NEW YORK — Despite crippling amounts of snow from behemoth winter storm Jonas, most credit unions are operating relatively normally, according to leagues in some of the hardest-hit states in the Eastern U.S.
According to press reports, as of early Monday, at least 31 people have died as a result of the storm, which unleashed its worst damage in the Mid-Atlantic states, leading to various closings of businesses, schools and government offices. All told, eleven states declared states of emergency.
The storm will be recorded as an historical event for many municipalities — for example, in parts of West Virginia and Maryland, an unprecedented 40 inches of snow fell on Saturday in some parts of those states.
Here is a brief run-down of how the blizzard affected different parts of the East Coast.
MARYLAND-DC
The Mid-Atlantic area bore the brunt of the blizzard, with large cities like Baltimore and Washington DC virtually shut down.
Michelle Byrnie-Parker, director of communications and marketing at The MD & DC Credit Union Association, which is based in Columbia, Md. (which is located between Baltimore and Washington) told Credit Union Journal that most credit unions in Maryland and D.C. were closed Saturday and remain closed Monday "out of an abundance of caution as conditions remain hazardous and a state of emergency remains in effect in Maryland as well as a snow emergency in the District of Columbia."
Byrnie-Parker also noted that local credit unions have been updating members on any changes in operations since last week through their websites and social media pages. "Credit union members are reminded that many services continue to be available through mobile and digital platforms," she noted.
She added that the association itself was able to open Monday, but most employees are working remotely from home to continue to provide services to member credit unions.
VIRGINIA
The Commonwealth of Virginia was also hammered by the storm, with a number of credit union branches closed.
Lewis Wood, vice president, public relations and communication at the Virginia Credit Union League in Lynchburg, commented that it was "quite a mess for" a good bit of the state, especially the northern Virginia/D.C.-area.
"Some [towns] in the northern Virginia area (like Winchester) reported three feet of snow; most of the area got at least two feet," he added. "Most credit unions in the D.C.-area are closed today. [I] haven't seen any announcements about plans for tomorrow; [and I] haven't heard of any major issues, fortunately, like damage to [credit union] branches, etc."
According to its website, the largest credit union in country, the $72-billion Navy Federal Credit Union of Vienna, Va., reported a mix of its branches in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. were either closed or opened late on Monday.
In central Virginia, snow totals varied dramatically. "Some areas got as little as three inches; [while] others [got] as much as 15," he said, "Most Richmond-area credit unions opened [on Monday], but were generally on a delayed schedule. Some opened as late as noon. Those in areas with the most-significant snowfall did close branches for the day."
Glenn Birch, director of public relations for Virginia Credit Union, a $2.8-billion institution based in North Chesterfield near Richmond, Va., said they had managed well, but the storm did affect its opening hours. "Virginia Credit Union closed on Friday and Saturday and we opened at 10 today (Monday)," he said.
Birch added that they have branches in the Richmond area, Fredericksburg, Charlottesville and Farmville. "There were bigger snow totals to the North of us in Northern Virginia and D.C.," he added.
Sandra Jones, senior vice president of member communications at the giant $31.2-billion State Employees' Credit Union (SECU) of Raleigh, N.C., said North Carolina certainly felt the impact of the storm, with some parts of the state affected by Friday's ice and snow more than others.
"As a result, some [SECU] branches had limited hours of operation on [Friday] for the safety of members and staff," she said. "However, SECU's 24-7 Contact Center and all automated services remained available throughout Friday and the weekend. Branches are operating on normal schedules today [Monday]."
Patricia Warden Conty, marketing communications manager of Hanscom Federal Credit Union (a $1.1-billion which is based in Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass.) noted that its branch in McLean, Va. is closed Monday. "We shut down at 11:30 am on Friday to make sure staff could return safely to their homes," she said.
Hanscom FCU's other branches and headquarters are located in and around Boston area. "We got a few inches of snow on Saturday; not enough to affect our operating hours," she commented.
PENNSYLVANIA
The state of Pennsylvania was hit hard by the storm.
Michael A. Wishnow, senior vice president for marketing and communications for Pennsylvania Credit Union Association, told Credit Union Journal that the city of Harrisburg received an all-time record of 30 inches of snow during the historic blizzard.
