Major Snowstorm hits Midwest!

[ginnyinWI]

The Milwaukee area already has 6 inches and it's going to continue snowing and blowing for the next seven hours. Chicago area is worse! If you have a flight here today, be sure to check for cancellations. MKE has only one runway open, and they have to plow it before every take-off or landing. The freeways are almost at a standstill. O'Hare will be closed at least until noon, CT.

[dubykc]

1. This is exactly why I moved to California.

[katinmn]

2. We haven't gotten any snow -- YET.

[ginnyinWI]

6. I think MN will be spared for this one.

They said it's one of those storms that comes up from Oklahoma and it's moving toward the Northeast. I'm glad for you; my daughter lives in Mpls too.

[dflprincess]

37. And that's the way, ahuh, ahuh I like it

This storm is already past us and, the last I heard, there's nothing major in our forecast.

[ewagner]

3. A little jealous actually

here it is Dec 1 and we have no snow on the ground in Central Wisconsin...and the sky?
SEVERE CLEAR

[madrchsod]

8. watch out for the cold front sunday...

[Sabriel]

12. Yep, nothing in Oshkosh but flurries

I'm not complaining.

[Purveyor]

4. We've been hit with ice here in mid-michigan. Power went out

around three hours ago. Running off generator. blah!

[dubykc]

9. I suspect my sister may be without power cuz I can't reach her...

by land line and she refuses to get a cell phone, for whatever reason. I would think living in the wilds of northern Michigan would be plenty of reason to NEED a cell phone.

[JoFerret]

35. Maybe moved there

to GET AWAY from such nuisances.

[dmoded]

5. been paying attn. to this one since yesterday

What looks real bad about this is that most are getting a very thick layer of ice before the snowstorm, add thunder/tornado's to it, wtf?

take care all, drive safe or stay indoors.. for sure.

-dm

[Occulus]

33. Weather reports say to watch for thundersnow

Thundersnow?

The last time I saw thundersnow was when I was a kid. I've only seen it once.

[Pugee]

7. It came through here last night (Missouri)

We got 10 inches of snow and ice, many cities got a lot more. Everything is closed, including several colleges and universitys, businesses and local airports. Heck, even I-70 is closed for miles. People are being told not to leave their homes.
This is supposed to be the worst storm since 1995.
The sun is out today, so it is really pretty if you don't have to leave. Temps supposed to be 20's and 10 tonight.

[Seedersandleechers]

19. KC was predicted to get about 8" of snow.

However, looking outside from downtown it was barely spit on.

[Nickster]

10. It's looking pretty heavy outside here so far. Started a little after midnite.

I took a vacation day from work so I wouldn't have to deal with the driving today. Everything else in the area is closed, but my company has regular hours for everyone. I'm still deciding when I'm going to get up the courage to go out and start shoveling. Blech!

[ginnyinWI]

13. good idea.

My husband has the ability to work online from home, so he's doing that. My daughter always works from home online, so she's ok too. They are saying on tv that you risk your safety if you go out--well, duh!

[hippiechick]

11. Yea! It missed us in Indy!

But we've got some serious winds and rain/sleet.
Looks like more's on the way, too.

Sometimes I don't know which is worse, an old-fashioned snowstorm like I grew up with in WI,
or the freezing rain/ice/flooding that central Indiana gets.

:scared:

[IndyBob]

54. Hello Hippie

Another cheesehead from Wisconsin here. Moved to Indy in July of this year. Today's a little cold and windy, but nothing we can't deal with. Spoke with a bunch of co-workers in Sheboygan, they had 6+ inches by noon, but the sun came out and things are looking better for the ride home tonight.

[hippiechick]

55. Hey Bob !!!

Welcome to DU, and to Indy!!!
Stop by the Indiana forum and say hello!

What part of WI are you from? I grew up in GB. :)


:hi:

[bleedingheart]

14. my inlaws drove from Michigan to Louisiana to help out with Habitat

for Humanity....I think they are due to head home this weekend...

I hope they are safe..

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

15. I know

We have about 1/4 inch snow and 3/4 inches of ice on the ground. My boss told me to telecommute today, and I've got the work done! So I'm paid for time and yet get to stay at home! :)

[ginnyinWI]

16. where do you live? n/t

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

17. NW Arkansas

they were predicting up to 6 inches, but we lucked out.

