

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TORNADO SAFETY

IN ANY BUILDING
Basement is the safest place
Avoid windows and chimneys
Hide under furniture or stairwells
Cover your head
 
IN A HOME
Seek lowest level
Central section
Hide under furniture or stairwells
Avoid windows and chimneys
Cover your head
 
IN AN APARTMENT
Lowest level
Central portion of home Small room, closet or hallway
Avoid exterior walls and windows
Cover your head
IN AN OFFICE BUILDING
Seek lowest level, if available
Central portion of building Small room, closet or hallway
Avoid exterior walls and windows
Cover your head
IN A MOBILE HOME / TRAILER
Evacuation is a must ; mobile homes CANNOT withstand the force of even a small tornado
If there is time, seek shelter in a nearby permanent building
If not available, head for a low spot such as a ditch or ravine
Cover your head

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Tornado Awareness

Tornadoes are relatively short-lived local storms.They are composed of violently rotating columns of air that descend in the familiar funnel shape from thunderstorm cloud systems. The weather conditions that tend to generate Tornadoes are unseasonably warm and humid earth surface air, cold air at middle atmospheric levels, and strong upper-level jet stream winds. Tornadoes can occur anywhere in the United States during any month of the year. However, the Great Plains and Gulf Coast States experience the largest number of Tornadoes. The greatest frequency of Tornadoes occur in April, May and June.

The destructive path of a tornado averages about 250 yards in width and 15 miles in length. In extreme conditions, a tornado may travel more than 300 miles and leave a path of total destruction more than a mile wide. Tornadoes will travel up to 70 mph, with wind speeds approaching 400 mph within the tornado's center. Tornadoes usually travel from a westerly direction to an easterly direction.

Signs and Warnings
Tornadoes develop during severe thunderstorms. While not all thunderstorms create Tornadoes, the potential is there. During violent weather, keep tuned to a local television or radio station for tornado reports.
If you are outside and see a funnel-shaped cloud with obvious rotating motion, it may be a tornado. As a tornado develops, it will produce a loud roar that grows louder as the funnel cloud touches the ground. When nearby, a tornado has a loud sound comparable to the combined roars of several jet engines.
The National Severe Storms Forecast Center in Kansas City issues tornado watches. Local National Weather Service offices issue tornado warnings. Local officials may sound sirens in a tornado warning.
A tornado watch indicates that conditions are right for a tornado to develop and the sky should be watched.
A tornado warning indicates a tornado has been sighted or is spotted on radar. Warnings will give the location of the tornado and the area immediately affected by the warning.

Immediate Dangers
The immediate threat from Tornadoes is danger to life and damage to property from violently whirling winds and debris hurled through the air by winds.

Long-Term Dangers
Long-term risks include the possibility of building collapse, fallen trees and power lines, broken gas lines, broken sewer and water mains, and the outbreak of fires. Agricultural crops and industries may be damaged or destroyed.

Preparedness
The best preparation for a tornado is to designate a safe place in or around your home as a tornado shelter. Tornado shelters are safest if they are underground. A storm cellar or basement away from windows offers the best protection.
If neither of these is available, plan to find shelter under heavy furniture or mattresses near an inside wall of your house on the ground floor. Get under solid furniture or cover yourselves with mattresses pulled off the bed.
Plan tornado drills with your family so everyone knows what to do.
Know the location of the designated shelter where you work or go to school.
Plan to evacuate your manufactured (mobile) home.
Make an inventory of your household furnishing and other possessions.
Supplement the written inventory with photographs or video. Keep inventories and pictures in a safe deposit box or some other safe place away from the premises.

Response
If you have a storm cellar or shelter, go to it immediately with your family. If no shelter is available, go to your basement and get under a heavy work bench or stairs. Do not position yourself directly underneath heavy appliances on the floor above you.

If your home has no basement, stay in the center of the house away from the windows or in a small room on the ground floor that is away from outside walls. Take cover under solid furniture or mattresses.  Protect your head.

In mobile homes or vehicles, leave and take shelter in a substantial structure. If there is no nearby shelter, lie flat in the nearest ditch or ravine with your hands shielding your head.

In any large building, such as an office or department store, avoid all large, poorly supported roofs.

Go to the basement or to an inner hallway on a lower floor.

Do not drive. You are safer in a home or basement shelter than in a car.

If you are driving in a city and spot a tornado, get out of your car and go to a nearby building.

