Christmas weekend storm packed a wallop, locally and across the country

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

North Iowa joined much of the state and a good part of the country this past Christmas weekend in digging out and shaking off the impact of what is being called a monster storm that affected about 60% of the nation with some sort of winter weather advisory or warning.

The National Weather Service charted wind chills as low as minus 41 degrees in Floyd County at the Northeast Iowa Regional Airport around 4 a.m. Friday. Wind speeds were clocked as high as 49 mph.

Chickasaw County saw a wind chill temperature of minus 40 degrees Friday morning, with wind gusts as high as 45 mph.

Parts of Floyd County had received 3 inches of snow by Thursday morning, and it was quickly whipped into blizzard conditions by Friday. Charles City received an additional 3 inches over the weekend, Sunday evening into Monday, but there was much less wind to cause a problem.

Floyd County, along with much of the state and all of northeast Iowa, had been under a blizzard warning through Christmas Eve morning, switching over to a winter storm warning through 10 a.m. Christmas morning, then a winter weather advisory in effect until 6 a.m. Monday.

There were no weather advisories in effect going into today (Tuesday), and the forecast was for an almost balmy 26 degrees today, increasing to above-freezing highs in the mid 30s Wednesday and even into the 40s on Thursday, with highs remaining above freezing through the weekend.

It should be a welcome change from the frigid conditions over the long Christmas weekend.

The Floyd County Secondary Roads Department pulled its plows off the road at noon on Friday, as did many northeast Iowa counties.

The Floyd County Sheriff’s Office advised residents on Friday morning to “stay home and stay safe,” saying plows were unable to maintain open roads because of the blowing and drifting snow.

“There are some roads which are already impassable. Visibility is zero in most open rural areas,” the Sheriff’s Office said Friday morning.

The Iowa Department of Transportation also pulled its plows off the roads statewide on Friday, and closed Interstate 35 from the U.S. 30 interchange south of Ames to the U.S. 18 interchange near Clear Lake early Friday afternoon.

The northboard lane was closed until 8 a.m. Saturday, and the southboard lane began being opened through the morning.

“ It’s going to take some time for our crews to get through drifts, so please be patient,” the Iowa DOT said Saturday morning regarding the southbound I-35.

The Iowa DOT reported that other Iowa roads remained listed as “impassable” or “travel not advised”  on Saturday.

“We’re working to get things cleaned up, but the process will be slow. If you can delay your trip, you are encouraged to do so to help crews more quickly and safely clear the roads,” the Iowa DOT said Saturday morning.

Blizzard conditions with 20 to 50 mile-per-hour winds and white-out blowing snow, along with temperatures near double digits below zero and wind chills of minus 30 or minus 40 degrees resulted in life-threatening conditions for anyone caught out on the storm in a stranded or disabled vehicle.

Travel warnings were issued by the National Weather Service, local and regional law enforcement, emergency management agencies and the Iowa Department of Transportation, all saying don’t travel unless absolutely necessary, and even then to think twice before venturing out.

“Remember, if you become stranded it could quickly become a life-threatening situation, especially in these extreme temperatures,” the Iowa DOT said. “It may be very difficult, if not impossible, for emergency crews to reach you.”

The Floyd County Sheriff’s Office warned, “The frigid temperatures can be life-threatening for anyone who travels and ends up in the ditch or has their car become disabled.”

The Sheriff’s Office posted a picture of one of its squad cars on its Facebook page, along with the reminder that squad cars are “not Santa’s sleigh,” and although they have bright lights and loud sirens, “they are not magical – we’re driving what you’re driving.”

“If in the next 24-72 hours you find yourself stranded, we will do what we can to get you, however we cannot guarantee you that we’ll be able to,” the Sheriff’s Office posted Wednesday as the weather predictions were becoming more and more dire. “If at all possible we would ask that you stay put!!!” it said with three-exclamation point emphasis.

The Iowa State Patrol reported that as of noon Saturday it had 1,277 calls for service, including covering 344 crashes, 330 instances of property damage and 36 injuries, but no fatalities, since Wednesday.

Across the country the temperatures were made even more deadly by widespread power blackouts, with 1.7 million customers without power at the storm’s height.

In the MidAmerican service area, the company showed some power outages because of high winds, affecting about 200 homes in Warren County and 26 in Marion County, but by Monday afternoon there were only four scattered outages listed in its service area.

Nationwide, the storm knocked out power in communities from Maine to Seattle. But heat and lights were steadily being restored across the U.S. and according to poweroutage.us, fewer than 85,000 customers were without power by Monday afternoon, concentrated in the states of Washington, New York and Maine.

In the Charles City area, Jendro Sanitation announced Thursday morning that it was shutting down operations because of the impending storm. It said it would not be making up routes that were missed last week, but people would be allowed to set out extra trash and recycling on those routes’ next regular day without penalty.

The Charles City Water Department offered advice to prevent frozen pipes during the below-zero temperatures and for future times this winter when temperatures plummet again.

“Please make sure to keep an eye on your water pipes and plumbing. Frozen pipes that break or burst can cause expensive water damage and repairs,” the Water Department said.

“You can monitor your water temperatures with a standard kitchen thermometer. If your water temperatures are 40°F or lower, it may be beneficial to let a small amount of water flow (about the size of a toothpick) through any sink in your house to help prevent your pipes from freezing,” it said.

The Associated Press reported that the storm was responsible for at least 50 deaths, with 27 alone in a Buffalo blizzard in western New York.

Some 3,410 domestic and international flights were canceled as of Monday afternoon, according to the tracking site FlightAware. The site said Southwest Airlines had 2,497 cancellations — about 60% of its scheduled flights and about 10 times as many as any other major U.S. carrier.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.