[oneinok]

40. 10 inches in Tulsa

10 inches in Tulsa. 20+ north of Tulsa. They are calling it a 100 year storm

[sabra]

18. Here in Evanston, IL (N Burb Chicago) 65 earlier in the week

8 inches of snow this morning :crazy:

[mopinko]

29. not that much over the border, in rogers park

looks like about 4". i am bundling up to go walk the dogs. argh.
but it is heavy. when it started last night it was more like ice than snow. all my bushes are bending over. wish i could say the same for the bushes in D.C.

[hedgehog]

20. For all those who live in snow belts, it has to be said - 1/4" of ice

is worse than a foot of snow any day! I live in a major snowbelt north of Syracuse and a single ice storm did more damage in 12 hours than all the snow storms I've seen in the last 20 years here.

[ewagner]

26. No argument here...

Snow?

I can deal with it.

Ice?

No so much.....

[hedgehog]

42. We're justly proud of our ability to keep going all winter, but I

wanted to make sure that snow belt people don't snub people who are anxious about ice storms. The way they take down EVERY power line for miles around and then proceed to flood basements, they're right up there behind hurricanes and earthquakes in my book.

[Fierce]

21. Send some this way!

We need it in northern Minnesota!

[ginnyinWI]

23. Good for the tourism industry.

Snowmobilers and skiers are happy I guess. But as far as I know, Northern WI isn't getting any; it's only SE Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan.

[Fierce]

28. Exactly.

Our tourism is suffering after a couple so-so years. We should have at least a foot by now.

[jasmeel]

22. I'm in WI and already got my car stuck in the snow! Keep cat

litter in your trunks people. I will from now on.

[hedgehog]

24. What kind?

some of the clay based types just turn into a greasy smear if you get them wet.

[ginnyinWI]

25. We've used old carpeting

Put a few strips of old carpeting, or a few old doormats or something like that in your trunk. Then wedge it under the back tires and back out over it. Works well!

[jasmeel]

50. No clumping

[warrens]

27. Getting worse, not better, in Chicago

It's really coming down now, and starting to pile up on top of the slush. It's going to be a real mess tonight.

[sarcasmo]

30. Just shoveled for the first time and expect to do it two times more today.

West Michigan here and it's coming down fast and furious.

[Tracer]

31. 65 Degrees here.

Sorry folks, I've got the windows open to catch the nice breeze.

[Scout1071]

57. Don't talk to me for 10 minutes.

Kidding of course, just jealous.

But, I should warn you that we, the people of the Midwest, just packaged this neatly with a bow and sent it your way.

Just before I went to bed on Tuesday night I had my windows open and it was a balmy, freakish 67 degrees. I woke up Wednesday morning and it was 32 degrees with ice/rain clouds on the horizon. 36 hours later we had 1/2" of ice and almost a foot of snow.

Be careful my friend....I'm afraid this is probably coming your way. Enjoy that breeze while you can. Our breeze was more like a frozen lightning bolt going through my body yesterday because it was so cold.

[phusion]

32. When I woke up yesterday about 7AM...

the temperature in Taos, NM (about 3 hours north of me) was -15 without wind chill.

Our temp was about 15 and we had snow on the ground which is pretty unusual for us this time of year!

[hedgehog]

38. Is that a lot of precipitation for you?

I'm thinking it's pretty dry out there, so any moisture is appreciated.

[phusion]

43. yea, it sure is...

Actually we had a record-breaking spring and summer precipitation wise. This winter should be good for us!

[hedgehog]

44. I think Global Climate Change is shifting rainfall patterns.

We had so much rain all summer that I am getting really curious about what's going to happen this winter. Since the extra rain came from the Gulf rather than Lake Ontario, maybe it'll be too warm to snow. On the other hand, if the temperature hangs around 30 degrees.......

[NotGivingUp]

34. 80 degrees here : )

[JNelson6563]

36. Michigan is getting hammered too

Been snowing here for almost 4 hours now. The storm is sweeping up from the south. I'm in the Traverse City area (pinky of the mitten). Severe storm warnings till 6 pm at least. Snow forecast for many days.

It makes getting around more difficult but it sure is beautiful. :hi:


Julie

On edit: I know the area ski resorts are very happy! Come on up!

[marmar]

39. Not the southeast part (yet, anyway)

It's just rain in Motown.

