Absentee ballot deadline extended in Pennsylvania as state recovers from this massive storm.

Harrisburg — October 30, 2012 – (9:20 a.m.) Gov. Tom Corbett provided additional details on how Pennsylvania is dealing with Hurricane Sandy earlier today at a briefing held at Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) headquarters.

Later today, the governor said he will be speaking with President Barack Obama and will be in contact with Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Chris Christie of New York and New Jersey respectively, to determine if resources are able to be shared.

The center of former Hurricane Sandy is now over Chambersburg and the strength of the storm has diminished.  There has been local flooding and reports of wind damage.  Two deaths have been reported.

The governor said that 1.3 million Pennsylvanians are without power this morning.  There are 603 people in shelters and that 48 shelters are operational.  Thirty-eight counties have issued disaster declarations.  PEMA is on level one status and 1,700 National Guard troops have been deployed.

SEPTA and Amtrak remain closed although speed restrictions on interstates have been lifted, except for I-90 and I-79 in northwestern Pennsylvania.

The storm dumped between 6-9 inches of snow in the Laurel Highlands and that western Pennsylvania will see additional impacts in Pennsylvania as the storm moves west then north.

Last night, the governor indicated that there would be an extension for submitting absentee ballot applications in those counties where the courthouses have been closed as a result of the storm.  According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the deadline for voters to request absentee ballots – originally 5 p.m. Tuesday – has been extended by up to two days, depending on how many days county offices were forced to close because of the storm.

Resources:

An excellent list of telephone numbers for utilities and other contact information was released yesterday and posted by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Find out up-to-date information about Hurricane Sandy from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency on its website www.readypa.org or by calling 1-888-9-READYPA

Find the nearest Red Cross shelter