Battling cold weather and flames, nearly 100 Philadelphia firefighters worked feverishly to extinguish a two-alarm fire in a West Philadelphia rowhome on Friday.

The fire broke out around 11 a.m. in a two-story brick rowhome along the 4900 block of Chestnut Streets, fire officials said.

Deputy Fire Chief Gary Loesch said a person inside was able to escape before firefighters arrived.

A firefighter was injured, Loesch said. They were treated at the scene and taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for further care. The extent of their injuries was not immediately known.

Forty five fire companies and 100 firefighters and medics were dispatched to assist in the firefight. The blaze was placed under control at 12:27 p.m.

The bitter cold added an extra layer of trouble for firefighters with water being used to fight the flames quickly icing up their equipment. Some of their crews are completely encased in ice, officials said.

Philadelphia police took two people into custody at the scene. Officials said it was related to the fire, but didn't say how.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

The cold temperatures have a lot of people staying inside, but some braved the cold to head to Bear Creek. NBC10's Steven Fisher was there to catch up with skiers and snowboarders.

Over the year, the NBC10 Responds team has looked into several stories involving utility companies. Now, NBC10 Respond's Harry Hairston tells utility customers what they should know.

A waitress in Arkansas claimed that half of a $300,000 winning lottery ticket her friend and co-worker scratched off belongs to her, but the friend has disappeared after claiming the prize, NBC affiliate KARK reported.

The waitresses at Sportsmans Drive-In in Stuttgart all received lottery tickets from their boss the Friday before Christmas.

"He told us whatever we won, it would be split between us for our Christmas bonus," said waitress Leslie Underwood.

Underwood and fellow waitress, Mandy Vanhouten, have been friends for a decade. They scratched off their pile together at the bar.

Vanhouten scratched off a $300,000 Fortune instant ticket, worth $10, and won the top prize. Since they work the same shift, she and Underwood would each get $150,000, according to the deal Underwood said their boss made.

Underwood and Vanhouten were going to claim the money together in the new year, but Vanhouten decided to take it and run.

Underwood, a mother of five, saw the picture of Vanhouten Wednesday with a check in her hands and a big smile on her face.

"It's a little emotional," Underwood said as she started to cry. The two have been best friends for nearly a decade.

"I helped her get the job, put in a good word, stuck my neck out for her, let her stay with me so she didn't have to drive back and forth," Underwood said. "I think that's what hurt me the most is as much as I've done, she could have done right for once."

She hasn't heard from Vanhouten.

Vanhouten said she was going to use the money "to make her life easier," according to a press release by Arkansas Scholarship Lottery

KARK tried calling Vanhouten, got her voicemail and did not receive a call back. Vanhouten also never came into work for her shift this week.

If she doesn't get her share of the winnings, Underwood said she plans to take legal action. However, Vanhouten is the only one who signed the back of the ticket.

A Bensalem man's attempt to unfreeze pipes in his home nearly cost him the house when the heater he was using sparked a fire.

The fire started Thursday morning at a home along the 700 block of Clinton Avenue in the Bucks County township, fire officials said.

Bensalem Fire Investigators said the homeowner fired up a salamander heater to try and unfreeze water pipes. Instead, the outer wall of the home ignited.

Firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the fire, but not before sizable damage was done to the home.

Investigators have ruled the fire as accidental. No one was injured.

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If you thought this week was cold, just wait. The most frigid air of the season will be settling in to welcome the new year.

But first, we will have a little snow to contend with. Let's start there.

Light snow will develop from west to east Saturday. The snow will begin between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Saturday and continue through 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

While the snow will not be heavy, it will fall on extremely cold ground allowing it to accumulate immediately. Any untreated roadways tomorrow will be slippery and dangerous due to the light snow compacting and turning into ice. Any neighborhood that has hills could be an ice skating rink.

What about salting, you may ask? Even main roadways could be slippery as road salt and chemical solutions are less effective when the ground and air temperatures are this cold.

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The bitter and extremely cold air that follows Saturday's light snow will be downright dangerous.