[brentspeak]

41. Meanwhile, it's unnaturally warm here in NJ

Screwed-up weather.

[ginnyinWI]

45. the other day it was 59--so I put up the Xmas lights

without needing mittens. Now it's about 20. Winter has come in all at once. There is at least 13 inches of snow out on the deck now--and we had none yesterday at all.

[hedgehog]

52. I was thinking about putting up the lights before the cold front gets here,

but we're being warned of 60mph gusts tonight. I think I'll wait.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

46. Minneapolis is currently "enjoying" one of my least favorite types of

weather--really cold, but with no snow, either in the air or on the ground. :-( Somehow that seems colder than the equivalent temperature with snow.

[Alhena]

47. How do you folks up north avoid traffic accidents?

Whenever we get a little bit of snow or ice down here my car slips around like I'm in the ice capades. Yet I see that rural highways in the Southeast are the most dangerous in the country- I don't see how you guys get around and stay safe with the weather like that.

[NickB79]

48. There are ways to handle bad roads

Plow trucks are out almost as soon as a bad storm starts to hit, and salt and sand trucks right after them. When there is a blizzard predicted, they're lined up like the starting line of the Indy 500 :-)

The first snowstorm is always the worst though, because people are still in a summer-driving mentality. They don't slow down like they should, brake earlier, or drive more cautiously. Everyone jokes about how you have to re-learn how to drive in winter every year because we forget it in summer. After that, though, people slow down, throw winter tires on their cars, and accidents go back down for the rest of the winter.

That's not to say it can always be handled. 2 years ago I was driving down I-94 here in Minnesota and saw a bad accident up ahead. I tried to slow down, but quickly found out that the accident had been caused by a long patch of invisible black ice. I fishtailed and then did a 180 in the middle of a 3-lane highway. So there I am, sliding BACKWARDS down the interstate, and I finally come to a halt nose-to-nose with the car that had been behind me. She was able to stop in time so that we didn't hit, but there was less than 3 ft between our bumpers. She had a little girl in the front seat, and they looked horrified. I'm sure I had the same look on my face. As I sat there, waiting for another car in the next lane to drive past so I could throw it in reverse and pull onto the shoulder, that car hit the ice and spun out into the ditch past me. I CAREFULLY pulled over and just sat there for a good 20 minutes to calm down, and a cop from the accident up ahead came over to make sure I was ok.

There's a good reason Minnesota is a no-fault state in the winter months.

[ginnyinWI]

49. big difference if you live in a snowy state

We've got the snow plows and salt trucks and supplies all ready to go. Not so in a place like Seattle or Portland. I was there a few years ago when they had an ice storm, and they were paralyzed with icy roads and not much could be done about it. The trick is to get the salt on early, and keep plowing the roads through the night. Last night in Milwaukee they were also outfitting the city's garbage trucks with plows so they could help out in the emergency. We've got it covered here.

[hedgehog]

51. #1. Don't drive when the roads are bad.

For example, my daughter put off a movie date at my request because it looks like ice and wind will hit with darkness as the movie lets out. Her date is a young driver and it'll be the first bad storm of the year. Oddly enough, she agreed with no complaints! I'm going to check her for fever!

Seriously, I monitor the roads and don't go out until the plows have been through. If there are white out conditions, I stay home. True white outs tend to occur only a couple times a year and don't last too long.

I think the bit about everyone forgetting to drive over the summer is a myth. The first snow storms generally occur just at the freezing point. The snow comes down fast on warm pavement that isn't salt saturated and quickly glazes over. Generally, it hits a wide area at once and the plows can't be everywhere at once. I think there are more accidents during the first storms because they produce the worst driving conditions all winter. oddly enough, I think these condition s are typical of those that hit Southern localities once or twice a year.

[Vinca]

53. In a weird twist . . .

they were mowing the grass around Exit 1 of I-91 in Vermont today!

[Scout1071]

56. We had 8-12" of snow in KC yesterday and 16" just west of us.

Not to mention the ice storm we had on Wednesday. Always makes for a better time to coat the roads with a 1/2" of ice before a foot of snow. :sarcasm:

[Hayabusa]

58. I counted 14" in Columbia

Yikes. Snow went up to my elbow and it has drifted everywhere. I'm certainly not going to be able to leave the house for a while.