Cable Preps for Massive Winter Storm

Related: ‘All Hands on Deck’ for East Coast Stations Covering Winter Storm Jonas

A near-historic blizzard was making its way toward the Northeast on Friday, potentially dumping 18-to-24 inches or more of snow on major metropolitan areas like Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Philadelphia and up to a foot in New York, forcing cable operators to batten down the hatches in preparation for possible service outages.

According to the Weather Channel’s Weather.com website – which has already dubbed the meteorological event “Winter Storm Jonas” – the scope of the storm is huge with about 20 states from Arkansas to New York either under a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory.

The brunt of the storm appears to be headed for Comcast service territory – which includes Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Baltimore and parts of New Jersey – and the cable operator is taking the necessary precautions. Comcast has been working since early this week in preparation for the blast, including:

*   Increasing staffing and strategically placing employees in key locations throughout its footprint

For the full story go to Multichannel.com.