Overnight wind chills Saturday will fall to near 0 degrees in Philadelphia, and below zero in the suburbs to the Poconos. Those wind chills will not improve New Year's Eve Day. The cold will only worsen Sunday evening for New Year's Eve celebrations with feels like temperatures dropping below zero, even in Philadelphia.

That's why the Mummers are considering postponing the parade on New Year's Day. Aside from the concerns about frost bite and hypothermia, the string bands are worried their brass instruments may freeze.

The intense and brutal cold won't be brief, either. Those feels like temperatures will remain in the single digits through Tuesday.

Because of this extreme weather, we've issued a First Alert from 5 a.m. Saturday through Tuesday evening.

It's important that you check on friends, family, and neighbors that may be vulnerable to the extreme cold. Now is also a good time to make sure your house and car are adequately equipped to handle the cold.

We put together a list of 20 Winter Weather Tips to keep you, your family, your pets, and your home safe in this winter: click here.

While some New Jersey cities have canceled or postponed their Polar Plunges, one group will not be deterred. NBC10's Ted Greenberg has their story.

NBC10's Katy Zachry joins Jodie Milkman to discuss this years New Years Delaware River Waterfront Fireworks.

Fires in several towns and cities have wreaked havoc for firefighters, with the deep freeze adding dangerous obstacles to an already deadly job.

Snow will arrive Saturday morning and add to the general feeling of Arctic life in the Delaware Valley. Come Sunday, it'll feel like 5 degrees outside as the Eagles are playing their season finale in South Philadelphia.

The region is ending the year with a blast of winter weather. Light snow began falling in our area Saturday morning and will continue throughout the day. Along with the snow, the most frigid air of the season will be settling in to welcome the new year.

The snow is developing from west to east and began falling in the Philadelphia area around 6 a.m. Saturday. It will continue through 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Track the snow with our LIVE RADAR

A coating to two inches is expected for most of the area. While the snow will not be heavy, it is falling on extremely cold ground allowing it to accumulate immediately. Any untreated roadways will be slippery and dangerous due to the light snow compacting and turning into ice. Any neighborhood that has hills could be an ice skating rink.

What about salting, you may ask? Even main roadways could be slippery as road salt and chemical solutions are less effective when the ground and air temperatures are this cold.

The slippery conditions led to several crashes and speed restrictions throughout the area Saturday morning.

The bitter and extremely cold air that follows Saturday's light snow will be downright dangerous.

Overnight wind chills will fall to near 0 degrees in Philadelphia, and below zero in the suburbs to the Poconos. Those wind chills will not improve New Year's Eve Day. The cold will only worsen Sunday evening for New Year's Eve celebrations with feels like temperatures dropping below zero, even in Philadelphia.

That's why the Mummers are considering postponing the parade on New Year's Day. Aside from the concerns about frost bite and hypothermia, the string bands are worried their brass instruments may freeze.

The intense and brutal cold won't be brief, either. Those feels like temperatures will remain in the single digits through Tuesday.

Because of this extreme weather, a First Alert was issued from 5 a.m. Saturday through Tuesday evening.

It's important that you check on friends, family, and neighbors that may be vulnerable to the extreme cold. Now is also a good time to make sure your house and car are adequately equipped to handle the cold.

We put together a list of 20 Winter Weather Tips to keep you, your family, your pets, and your home safe in this winter: click here.

Slippery road conditions caused by a combination of light snow and bitter cold temperatures have led to several multi-vehicle accidents and speed restrictions throughout the region.

Montgomery County Dispatch and Pennsylvania State Police responded to at least ten accidents Saturday morning.

One accident involving multiple vehicles occurred on I-76 westbound in Gulph Mills, Montgomery County between Exit 331A - I-476 South and Exit 330 - PA 320. Only the right lane is currently getting by at the location.

Another multi-vehicle crash on I-76 westbound in Conshohocken, Montgomery County closed all lanes between Exit 337 - Gladwyne and Exit 332 - PA 23.

