Posted on 12/15/2007 9:59:18 PM PST by NormsRevenge
PITTSBURGH – As much as a foot of snow fell from the Plains across the Midwest on Saturday, snarling road and air travel, as the second big winter storm in a week barreled through on its way to New England. Tens of thousands of people still lacked electricity after the first storm slammed Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri earlier in the week. That storm was blamed for at least 38 deaths, mostly in traffic accidents.
Winter storm warnings and watches extended Saturday from Missouri across parts of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, the National Weather Service said. As much as 15 inches of snow was forecast in parts of southern Michigan, with 10 inches possible in Detroit.
Snow started falling early in the afternoon in Pittsburgh, accumulating to about an inch before tapering off. Light rain and freezing rain took over later.
“We'll have little bit of everything before the night is over,” said Bill Drzal, a Weather Service meteorologist in Pittsburgh.
Areas to the north and east of the city could see as much as 12 inches through Sunday night, according to the Weather Service.
More than 200 flights were canceled because of the weather Saturday at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, one of the nation's busiest, and all other flights were delayed an hour, said Chicago Department of Aviation spokesman Gregg Cunningham.
Road travel also became tricky in northeastern Illinois, including Chicago's suburbs, where officials reported spinouts and cars in ditches.
“It's coming down steady,” said Mike Claffey, spokesman for the Illinois Department of Transportation.
In southern Wisconsin, police in Waukesha said road conditions brought on by up to 5 inches of snow figured in a two-car accident that left a 51-year-old woman dead and three others injured. Police did not immediately release her name.
Residents across New England packed stores to stock up before getting slammed. The winter weather earlier in the week caught many people unawares, stranding commuters and school buses as it made some of the nation's busiest highways impassable.
Flakes also fell in traditionally snow-prone Buffalo, N.Y. Accumulations of a foot or more were predicted for much of New York state.
Concern about the approaching storm led the University of Connecticut to cancel Sunday's winter commencement ceremony. About 850 undergraduates had expected to receive diplomas Sunday, but school spokesman Richard Veilleux said officials were concerned about the safety of the students and their families and other guests on slippery roads.
Freezing rain was the culprit in the Plains earlier in the week, coating streets, windshields, tree limbs and power lines with ice as thick as an inch in Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri.
Oklahoma, hardest hit by the earlier storm, got only cold, light rain early Saturday that turned into just a few inches of snow. Neighboring Kansas, however, had as much as a foot Saturday morning, and the Highway Patrol reported Interstate 70 in central Kansas was snow-packed.
“We've had no fatalities or pileups, but we have numerous slideoffs,” said Mary Beth Anderson, a patrol dispatcher. “I don't think there are a lot of travelers, just the ones who have to get out and go to work.”
More than 2,300 people were in Kansas shelters Saturday because of the power failures and the fresh snow, said Sharon Watson, spokeswoman for the state Adjutant General's Department.
At the height of the last storm, a million customers in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri were blacked out. By Saturday morning, utilities in the three states reported 270,000 customers still without electricity.
Officials in Oklahoma had worried the new snow could hamper power restoration efforts, but it turned out not to be a problem.
“The first several days, crews were working on emergency restoration and getting the backbone of the structure up – the main feeders and transmission lines,” said Stan Whiteford, a spokesman for Public Service Co. of Oklahoma. “Now they're really getting into the neighborhoods. The customers are coming on in bigger chunks.”
It should make for some interesting NFL games as well.
Here's to power being restored soon to all those affected so far.
get yer flyin’ done!
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
A narrow miss here. Mostly rain in Southeast Ohio
We always seem to miss the big ones lately.
Some environmentalist in Oklahoma was feeling righteous about buying his new Pious to stop global warming as he hit the brakes and slid on black ice from Tulsa to OKC.
We were travelling up I35 a few days ago and lost count at 325 electrical repair trucks heading to Oklahoma. Made me wish I'd installed a fireplace.
I do NOT miss that weather at all! I much prefer the rain of the Pacific NorthWET to all that ice. Never goin’ back again.....
Classic panhandle hook.
All my family is Minnesota and Midwest based, I moved West years ago. You get used to and allow for inclimate weather, but I hear ya. ;-)
The winter is the best time to go , no mosquitos and lots of ice fishing. and the beer stays colder longer too . :-}
You either go, or you don’t. If you do go, buy a warm coat.
We’re getting a picturesque couple of inches at nice leisurely rate here in Chi-town. Even so, on the way to the corner 7-11, to lay in a few supplies needed to “foster” my good spirits, I had to wait a few minutes while a car that had slid off the road was being stowed on a flatbed wrecker. All part of the festivities.
I was sort of disappointed. We missed it altogether. Drove up to McConnellsville thinking we would run into snow. It just rained all evening and was not even very cold. Had a nice time though. That historical little town is beautiful at Christmas time. Had horse drawn wagons, choirs on the courthouse steps, merchants open late and giving away goodies. Then saw a good show at the Opry house. It was good to get away from the mad rush around here. Merry Christmas!
