PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) – Punxsutawney Phil predicted another six weeks of winter when he came out of his den on a snowy Tuesday morning to perform his duties on Groundhog Day.
Members of Phil’s ‘inner circle’ woke up the furry cricket at 07:25 at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, to see if he would see his shadow or not.
Shortly after this year’s prediction was announced, one of the members of the inner circle shared a message which he said Phil had told him earlier in the day: ‘After winter you are looking forward to one of the most beautiful and brightest fountains What’s you’ve ever seen. ”
Another member of the ‘inner circle’ notes the uniqueness of the past year.
‘People refer to Groundhog Day. It sometimes felt as if we were all living the same day, ”said one of the members. “Groundhog Day also shows us that the monotony ends. The cycle will be broken. ”
“Today is actually Groundhog Day, there is only one,” he added. “There’s literally a new day on the horizon.”
The Groundhog Day spectacle is still going on, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, revealers could not see and personally celebrate Phil: this year it was all virtual and included cardboard clips to represent spectators.
A stream of life, which at one stage had more than 15,000 viewers, played footage from previous Groundhog Day’s before the big unveiling.
Then, of course, the forecaster of forecasters arose at dawn. The story goes that if he sees his shadow like this year, there will be another six weeks of winter. If he does not, spring is coming early.
With top hats, members of the club summoned Phil from a new tree stump.
“You look beautiful,” club president Jeff Lundy told Phil, who directed members to one of the two roles.
A club member announced: ‘We have all gone through the darkness, but now see hope in the morning’s bright light. But now when I turn to see, there is a perfect shadow of me. ‘
The livestream from Gobbler’s Knob, a small hill just outside Punxsutawney, about 105 miles northeast of Pittsburgh, is made possible by the Pennsylvania Office’s Pennsylvania Holi-stay PA. The event there – always February 2 – dates back to 1887.
Phil, like many years in the past, made his prediction this year during a major snowstorm that hit the entire Northeast.
The annual event has its origins in a German legend about a hairy rodent. From records dating back to the late 1800s, Phil predicted winters more than 100 times longer. The forecast for 2020 required an early spring However, Phil did not say anything about a pandemic.
In its 135-year history, Phil has predicted winter 106 times and spring 20 times, the club said. Ten years were lost because no records were kept.
Punxsutawney Phil is perhaps the most famous seer, but he is certainly not the only one. There are two other high-profile ‘fraudsters’, as the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club calls them, in the region.
Staten Island Chuck is asked to give his prophecy Tuesday at 8 a.m. at Staten Island Zoo in New York. The event is being broadcast on Facebook as the zoo is closed.
Even without fanfare, Chuckles, Connecticut’s official state dog, will be predicting from home: the Lutz Children’s Museum in Manchester. It will also be posted on Facebook. Chuckles X died in September, and it remains to be seen whether an anointed Chuckles XI will appear on Tuesday.