Webcam view of I-69 in Fort Wayne

At 12:18 p.m. the northern Indiana office of the National Weather Service issued an update to the Winter Storm Warning that remains in effect until 4 p.m. You can read the verbatim statement, but here’s a synopsis:

• Blowing and drifting snow will continue this afternoon….especially in open and rural areas, primarily affecting east-to-west roadways.
• Travel will be very difficult. Interstates 65, 69, 75 and 80 will be impacted. 
• Primary roads, including U.S. highways 6, 24, 30, 31 and 33 will be snow-covered and hazardous.
• Storm total snow accumulations are expected to be 7 to 12 inches.

As of 1 p.m., the official storm total snowfall at Fort Wayne International Airport was 9.6 inches. That’s 1.9 inches more than Fort Wayne’s normal snowfall for the entire month of February. It also makes this winter the second snowiest on record.

At 11:30 a.m., the City of Fort Wayne announced that street crews had plowed the main arterial streets and were salting them. Secondary streets should be completed by this afternoon and they will be moving into residential streets by late this afternoon. Crews will work through the night and into tomorrow on residential streets.

Crews were keeping up with the latest snow event through about 4 a.m., when a heavy snow dumped more than four additional inches of snow in a three hour period. During that time period drivers reported that as soon as they made one pass down a street it was covered again within minutes.

Early-morning webcam view of Fort Wayne International Airport. At 7 a.m. EST, the official observer at the airport reported a storm total so far of 8.5 inches.

Winter Storm Warning remains in effect

A winter storm continued to bring snow, with blowing and drifting, to the Midwest this morning. A Winter Storm Warning remained in effect until 4 p.m. EST for northeastern Indiana, northwestern Ohio and parts of southern lower Michigan. According to a statement issued at 8:42 a.m. by the northern Indiana office of the National Weather Service (NWS), snow will gradually end today. Additional snow accumulations this morning are expected to be 1 to 3 inches with storm total snow accumulations by midday of 6 to 11 inches. Areas of blowing and drifting snow will continue into this afternoon, creating the following impacts:

• Snow covered roads with falling and blowing snow will produce extremely hazardous travel conditions into early afternoon.
• North winds will continue to cause considerable blowing and drifting, primarily on east to west roads.

As of 7 a.m. EST, the official observer at Fort Wayne International Airport reported a storm total of 8.5 inches. To see snow amounts at various locations around northeastern Indiana, southern lower Michigan and northwestern Ohio, view the NWS “Local Storm Report” Web page.

Counties issue travel advisories, watches and warnings

As of 8 a.m., all counties in northeastern Indiana had issued some form of travel advisory; either an “advisory,” “watch” or “warning,” as described below. Allen County went to the “advisory” level at 6:07 a.m. See the current map on the website of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

Travel advisory map as of 8 a.m. EST

Warning (red): The highest level of local travel advisory, means that travel may be restricted to emergency management workers only. During a “warning” local travel advisory, individuals are directed to:

1. Refrain from all travel;
2. Comply with necessary emergency measures;
3. Cooperate with public officials and disaster services forces in executing emergency operations plans; and
4. Obey and comply with the lawful directions of properly identified officers.

Watch (orange): Means that conditions are threatening to the safety of the public. During a “watch” local travel advisory, only essential travel, such as to and from work or in emergency situations, is recommended, and emergency action plans should be implemented by businesses, schools, government agencies, and other organizations.

Advisory (yellow): The lowest level of local travel advisory, means that routine travel or activities may be restricted in areas because of a hazardous situation, and individuals should use caution or avoid those areas.

Travel “difficult” throughout northern Indiana

INDOT road condition map as of 8:19 a.m. EST. Purple indicates “difficult” road conditions, the worst rating INDOT uses.

As of 8:19 a.m. EST, the road condition map on the website of the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) indicated that the condition of all roads in the northern half Indiana were “difficult” (purple), the worst rating INDOT uses. See the current road condition map on the INDOT website.

A ham radio operator on his way to work from northwest of Fort Wayne to northern Fort Wayne reported at 8 a.m. that most roads are snow-covered and some are drifting over. He reported that I-69 had two lanes open but snow covered. Another ham, driving a semi-truck along I-69 between Auburn and Angola at about 8:30 a.m., reported multiple trucks off the road.

INDOT tweeted this morning that it has 835 snow plow trucks deployed, including 133 in its northeastern Indiana district.

Flight cancellations at Fort Wayne International

The storm is affecting some, but not all flights in and out of Fort Wayne International Airport today. Travelers should check with their airlines to confirm the statuses of their flights. None of the airlines are reachable by phone at the local terminal, so the airport authority requests that travelers refrain from calling the airport for information.

Other impacts

• All areas schools, including IPFW, have canceled classes today. Check your favorite media website for notices of other activity cancellations.
• Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry tweeted that all garbage and recycling pickup in the city is canceled today.

Measurement taken at W9LW, southeast side of Fort Wayne, at 10:15 p.m. EST