Officials have not yet revealed whether anyone was seriously injured.

The following speed restrictions have been put in place on major bridges and roadways in our area as a result of the slippery conditions:

Walt Whitman Bridge: The speed limit is lowered to 25 mph in both directions between the New Jersey side in Gloucester City and the Pennsylvania side in Philadelphia.

Commodore Barry Bridge: The speed limit is lowered to 25 mph in both directions between the New Jersey side and the Pennsylvania side in Logan Township.

Ben Franklin Bridge: The speed limit is lowered to 25 mph in both directions between the New Jersey side in Camden and the Pennsylvania side in Philadelphia.

Garden State Parkway: The speed limit is lowered to 45 mph in both directions from Southern Terminus/CR 109 in Cape May to Exit 63A-NJ 72 West in Stafford Township.

New Jersey Turnpike: The speed limit is lowered to 45 mph in both directions from Delaware Memorial Bridge in Pennsville Township to north of Interchange 4 - NJ 73 in Mount Laurel.

At Philadelphia International Airport, crews are de-icing planes and a few cancellations have been reported.

Light snow began falling in the area Saturday morning and will continue through the afternoon. While only a coating to two inches is expected, the snow is falling on extremely cold ground and accumulating quickly. This is leading to slippery and dangerous conditions on untreated roadways as the snow is compacting and turning into ice. Salt and chemical solutions are also less effective on roads when the ground and air temperatures are as cold as they currently are.

Be sure to use caution while driving today.

This story is developing. Check back for updates.

A man accused of stabbing and raping a woman at a park in Chester City, Pennsylvania is now in custody.

The woman told police she was walking through Deshong Park on the 900 block of Avenue of the States back on Dec. 24 when she was approached by a man armed with a knife. The man grabbed the woman by her hair, threatened her, and dragged her into the woods, police said. The woman told investigators the man then attacked, raped and stabbed her before fleeing the scene. The woman was taken to the Crozer Chester Medical Center where she was treated for her injuries.

Investigators identified Shaquille Malik Tillmon as the suspect. Tillmon was arrested Thursday and arraigned on $1 million cash bail. He is currently being held at the George C. Hill Correctional Facility.

Despite the forecast for dangerously cold temperatures, the 2018 Mummers Parade is still on for New Year's Day.

Parade organizers voted Saturday that the annual parade will take place as scheduled on Monday.

Thursday night, Mummer string bands were out in the cold practicing not only their routines but also how to play in frigid temperatures.

"The horns are going to freeze up," said Charles Nicholas, captain of the Pennsport String Band, which briefly practiced outside Thursday. "The music is not going to sound as good as it should."

The NBC10 First Alert Weather Team says the high temperature in Philadelphia on New Year's Day will come in around 20 degrees. Frigid winds will make it feel close to zero.

If the 117-year-old parade was postponed, it would have moved to Saturday, Jan. 6, 2018. But that weekend is expected to be bitterly cold as well.

The parade has been canceled or postponed in the past due to rain or snow, most recently in 2003. But the Mummers have marched in the cold in the past.

Some years, they have even had warming stations to help manage the cold. 

Two women were found dead Saturday evening inside a house in Collingswood, Camden County, and police cordoned off a large section of the surrounding neighborhood.

The women were found at 5 p.m. inside a house in the 100 block of East Narberth Terrace. The county medical examiner showed up about 90 minutes later as officers and detectives continued to go in and out of the house.

Two ambulances were at the scene shortly after police arrived, but they later left.

A spokeswoman for the Camden County Prosecutor's Office said no more information about the women's deaths was available as of 7:30 p.m.

Check back for more details as they become known this evening.

Philadelphia police identified the officer who fatally shot an unarmed man Wednesday as Eric Ruch Jr., a nine-year veteran.

Ruch discharged one round as Dennis Plowden, 25, sat on the sidewalk following a brief police chase, according to an account of the shooting and what led up to the incident that was released Saturday night by the police department.

