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Ice Causes Widespread Power Outages, Road Closures And Travel Delays

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A coating of ice created a lot of trouble all throughout the Delaware Valley Wednesday.

PECO was reporting more than 500,000 power outages as of 12:45 p.m., and other power companies recorded similarly high numbers.

IcyTree_Hanson
(credit: Tony Hanson)

Travel was also a major problem. Ponding and downed trees caused closures in both directions on the Schuylkill Expressway near Gulph Mills in the morning. Drivers should continue to be careful and watch for trees in the roadway.

At about 8:45 a.m., Amtrak suspended service between Philadelphia and Harrisburg due to downed trees and wires and the tracks in multiple locations. Service between Philadelphia and Harrisburg is expected to be suspended for the remainder of Wednesday due to a series of weather-related problems, including at least 45 trees down along the route.

SEPTA was experiencing an abundance of delays and service suspensions that gradually improved throughout the day. As of 4 p.m., service remained suspended on the Route 120 bus. Service on SEPTA's Paoli/Thorndale and Cynwyd Regional Rail Lines is expected to remain suspended for the rest of the day.

Service on the Warminster Line has resumed to/from the Glenside Station. Service beyond Glenside remains suspended.

Service on the West Trenton Line has resumed to/from Jenkintown Station. Service beyond Jenkintown remains suspended.

Customers on all other Regional Rail lines were told they should expect delays of up to 30 minutes. SEPTA urged travelers to check  www.SEPTA.org for the most up to date information on delays and service disruptions.

New Jersey Transit was operating on a storm schedule, with the exception of the AC Line. Northeast Corridor service was suspended Wednesday morning due to downed trees and wires.

Philadelphia International Airport was averaging delays in arrivals of 60 minutes as of 3 p.m. and residual delays in departing flights.

There were 139 cancelled flights reported by the airlines today.

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