If you are driving in open country, drive at a right angle away from the tornado's path if you can safely do so. Do not try to outrun the storm. If you cannot avoid the tornado, get out of your car.

Lie flat in the nearest depression, such as a ditch, culvert or ravine. Protect your head and stay low to the ground.

Recovery
After a tornado passes, keep tuned to the local radio or TV station to get an all-clear signal before leaving your shelter. Sometimes more than one tornado will develop during a violent storm.

Be alert to fire hazards such as broken electric wires or damaged electrical equipment, gas or oil leaks, or smoldering piles of wet hay or feed. Report broken utility lines to appropriate authorities.

Have damage to your property assessed by your insurance company.

Tornado hits Memphis area

Tornadoes that roared through parts of Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee killed at least 23 people and injured nearly 100 more Tuesday night, authorities said.

The storm prompted the early closures of polling places, damaged a university, a shopping mall, a retirement home and a hospital, and caused damage that may not be fully apparent until daybreak.

It trapped people in damaged buildings and ignited a fire that sent flames shooting hundreds of feet into the night sky.

"Rescue crews are going to go all night long," said Matt DeCample, a spokesman for the Arkansas governor. "Until daylight comes, we're really not going to know the scope of things."

The storm killed 13 people in four counties in Arkansas, according to the state's emergency management agency.

In Atkins, Arkansas, three people were killed, including a man, woman and child in the same family, Pope County Judge Jim Ed Gibson told CNN.

Five others were transferred to local hospitals. Emergency officials reported a fourth death in Pope County, where Atkins is located.

Gibson said there was widespread damage across the county, and that trucks and vehicles were overturned by the storm along Interstate 40. The interstate was briefly closed, he said, but had since reopened.

About 30 National Guardsmen will help with the recovery effort in Atkins on Friday morning, DeCample said.

The other fatalities in Arkansas were in Izard County where three died. Two each were killed in Van Buren and Conway counties, and in Stone and Baxter counties, both of which had one death. Watch a man describe falling on the ground as the tornado hit »

In Tennessee, the tornado trapped college students and retirees in collapsed building and retirement-home communities, said Julie Oaks, a spokeswoman for the state's Emergency Management Agency.

In Memphis, a tornado swept through the southeastern section of the city, killing three people and injuring a dozen others, according to emergency management officials. All three died when part of a warehouse collapsed on them. At least eight others were injured across the county.

Also hit in the storm was the Hickory Ridge Mall, said Shelby County, Tennessee, Emergency Preparedness Director Bob Nations Jr.

There were no significant injuries, he said, but added, "The mall infrastructure is heavily damaged."

One person was killed in Madison County, Oaks said. Two others died in Hardin County, according to the local emergency management agency.

At least 50 people were trapped after the storm caused damage to the Jackson Oaks Retirement Home, Oaks said. Nine students were trapped in a damaged dormitory at Union University in Jackson, she said.

But the Union University campus was perhaps hardest hit -- classes have been canceled for two weeks to allow for clean up. "It looks like a war zone," said David Dockery, university president. "Cars and trucks thrown from one side of the campus to the other."

Dockery said the women's dorms were destroyed, along with two academic buildings. Many other school buildings received lesser damage.

Advance warning of the storm saved lives, he said, giving students enough time to move to shelters. At one point, 13 were trapped, but there were no severe injuries.

About 3,300 students attend the school with 1,200 living on campus.

A tornado hit the Columbia Gas Natural Gas facility in Hartsville, Tennessee, late Tuesday, setting it on fire and sending flames 400-500 feet into the air, authorities said.

The National Weather Service said the roof was ripped off a hangar at Memphis International Airport. FedEx, which is based in Memphis, reported damage to a portion of a roof on a firehouse, but said its daily flights were not affected.

Storms also ripped through western Kentucky, killing at least three people at a mobile home park in Muhlenberg County, emergency management officials said. State emergency spokesman Buddy Rogers said a state of emergency has been declared in the county and Kentucky National Guard troops have been deployed.

Presidential candidate and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee expressed his condolences in the aftermath of the storm.

"Nothing is as important as the lives of these fellow Arkansans, and our hearts go out to their families," he said in a statement from Little Rock, Arkansas, following Super Tuesday voting.