"Many [credit union] branches were closed on Saturday during the [height of the] blizzard," he said, but he added that thus far he was unaware of any branch closings in the state on Monday.
"We have yet to ascertain the full effect of this storm on our credit unions," he concluded.
Tara Houser, VP of marketing at First Capital FCU in York, Pa, in the extreme northwestern corner of the state, said her credit union was closed on Saturday. "Today [Monday] we delayed opening [until] 10 am after hearing that many of our staff were still snowed in," she added. "Two of our branches were able to open at that time with limited parking." And at least one more branch was expected to come back online later in the day.
NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina, not usually accustomed to such massive snowstorms, was hit by as much as two feet of the white powder on Saturday, with at least 100,000 people losing power and a number of fatalities on the icy roads.
Still, it appears the area's credit unions have not suffered much damage.
Brandon Pugh, vice president-public relations and communication of Carolinas Credit Union League, said "we aren't aware of any detrimental impact of the storm on credit unions and have no reports from or contact with any that would suggest [as] such."
Pugh added he believed South Carolina has also been "fairly unaffected."
"We fared pretty well during the storm," said Noralynn Gudger, marketing and communications manager, at Champion CU, a $209-million institution based in Canton, N.C. "We did close our offices Friday (as did most other businesses in our area) and opened an hour late — 9 am — this [Monday] morning to allow for safer travel for both members and employees," she said. "We kept our members updated through our website and our social media pages."
KENTUCKY
The State of Kentucky made global headlines as hundreds of motorists became stranded on highways due to the blizzard.
Mary Carrell, development coordinator at Service One Credit Union, a $134-million institution based in Bowling Green, Kentucky, said her credit union is "up and running," but , it was forced to close all of our branches Friday and Saturday due to the inclement weather.
"Bowling Green... received over 12.2 inches, though some local news organizations are saying it was closer to 20-plus inches," she said. "Either way, the ice and snow made conditions quite hazardous and most businesses were closed those days. Our city has cleared many of the main streets by this point, so it's safer to drive. Currently, we are now open and everything is doing well, even though schools are still out of session today."
NEW YORK
Travel and business in New York State came to a virtual halt on Saturday, as did many local credit union branches.
Ron McLean, SVP-credit union relations & chief marketing officer at New York Credit Union Association in Albany, N.Y., said the biggest impact of the storm for New York credit unions were found in New York City and Long Island.
"The majority of branches in these areas was closed on Saturday, but are back open [Monday] morning," he said. "No credit unions have reported to us they are closed for today."
Krista Svedberg, vice president-marketing at Suffolk Federal Credit Union, a $959-million institution based in Medford, Long Island, quipped that the blizzard "won" on Saturday.
"That is the only day that we needed to close," she stated. "[We experienced] thirty to fifty-mile an hour winds and about two feet of snow [on Saturday]." However, as of Monday morning she assured that roads are clear (except side streets) and Long Island is "back up and running."
NEW JERSEY
Christian M. Abeel, interim CEO and vice president of corporate & governmental affairs at the New Jersey Credit Union League, also said he knew of no branch closures on Monday in the Garden Sate.
NEW ENGLAND
Ironically, New England, which typically suffers from massive blizzards, came away fairly unscathed from the depredations of Jonas.
Jill Nowacki, president and CEO of Connecticut Credit Union League, said the state's shoreline ended up with about a foot of snow this weekend and a few credit unions closed their branches in Saturday. "However, [it] seems to be business as usual today across the state," she said.
For example, Daniel B. Ruskin, marketing database and employee development specialist at Sikorsky Financial Credit Union, a $707-million institution based in Stratford Conn., said that Connecticut wasn't hit nearly as hard as the "folks in the mid-Atlantic."
"I think we may be gotten a foot of snow, but that has happened to us before" he added. "We closed our branches 90 minutes early on Saturday, but that was it."
Michelle Silveira, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Jeanne D'Arc Credit Union, a $1.2-billion institution based in Lowell, Mass., said they received no snowfall at all. Similarly, Alexandria Wilson, marketing communications specialist at St. Mary's Bank, an $891-million institution based in Manchester, N.H., also noted that no snow fell in her region either.
