Punxsutawney Phil predicts an early spring at Groundhog Day festivities

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Punxsutawney Phil has forecasted an early spring from the largest and best-known Groundhog Day celebration in the United States at an overcast Gobbler’s Knob in western Pennsylvania.

The annual event was held shortly after sunrise on Friday. It's a tongue-in-cheek ritual in which Phil’s handlers reveal whether the groundhog has seen his shadow.

This year, they say the rodent did not see his shadow and that will usher in early springlike weather. They say when he does see his shadow, that presages six more weeks of winter.

Phil predicts more winter far more often than he sees an early spring. A federal agency took a look at his record last year and put his accuracy rate at about 40%.