Mud slide closes part of Expressway

State police closed a section of the eastbound Schuylkill Expressway on Saturday night near Montgomery Drive because of a mud slide, one of a series of traffic problems as more than two inches of rain pelted the region, accompanied by gusting winds.

There was a major backup on the highway as officers diverted traffic at the Montgomery Drive exit, a state police spokeswoman said.

The Expressway problem was compounded because flooding forced the closing of parts of Lincoln Drive and Kelly Drive near the same area, the police traffic division said.

The closure began after 9 p.m. Saturday and lingered into Sunday's wee hours - as did flood warnings for much of Southeastern Pennsylvania and in South Jersey ,where flooding temporarily closed the Admiral Wilson Boulevard.

Power outages hit numerous areas, and about 25,000 customers were without power late Saturday, most of them in south-central Chester County, Peco Energy spokesman Ben Armstrong said.       - Mark Fazlollah