EVANSVILLE — With a potentially historic winter storm bearing down on the Tri-State, city and county officials presented a united front on Friday as crews raced to prep roads, government buildings and shelters for heavy snow and freezing temperatures.
Speaking from inside Evansville’s North Harlan Avenue street maintenance facility, Mayor Stephanie Terry said Evansville and Vanderburgh County would mount a “coordinated, community wide response effort” in the event forecasters most dire predictions hold true.
The National Weather Service warns that between 12 and 18 inches of snow could fall once the storm crosses into the Tri-State on Saturday.
“We’re expecting a significant winter storm this weekend, and potentially it’s one of the largest snow events we’ve seen in a while,” said Terry, who stood opposite a snow truck laden with de-icing salt. “What we are asking of the public is very simple: If you don’t have to travel, please stay off the roads. If you must drive, just go slow and give snow trucks plenty of space.”
Local officials have spent the past week and a half preparing for the massive winter storm, according to Cliff Weaver, who heads up the Evansville-Vanderburgh Emergency Management Agency. He put predicted snowfall at anywhere between eight inches and a foot.
“A lot of coordination, a lot of meetings, a lot of conference calls,” Weaver said of the past week’s efforts. “We’ve done the best we can.”
Crews have already pretreated miles of city and county roads. Workers on Friday were continuing to remove debris from the more than 1,000 drains and inlets that comprise Evansville’s water and sewer system. Thousands of pounds of pretreated salt are on hand to de-ice streets and highways.
Terry urged residents to inspect drains in their neighborhoods and to clear debris “if it’s safe to do so.”
Beth Sweeney, the executive director of the American Red Cross’ Southwest Indiana chapter, said the organization had “pre-positioned” resources and was ready to open temporary shelters if needed. She urged residents to “have things that would help you feel comfortable in a shelter ready to go.”
“We are standing by and prepared,” Sweeney said, adding that opening a shelter could be in the cards in the event of prolonged power outages.
A CenterPoint Energy official said Friday the company’s operations teams have prepared for several days to respond to potential electric outages and damage to gas lines.
What to know about plowing, street parking restrictions
Snow plow crews plan to work round-the-clock shifts for several days, according to city Transportation and Services Executive Director Todd Robertson.
Robertson said plow crews would circulate around 11 predefined snow routes, clearing and de-icing roads as they go. It can take up to three hours for a plow to make one lap around the city. A 12th snow route is focused on keeping streets near fire stations free of ice.
“We’d ask that you would be patient through the entire process,” Robertson told reporters. “Normally, as a general rule, we try to get to bare pavement 24 hours after it snows, but as you can imagine with the amount of snow it may be a little longer.”
Earlier on Friday, Evansville’s Street Maintenance Department informed residents via a text message that street parking would no longer be allowed even in marked spaces after 5 p.m. to allow for snow removal.
Asked whether the restrictions applied to residential areas that may lack off-street parking, Robertson told the Courier & Press the effort to clear the streets of parked vehicles primarily centered on snow routes.
“We understand there are some places that don’t have off-street parking,” Robertson said. “There are some routes identified as snow routes, and these are the routes that if you can, we ask that you not park.”
You can view detailed maps of the city’s snow routes by clicking here.
Vanderburgh County Commission President Justin Elpers said local officials would hold a joint conference call on Sunday to determine whether government buildings, such as county courts, would remain closed into next week.
According to the National Weather Service, between two and three inches of snow accumulation are possible before Saturday evening. Heavier snow could begin to fall Saturday night and through Sunday afternoon.
First responders say they’re ready for ice and snow
Tony Knight, the chief of the Evansville Fire Department, said he anticipated it would be “business as usual” for first responders.
“We’ll be starting our shifts like we would on any other day,” he said, adding that fire crews would be at the ready to respond to gas leaks, house fires and the myriad other reasons they’re called for help.
Assistant Evansville Police Chief Nathan Hassler said he was grateful for new all-wheel-drive police cruisers, recalling a past winter storm in which his old Ford Crown Victoria took more than half an hour to plod him and an arrestee to the jail.
“That’s a lot of time to spend in a car with someone you don’t know,” he quipped.
Weaver said Gov. Mike Braun had placed the Indiana National Guard on “standby” and equipped highway assistance teams with all-terrain vehicles, though the Indiana State Police will bear the bulk of responsibility for patrolling interstates and state highways.
ISP Sgt. Todd Ringle told the Courier & Press troopers would continue regular patrols so long as conditions allowed, otherwise they will park up and wait for calls. He pleaded with motorists to approach driving on potentially icy roads with caution and to adequately prepare for trips in sub-freezing temperatures.
“People just need to know that over the course of the next several days the interstate system, the main highways are going to be extremely slick and hazardous,” Ringle said. “Monday, I think, will be the true test when people will start getting back to work.”
If you must travel, Ringle suggests bringing a winter survival kit with extra clothing, jackets, water, medication and other essentials – such as phone chargers and batteries. A priority for troopers will be scouring the roadside for stranded motorists.
“We know that the temperatures are going to be brutal,” Ringle said. “For those individuals that break down or have a slide off and who aren’t prepared, don’t have that winter survival kit, maybe don’t have enough gas in the car and they run out of gas, we know that could be the difference between life and death. So we’ll be out looking for those types of situations.”
The Indiana Department of Transportation has warned “it’s going to take days to get the highways back to normal, especially with these cold temperatures,” Ringle added.
NWS: Prepare for dangerously cold temps
In its afternoon forecast discussion, the NWS office in Paducah, Kentucky, warned of “prolonged sub-freezing temperatures” and “intervals of dangerously cold wind chills” beginning Friday night and continuing through the week.
“A Cold Weather Advisory is in effect for the first round of dangerous wind chills that covers this evening through midday Saturday,” the NWS stated.
A Winter Storm Warning will remain in effect from midnight Friday through 6 p.m. Sunday.
Terry urged the public to follow the Evansville-Vanderburgh Emergency Management Agency on social media and to monitor updates from official city accounts in addition to reviewing updated forecasts.
Courier & Press reporters will post live updates as they become available.
“I’ll be at home communicating with city and county officials throughout the storm,” Terry said of her plans for the weekend. “And taking any chance to go out and visit with our crews.”
Houston may be contacted at houston.harwood@courierpress.com
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville officials promise ‘community-wide response’ to winter storm
Reporting by Houston Harwood, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
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