Winter Snow Storm Effects
This Iowa DOT truck works to keep roads open during the most recent winter storm.
by Aaron Riggs
Oskaloosa, Iowa – The snowstorm that swept across the Midwest Wednesday and Thursday got some mixed reviews. Students cheered as school days were canceled all over Iowa but some adults saw the snow as more of a chore. The national weather service reported Oskaloosa received 4 inches of snow. Aaron Riggs was out Thursday morning talking to people whose work kicks into high gear when the first snow falls.
“School is out”, says children.
Thursday started off with the school district issuing a 2 hour delay, but at around 7:30 in the morning that was changed to a closing. For some, that meant playing in the snow and a fight with snowballs.
The winter storm that the weather channel named “Draco” didn’t dump as much snow as expected in oskaloosa. The storm first started with Rain at about 4:00 on Wednesday afternoon and didn’t change into snow until about 11:30. Temperatures stayed in the mid thirties all night with winds hitting 50 miles an hour Thursday morning.
“if you’re just getting up, as much as a foot of snow fell across the metro area with the heaviest amounts located right in central Iowa”, says WHO-TV News.
So snow removal crews were up early to start the work of clearing roads and sidewalks.
“I came in about 5.” “If the wind wasn’t blowing it wouldn’t be too bad”, says Matt Moore.
“Since 6 o’clock this morning. I”m getting tired” says Shawn Elder.
“Very heavy wet snow, it’s got a lot of moisture in it”, says Tom Lang.
And as the temperatures plunged and the winds blew snow, the visibility also dropped. Jamey Robinson with Mahaska County Emergency Management suggests staying off the roads during inclement weather.
“Those winds start picking up, especially gusts 45 to 55 it’s really going to decrease your visibility and could cause you to loose control. So we really want people to stay off the roads for their own safety” says Jamey Robinson.
And if you do have to travel Robinson recommends having blankets in your vehicle in case of an accident.
“Make sure you’ve got enough for any body that might be in the vehicle. If you’ve got an 8-passenger vehicle, have 8 blankets in the vehicle if that’s how many people you’re going to have in there” says Jamey Robinson.
It’s the first snowfall in Oskaloosa since February 23. A taste of wintertime, just in time Christmas. For CRI Weekly News, I’m Aaron Riggs.