My family and hubby’s family are in MO, WI, and ME. I spent the first 37 years of my life in MO. I wish I had moved out here sooner, but I know how to drive in some pretty knarly conditions. I am constantly amazed at folks who think their 4WD makes them immune to road conditions.
Honey, if your plane lands the weather ain’t that bad, and the shuttle will run. Buy the coat and enjoy the trip.
The driving part is definitely an art, you have to learn how to go with the slide,, not goose it and give yourself lots of room.
Health Welfare and Morale Check..........you Ok ?
Here’s to a snowy Monday night game for Da Bears and the Vikes. ;-)
Hitting here in Indiana right now. Freezing rain just turned to snow. We are supposed to get quite a bit of it.
Ask if the plane has snow tires.
I'm usually in White Lake Michigan, about 35 mile NW of Detroit, but glad I'm in Kingman, Arizona right now. It was in the low 50's and sunny today...felt like 60. Unfortunately, I'll be back in southeastern Michigan on Tuesday.
Thanks for posting this weather alert.
You betcha, so far.
This area is steep sedimentary rock, so rain here can be a serious business. In 2003 we had an October storm when it dumped 10 inches in just a few hours. It moved leaf duff six inches thick off a slope only 50 feet from the crest of a ridge, which becomes serious water 600 feet down a 30% average slope (much of it is steeper, some near vertical). So around here being ready for rain is a matter of preparation.
We've done what we can over many years, so now it's time to take shovel in hand and do what's necessary if the culverts plug. Thanks for asking. I'll let you know.
Thanks for posting this weather alert.
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You’re most welcome.. one can not survive on Huckabee and Hillary threads alone. ;-)
Well, you can’t give yourself lots of room during rush hour on a major street.
I’ll never forget...going downhill...on a curve....in rush hour.....freezing rain coming down like crazy. I was in the right hand lane in my little Rabbit. There was no shoulder, just a ditch about 5 feet deep to the right.
The Plymouth (boat) in the left lane right next to me was sliding to the right. I didn’t have much choice. I knew the driver was losing control (we made eye contact), so I carefully steered left directly into that Plymouth to keep her in the left lane.
It worked, and when we got to the bottom of the hill, we both pulled into a parking lot. The lady couldn’t believe that a little Rabbit could steer her big ol’ boat out of what could have been a nasty pile-up. I looked at her tires and advised her to get new ones. They were almost bald.
A scratch on my driver side door was nothing compared to what I would have had to fix had I gone into that ditch!
I have other stories, but that’s the best one.
Maybe you had to be there......
You need help you yell ! We can road trip over and back if need be !
We lost power for 2 weeks back in 1999 and I was grateful that I had a 12kw generator that ran on propane we had stored as the ones folks used with plumbed natural gas were useless as the trees that fell over due the ice storm then ripped up a lot of the lines so all gas was turned off .
I keep 3 x 100# propane bottles for my generator and it kept us and my neighbors warm and operating. We opened our guest room and home to a young couple next door that had a new born ......I think the baby was 2 months old when all around us turned to ice !
We also have a really nice glass faced wood stove and I keep a few cords of cured hickory around. 100 gallon bed tanks in the trucks kept us in fuel and such until the power went back on so retailers could sell fuel again.
A real come to Jesus event that was......... lots of folks have gensets installed now as well as wood stoves etc .
We had no problems......bad times for others as it was coooooold out !
Stay safe , Glad yer Ok.........Nite !!
I have other stories, but that’s the best one.
Maybe you had to be there......
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Oh, I have,, Oh yeah,, not quite that scenario but .. I remember end for ending in an old pickup truck in a ditch on New Years Eve in my senior year,, no one fortunately was hurt .
I remember studded tires too.. man they tore the roads up but.. chains were no fun either
I didn’t have studded tires or chains, but I did have tread and a manual transmission. Glad you weren’t hurt in that thar truck!
Other than electricity, we could go till next summer with no change in our habits, no problemo. If worse came to worse as far as power goes, we have a dug well and a spring.
Glad you weren’t hurt in that thar truck!
me too. we weren’t going too fast and the ditch was full of snow which cushioned the tumbling.. plus we weren’t feeling much pain at that point either, we were like rag dolls getting tossed around
Oh yeah, THAT is why our little shacks here all cost $1 million. Most of the year we in SoCal forget. I hope everyone stays warm and safe.
We are “cold” here because it’s been in the low 40s at night in the coastal areas in our little wooden, poorly insulated shack. We had to close the (original 1941) windows. Believe it or not, East Coaster guests FREEZE when they come to stay here: we put on sweaters and don’t (probably CAN’T) heat our houses to 70 degrees.
The Weather Channel web site www.weather.com does a 10 day forecast, so you should be able to see what the weather is doing before the end of the year.