Plowden, who had been stopped minutes earlier because he was driving a car police have said was sought in connection with a homicide investigation, allegedly reached his hand into his jacket pocket before Ruch shot him in the head, the account said.

It is the second time in 10 months Ruch has been involved in the shooting of a suspect. He was one of three officers placed on administrative duty following the shooting of a suspected drug dealer in February.

It was not immediately known what happened to the investigation into that shooting, which occurred when Ruch and two other officers tried to stop the suspect as he left what was described at the time as a "known drug house." That shooting occurred in the East Germantown section of Northwest Philadelphia, which is also were Plowden was shot Wednesday.

A police spokeswoman said she did not have information about the Feb. 15 shooting of Tyler Nichols, who suffered bullet wounds to his torso and legs in the incident on Lambert Street. A gun which came back stolen from Upper Darby was recovered by police after Nichols was arrested.

In the account of Plowden's shooting, police did not indicate why Plowden fled officers after he was stopped about 8:40 p.m. at 16th Street and Nedro Avenue.

"Additional Officers responded to 16th Street and Nedro Avenue, and as the Officers began to exit the vehicle, the male accelerated the Hyundai, striking the passenger door of the police vehicle, and contacting the officer," the account said of the initial traffic stop. "The male then drove from the scene at a high rate of speed going west on Nedro Avenue."

Officers momentarily lost sight of the vehicle Plowden was driving, but then found two parked vehicles with extensive damage in the 1900 block of Nedro Avenue. Plowden's vehicle was across the street.

Plowden "exited the Hyundai and attempted to run north on Opal Street," according to the account. "Officers exited their patrol vehicle, drew their firearms, and gave numerous commands for the male to show his hands."

He was "in a seated position on the sidewalk at the time of the discharge" by Ruch, the account said.

Plowden had "placed his hand in his jacket pocket" when Ruch shot him, according to the account.

The officer who was struck when Plowden fled the initial traffic stop was treated for injuries to his right arm and hand at Temple University Hospital and released.

A 27-year-old woman in the car with Plowden was treated at Albert Einstein Medical Center for bruises and abrasions suffered in the crash.

The investigation into the shooting remains open, police said, and Ruch has been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome.

Sure, the Times Square ball that drops in New York City on New Year's Eve is famous and expensive, covered in Waterford crystal triangles and more than 32,000 LED lights.

But only in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania can you watch a 400-pound glowing Peep slide down a pole.

The annual Peepfest celebrates Peeps, which are made by Bethlehem-based Just Born, Inc. They call it a Chick Drop -- the sculpture is shaped like the most famous Peep -- and it happens earlier than most New Year's Eve celebrations: at 5:15 p.m. 

There are lots of unusual New Year's Eve drops in Pennsylvania. In fact, the state is kinda famous for having lots of community-based drops of weird stuff.

In Kennett Square, thousands of people gather each year for the annual mushroom drop, which celebrates the mushroom-growing industry in the area.

The mushroom replica weighs in at 700 pounds and drops at midnight.

In Lebanon, Pennsylvania, a wreath with Lebanon bologna in the middle of it will drop at midnight. In Pottsvile, they raise a replica bottle of Yuengling.

"You don't want to drop a bottle," Pottsville City Administrator Tom Palamar told a local news station.

In Dillsburg, Pennsylvania they usually drop a pickle. (Get it?) But this year, the event was called off due to the bitter cold.

In Richland, Pennsylvania they drop a giant cigar. In commonsensical Myerstown, Pennsylvania they drop a Bayer asprin, in honor of the local Bayer HealthCare plant.

And in Beavertown, yes, they drop a life-sized beaver replica nicknamed "Bucky."

Meanwhile, in Hershey, a 300-pound Hershey's Kiss is raised three stories to celebrate the New Year. With the wrapper at the top, that kiss is 7 feet high.

Low-teens temperatures did not stop Eagles fans who want to tailgate. But they got creative about how to stay warm. NBC10's Randy Gyllenhaal caught up with frozen fans outside of Lincoln Financial Field before the Birds' final regular season game.