Hey Mineola, Don't Put Your Shovels Away Yet

Even more snow is blanketing the Mineola area. That's right — more snow.

With inches of snow already on the ground, the National Weather Service is anticipating another 3-7 inches late Wednesday night into Thursday morning. And with temperatures dropping to around 26 degrees, coupled with predictions of strong wind gusts, an ugly commute could be on hand for Thursday morning. A Winter Storm Watch is in effect from tonight until 6 a.m. Thursday, with a total of 8-12 inches of snow possible by the morning.

As of 12:00 a.m. Thursday, Mineola's main arteries were returned a snowy white. However, village workers and firefighters are likely preparing for long shifts of cleaning the streets and responding to emergency calls tonight.

The Mineola School District will be closed today as well as Chaminade High School according to their website. Check Patch Thursday morning for updated school closing announcements.

The Town of Hempstead and Nassau County have each declared snow emergencies. Town and county officials are urging residents not to drive unless absolutely necessary, and also to remove their vehicles from the streets, if possible.

"By minimizing vehicular traffic, roads can be cleared more quickly and residents can minimize the risks associated with driving in storm conditions," said Hempstead Town supervisor Kate Murray.

The Long Island Rail Road will operate on a reduced weekday a.m. rush schedule Thursday, already canceling 14 westbound a.m. rush trains. Officials note their website that though every effort will be made to operate the "snow recovery schedule" it's possible additional changes to the AM rush hour schedule will occur because of changing weather conditions during the night.

According to the MTA website as of 4:23 a.m., all service on Long Island Rail Road trains and Long Island Bus service has been suspended. The website says that LIRR crews will work to clear the tracks but the site gave no indication of when service might be restored.

Mineola Patch will continue to provide updates on the storm.