Double-parking – Things can only get worse

Unfortunately, double parking has become a Columbia tradition. Quite often, drivers too lazy to park properly simply park in the street, blocking traffic and creating dangerous conditions. As shown above, the situation on the 200 block of Walnut Street was especially challenging yesterday. The driver of an SUV (center) had to wend his way through a veritable maze of vehicles – three cars and a truck – that were double-parked. One can only imagine how bad conditions will get when the impending snowstorm hits the area this weekend.

Gov. Wolf Declares State of Emergency Ahead of Winter Storm | Governor Tom Wolf

January 21, 2016

Harrisburg, PA – Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf today declared a state of emergency in preparation for the winter storm expected to impact Pennsylvania, especially in the southeast and south central regions of the state. The disaster emergency proclamation enables state and local authorities to respond to any unmet needs as quickly as possible as a snowstorm is forecasted to blanket snow across much of the state.

“Declaring a state of emergency allows the commonwealth to deliver state resources wherever they’re needed as quickly as possible,” said Governor Wolf. “We have multiple state agencies working at the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to monitor weather conditions across the state and we will respond to help local governments and residents in need.”

Governor Wolf and state officials from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, Pennsylvania State Police, Pennsylvania Turnpike, and the Departments of Transportation and Health will hold a 2:30pm media briefing that will be broadcast live at http://governor.pa.gov/live.

The proclamation authorizes state agencies to use all available resources and personnel, as necessary, to cope with the magnitude and severity of the situation. The time-consuming bid and contract procedures, as well as other formalities normally prescribed by law, are waived for the duration of the proclamation. The State Emergency Operations Center, located at the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency headquarters outside Harrisburg, is staffed by personnel from multiple state agencies.

https://www.governor.pa.gov/governor-wolf-declares-state-emergency-ahead-winter-storm/

Prepare for a Celestial Spectacle as Five Planets Align – NYTimes.com

Five planets will parade across the dawn sky early Wednesday in a rare celestial spectacle set to repeat every morning until late next month.
Headlining the planetary performance are Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter.