Winter weather update

Here’s an update on the winter weather situation in northeastern Indiana as of 4:15 p.m. EST Monday, Jan. 6.

The winter storm warning that had been in effect expired at 4 p.m. EST But a wind chill warning remains in effect until 8 p.m. EST Tuesday, Jan. 7. You can read the full text of the wind chill warning here, but below are the highlights:

GUSTY WEST WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH ARE STILL POSSIBLE 
OVERNIGHT...CAUSING AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW AND DRIFTING ALONG 
NORTH-SOUTH ROADWAYS.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER...

 * SLOWLY FALLING TEMPERATURES INTO THE 10 TO 20 BELOW ZERO RANGE
   OVERNIGHT. DEADLY WIND CHILLS BETWEEN 30 BELOW AND 40 BELOW
   ZERO CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING.

IMPACTS...

 * FROST BITE AND HYPOTHERMIA WILL OCCUR IN A MATTER OF MINUTES
   WITH THESE EXPECTED WIND CHILLS. DEATH WILL ALSO OCCUR IF
   PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN.

A record low temperature of -13 degrees was set at Fort Wayne International Airport at 10:54 a.m. EST today (see screen shot from the NWS website, below). The temperature might fall even lower before midnight. The current -13 low breaks the old record of -12 set in 1970.

Screen shot of -13 observation at 10:54 a.m.

Below is a look at how much snow fell in the entire area covered by the northern Indiana National Weather Service office between 9 a.m. EST Sunday and 9 a.m. today.

The travel advisory warning that prohibited non-emergency travel in Fort Wayne, New Haven and unincorporated Allen County will expire at 6 p.m. A “code yellow” travel advisory watch will replace it, until 7 a.m. Tuesday. A Travel Watch means that conditions are threatening to the safety of the public. During a watch, only essential travel, such as to and from work or in emergency situations is recommended. Drivers should be aware that conditions are hazardous. Please drive slowly and have emergency supplies in vehicles, along with a cell phone.

According to the Allen County Facebook page:

Though the travel status has been reduced from a Warning to a Watch, many county roads will continue to be affected by winds and drifting which will make some of those roads impassable. And while main city streets have been cleared, they are still slick and will remain that way with the dangerously cold temperatures.

As of 4;30 p.m. EST, no county served by Indiana Michigan Power had more than 500 customers without power, In Allen County, outages continued to affect 125 customers.