Here is the latest on Winter Storm Elliott as it reaches Erie
2:50 p.m.: Interstate 90 closed in New York state
Drivers traveling east on Interstate 90 into New York state are advised by PENNDOT to use Interstate 86 because I-90 in New York is closed to all traffic, starting at the Pennsylvania state line.
Other interstate restrictions continue to be in effect, including a temporary speed limit of 45 mph for Interstates 90, 79 and 86 in Pennsylvania.
In addition, commercial vehicles are required to only travel in the right lanes. Vehicles with empty or underloaded trailers are not allowed to travel on I-90.
2:20 p.m.: Erie's temperature drops 40 degrees; 2,800 Penelec customers without service
How far did Erie's temperature drop Friday morning? 40 degrees in nine hours, according to the National Weather Service.
A temperature of 41 was reported at Erie International Airport at 3:51 a.m. The airport's temperature was 1 at 12:51 p.m., NWS reported on its website.
Erie County remains under a blizzard warning until 4 a.m. Saturday and a wind chill warning until 10 a.m. Saturday. Wind gusts, which have reached 48 mph Friday at the Erie airport, are expected to increase up to 60 mph Friday night.
Wind chill temperatures are expected to remain around minus-25 through Saturday afternoon, NWS forecasters said.
Two more Erie airport flights have been cancelled: American Flight 6089 from Charlotte, expected at 10:29 p.m. Friday; and United Flight 3781 from Chicago, expected at 10:33 p.m. Friday.
All flights scheduled for Saturday remain "on time," according to the Erie airport's flight tracker.
Penelec's number of Erie County customers without electrical service continues to climb as strong winds buffet the region. About 2,800 customers are without service, according to the website of Penelec's parent company, First Energy.
The outages remain scattered across the county, though most of the larger ones — between 101 and 500 customers — are in the western part of the county. First Energy estimated that service will be restored this afternoon.
11:15 a.m.: NWS issues blizzard/wind chill warnings for Erie County; Presque Isle State Park closes at noon
The National Weather Service has issued blizzard and wind chill warnings for Erie County that are in effect until Saturday morning.
Forecasters expect additional snow accumulations in the county of 3 to 5 inches, with winds gusting up to 60 mph. As a result, visibility will be significantly reduced and wind chills could drop to minus-30.
The county's blizzard warning is through 4 a.m. Saturday and the wind chill warning is through 10 a.m. Saturday.
Ashtabula County, Ohio, and Crawford County are also under blizzard and wind chill warnings, while Chautauqua County, New York, is under a blizzard warning, according to the NWS website.
Presque Isle State Park officials announced Friday morning that the park will close at noon due to the weather.
The storm could topple trees at the park and flood its roadways, officials said in a news release. The park will remain closed until conditions are safe.
The Tom Ridge Environmental Center and Elk Creek Access at Erie Bluffs State Park will also close temporarily, park officials said.
10:45 a.m.: Storm disrupts service to nearly 2,000 Penelec customers; plane, bus, train travel delayed in Erie
The winter storm has disrupted service Friday morning to about 1,950 Penelec customers in Erie County, according to the website of its parent company, First Energy.
The outages are scattered across the county, with the largest ones — each affecting at least 101 customers — reported near the lakeshore in western Erie County and the Edinboro area. Service was expected to be restored later Friday morning, First Energy said on its website.
Travel out of Erie by airplane, bus and train has been delayed due to the storm.
United Flight 3757 from Chicago O'Hare International Airport to Erie International Airport, scheduled to arrive at 11:40 a.m. Friday, has been cancelled. So has American Flight 6041, scheduled to arrive in Erie from Charlotte at 1:15 p.m.
Flights scheduled to arrive from both cities Friday evening are still listed as being "on time" according to the Erie airport's flight tracker.
United Flight 3773, scheduled to depart from Erie to Chicago at 7:04 a.m., is currently delayed, while United Flight 3723 to Chicago, scheduled to depart at 12:15 p.m., has been cancelled. American Flight 6041 from Erie to Charlotte, scheduled to depart at 1:40 p.m., also has been cancelled.
Amtrak has canceled passenger train service on a number of routes including Friday's Lake Shore Limited Trains 48/448 and 49/449 that serve Erie.
More: Davis, EMTA strike deal to temporarily reopen Erie's Greyhound bus ticket office
Greyhound's scheduled Erie departures on Friday for Buffalo (9:30 a.m.) and Cleveland (2:40 p.m.) have been cancelled, though its departure for Pittsburgh (12:50 p.m.) is still expected to be on time, according to bustracker.greyhound.com.
9:30 a.m.: Heavy snow, frigid wind chills expected in northwestern Pennsylvania
Erie County could see up to 7 inches of snow this morning, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.
Snow bands are setting up to dump snow along the county lakeshore, and in some of the interior parts of the county, said Brian Mitchell, a staff meteorologist at the NWS Cleveland office.
"The snow is expected to get heavier your way later this morning," Mitchell said around 8:45 a.m. "Even south of Interstate 90 could see four-to-six, or even five-to-seven inches."
Besides the snow, northwestern Pennsylvania was also experencing wind gusts up to 43 mph Friday morning. Visibility was limited to a quarter-mile and even less in some areas, Mitchell said.
More: Holiday weekend will deliver Erie hazardous cold, high winds, white Christmas
Temperatures fell nearly 30 degrees Friday morning at the Erie International Airport, from 41 at 3:51 a.m. to 12 at 8:51 a.m. They will continue to drop to a low just above zero overnight, according to NWS forecasts.
Combined with expected wind gusts of up to 60 mph, the wind chill is expected to fall to between minus-20 and minus-30 through Saturday, Mitchell said.
"If you aren't covered up, you could get frostbite quickly," Mitchell said.
More: School closures, attendance changes in Erie County for Friday, Dec. 23, 2022
Area interstates remained open Friday morning, with restrictions. PennDOT has issued a temporary speed limit of 45 mph for Interstates 90, 79 and 86 in Pennsylvania.
In addition, commercial vehicles are required to only travel in the right lanes. Vehicles with empty or underloaded trailers are not allowed to travel on I-90.
Return to GoErie.com for updates to this story.
Contact David Bruce at dbruce@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNBruce.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie deals with snow, wind frigid temperatures due to winter storm