At the moment, Cincinnati is significantly warmer that Dallas Texas. But at the least, I’d take a warm coat, hat, scarf and lined gloves.
Cincinnati isn’t going to get the snow that you see in Cleveland; anything short of a major winter storm isn’t going to be a significant problem for the area if you let someone local drive and you avoid rush hour.
Here’s a PDF of the Snow operations update from January 8, 2007 http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/city/downloads/ps_WinterWebUpdate010807.pdf
You can look at some others here to see how the City responds (note, however, that the airport is across the river in Covington, KY. )http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/pages/-3091-/
It is 36 degrees here in Las Vegas, but it will warm up to near 70 degrees tomorrow/ After 30 years in Montana, I appreciate our dry streets, and no frozen wind shields.
The snowfall is moderately heavy in eastern Massachusetts right now -- probably 2 inches already.
7 hours to Patriots/Jets game. If it doesn’t turn to rain, they’ll be playing in 8 to 12 inches of snow.
You might want to wish for a wood stove instead, if you are interested in heating your house. Fireplaces are very inefficient.
It’s 7:29 AM and we have five inches plus on the ground. It’s snowing like mad.
I live in northern Indiana and really if it’s bad the road crews are out and doing their job. Just slow down. People always forget to allow for conditions, especially the SUV folks. Take your time and you can get through alright.
Weather Channel is still predicting 3-6 inches here with a changeover to sleet and rain, but the temp is going to have to rise awful fast for that to happen.
We've got at least seven inches on the ground and it's now sleeting. The wind is starting to really pick up. I was out shoveling the deck, but had to take a break. At least I have WEEI's pre-game show to listen to while I'm out there.
Simple is good sometimes......hell I even picked up a wireless card from my cell phone provider. I have tested it and it’s not broadband fast yet it is 5 to 8 times faster than dial-up so that’s my backup for freepaholicism should the lights go out for a week or three again. Then if bad on bad occurs and cells go down I can packet surf on HF radio if I really need to send a e-mail .......
We added 5000w AC converters to each vehicle so we can charge toys and electronics from there as we run errands etc .
But we have no well , citified water here so your good in that arena. We store water and are less that a mile from a windmill that has a stock tank etc .......last time we had a problem with city water I took a trailer loaded w/ 30 gallon drums down there and filled em all up in a hour or so and we wound up having more than we needed for our little outage of a week.
One thing I was thinking of doing was trying to build a battery bank w/ AC inverter / controllers that would provide battery power for minimum needs of lights, fridge and freezers, communication and entertainment for 12 to 48 hours before I have to recharge. I think if I can work a system that will allow me shorter run times on the generators to charge the battery banks, I can extend my options tenfold per se......and my stored supply of fuel.
Not that power outages occur here a lot but they are a real PITA when they do. We can get by with candles and the wood stove fine but we stand to lose a lot of product in the freezers we harvest all year fishing and hunting and we buy beef, pork etc in bulk.
Ideas are cheap and welcomed.........:o)
Just started getting snow here in East Tennessee this morning.
Thinking about bad on bad is good.
One thing I was thinking of doing was trying to build a battery bank w/ AC inverter / controllers that would provide battery power for minimum needs of lights, fridge and freezers, communication and entertainment for 12 to 48 hours before I have to recharge.
Nothin' quite like having a little extra lead on site, so to speak.
Ideas are cheap and welcomed.........:o)
I've got a buddy who made a pretty effective lead furnace out of an old gas bottle, some kind of plaster, and a burner I gave him from an old industrial gas oven. He just drilled out the jet for propane until the flame was right.
I'm going to pick up an extra electronic ignition for the generator and a starter for the well pump and bury them in case of EMP. The truck has a point ignition. I'll probably store some kind of short wave radio set for similar purposes. There's a new SW band on which one no longer needs to learn Morse to get a license.
Very busy setting pavers today. It's gonna rain tonight.
Girl Friday gets nervous when I start looking at her life-cycle exercise bike , trying to figure a way to put a generator on that too recharge simple items. I think I will just install a cigarette lighter plug on it so we can power / recharge laptops, cell phones etc as SHE exercises.....:o)
..........faster Honey the movie is almost over !
Take a look at websites like Nordhavn.com or Kadey Krogen. They’re builders of luxury trawler yachts. Most of their boats have systems exactly like that- Apparently, you can get away with the batteries for most appliances and run the gen set for 2-3 ours a day to recharge that batteries, and also for larger items like electric stoves.
Passagemaker magazine has some intereting rticles as well.
Hope this helps.
LC
Is it windy in Kingman? Wifey and I looked around there a couple of years ago, with future retirement areas in mind, but ruled it out for two reasons - the constant wind, and the fact that Kingman appears to have NO zoning, giving it a definite whitetrash aura.
Holy cow, thats a long slide! Good thing the road was straight........
We're only getting real light snow but the wind is gusting around 30 MPH........
I've got food, I've got martinis and I have HDTV.........Oh, and I don't have to work anymore.......Life is good
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