First the snow, now the cold

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

Classes in Charles City and all other school districts around the area were canceled on Thursday as several inches of snow were dumped, followed by high winds. The National Weather Service issued a Winter Storm Warning for portions of east central and northeast Iowa and northwest Illinois, which was set to remain in effect until 6 a.m. Friday.

The snow started early Thursday morning and continued into the afternoon throughout northern and eastern Iowa, southern Minnesota and western Wisconsin and Illinois, forcing residents to clean off their driveways and sidewalks, like this person near the corner of Gilbert and Main Street in Charles City.

The National Weather Service reported a cold front moved through eastern Iowa Thursday, and strong winds and falling temperatures behind the front will cause any wet roads to quickly freeze. Winds behind the front increased to 20-30 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph during Thursday afternoon and evening. Short-lived white-out conditions were also reported, with wind chills dropping to 5 below to 15 below zero late Thursday night.

Drifting snow will be a problem through Friday morning, the NWS said, with visibility dropping to as low as one-quarter mile at times. The forecast calls for patchy blowing snow through 4 p.m. Friday, with a high near 13 and wind chill values as low as minus 13. Friday night’s low is expected to be minus 5 degrees, with wind chills below minus 20. Similar cold and blustery conditions are expected to remain through the weekend.