St. Patrick’s Day Parades Postponed, Others in NJ Might Be Affected
The luck of the Irish does not appear to be with some organizers who chose Saturday as the day of their St. Patrick's Day parades.
Parades are scheduled to step off in Hamilton, Morristown, North Wildwood, Seaside Heights and Union Township on Saturday just as the precipitation wraps up.
WPG Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow says rain moves in across most of the state Friday afternoon but falls as a wintry mix in northwestern New Jersey where 3-6 inches of snow is likely to accumulate by the time the snow ends Saturday morning.
The precipitation will lighten up late Friday night. Central and South Jersey are in for one last burst of wintry mix and gusty winds Saturday morning. Temperatures will be in the lower 40s and in the 30s.
"Unfortunately, the timing of that 'grand finale' sloppy weather coincides with parades getting lined up, spectators securing their perpect spot, etc. Precipitation type — rain vs. snow — and impacts will be very localized, so it's hard to give a definitive answer to whether conditions will be wintry, wet, or improving," Zarrow said. "I will say that the later an event starts, the better the chance it will be dry and fair."
Come back on April 1 to Seaside Heights
The Ocean County St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee already made the decision to postpone Saturday’s parade to Saturday, April 1.
"We apologize for this inconvenience but the safety of all the participants and parade watchers is paramount," the committee wrote on its Facebook page.
North Wildwood's parade will likely move indoors into the North Wildwood Recreation Center, according to Mayor Patrick Rosenello. Spectators will fill the bleachers as the groups that were going to march in the parade instead enter the gym.
"We don't cancel parades in North Wildwood. We just move them indoors," Rosenello told New Jersey 101.5, adding that the parade has been moved indoors before.
The mayor said that a final decision will be made Friday.
It's on in Morristown
Ryan Dawson the grand marshal of the Morristown parade was bullish on the weather and said it won't affect the parade.
"IT’S HAPPENING. If people want a nice sunny warm parade the Savannah Parade is lovely," Dawson said in an email. "It will be great Irish sweater weather. The parade doesn’t get canceled unless it’s a safety concern. This weather doesn’t even come close."
A decision will not be made about Hamilton's parade until Friday, according to grand marshal Michael "Mick" Conboy.
Eric Scott contributed to this report.