Sen. Hillary Clinton also asked supporters to remember storm

Did Punxsutawaney Phil the groundhog see his shadow on groundhog day

It is time for the annual ritual so memorably described by Bill Murray as "a thousand people freezing their butts off waiting to worship a rat." But that was Murray during Phil Conner's cynical phase in "Groundhog Day." Here are five things to celebrate today about an animal that's more closely related to the ground squirrel than a rat:

By the Time We Got to Woodstock ...: Speaking of the Hollywood version of "Groundhog Day," the Illinois town that stood in for Punxsutawney, Pa., is in the midst of its annual "Groundhog Days," which began last Sunday and concludes this Sunday. We've already missed the Groundhog Wine Sampling Social, the Groundhogs on Parade Contest, the Lighting of the Groundhog, but remaining events include free screenings of the movie (10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, Woodstock Theatre) and a symposium on the movie (3 p.m. Saturday, Woodstock Opera House). Details: (815) 338-243.

Crystal Anniversary:

One more thing for Bill Murray fans -- it has suddenly been 15 years since "Groundhog Day" hit theaters, and you can commemorate that by participating in a walking tour of 14 filming sites in Woodstock. There is a guided one Sunday (at 1:30 p.m. from the Woodstock Opera House), or take a self-guided tour on or around the actual anniversary (Feb. 12) using a downloadable map at www.woodstock-il.com. Of course, no tour would be complete without a visit to the snowy traffic scene on the Amstutz Expressway in Waukegan.

The Real Deal: Don't want to drive the 550 miles to Punxsutawney to see the actual Phil make his forecast? This being 2008, you can do it from the comfort of your laptop, using the live Webcam at the Punxsutawney Groundhog Zoo (groundhog.visitpa.co). Your choices include a crowd shot, a glimpse inside Punxsutawney Phil's lair ("from the stump"), and an expanded view of his palatial compound.

Weather Channeling: Though not as cinematically famous as their Pennsylvania cousin, the Brookfield Zoo's resident groundhogs, Cloudy and Stormy, will offer their own take on the arrival of spring from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Admission to the Children's Zoo and the Hamill Family Play Zoo is free during the event, which also includes music and children's activities. Details: www.brookfieldzoo.org.

Larger Than Life: Closer to home, the Lake County Forest Preserve District invites you to "wake our human-sized groundhog" today at the Ryerson Conservation Area in Riverwoods. The event kicks off at 1 p.m. and explore fact and fiction of groundhogs and weather. Whatever the case, let's cross our fingers for an early spring. Details: (847) 968-3321


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Today is Groundhog Day in North America, a day where so-called prognosticating rodents (a.k.a. groundhogs) emerge from their burrows. Custom has it that, if they see their shadow, winter will continue for another 6 weeks; and if they do not, there will be an early spring. This year the US and the Canadian groundhogs differ. Pennsylvania’s Punxsutawney Phil thinks winter will continue (but that with Bush soon out, there’s hope yet) whereas Wiarton Willie quickly noted that Canada’s winter will soon be over and then high-tailed it to the closest pub.

The custom of predicting future weather conditions based on animals dates back at least a thousand years, but using the weather on February 2nd to forecast a longer winter is more recent than that.

It was during the Dark Ages in Europe that this widespread superstition took hold. Peasants and nobles alike noticed a strong connection between a bright, sunny, medieval Candlemas Day and long, dreary winter weather extending into the next 6 weeks:

If Candlemas be fair and bright, Winter has another flight.
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain, Winter will not come again.

In Germany, meanwhile, it was the hedgehog that played a starring role in a similar belief.

Farmers waited for late winter to watch the hibernating animal to come out of his burrow. If the hedgehog saw his shadow on a bright, sunlit day he quickly returned to hibernate…and thus put the official stamp on a prediction of six more weeks of winter for German farmers.


German settlers later brought the old belief with them to Pennsylvania, replacing the hedgehog with the more common American groundhog,

And the rest, as they say, is Groundhog Day history.

In popular culture, the 1993 film comedy Groundhog Day was a major hit for star Bill Murray, bringing Punxsutawney Phil’s popularity to new heights.

Today, Pennsylvania-born groundhog Punxsutawney Phil is a minor celebrity. This sleepy groundhog may be the most famous weather forecaster in the USA. Each year, the world’s paparazzi hold vigil in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on February 2 as America waits with frosted breath for Phil to emerge.

So… can we count on an early spring in 2008? Or will there be six more weeks of winter?

Only Punxsutawney Phil’s shadow knows… Now the world

Are you ready

Punxsutawney Phil’s prediction this groundhog day says 6 more weeks of winter.
I wonder how groundhog stew would taste.