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The National Weather Service in northern Indiana has issued a winter weather advisory for northern Indiana and northwest Ohio until Friday morning.
Snow accumulations of 4 to 6 inches are expected with locally higher totals possible.
Roads will become covered with snow and there will be reduced visibility, making travel difficult, the weather service said.
Counties in the advisory include:
- Indiana – Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells, Whitley, LaPorte, Elkhart, Starke, Pulaski, Marshall, Fulton, White, Cass, Miami, Grant, Blackford, Jay and St. Joseph.
- Ohio – Williams, Fulton, Defiance, Henry, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert and Allen.
- Michigan – Branch and Hillsdale.
Lake effect snow is expected in the southwest corner of Michigan and north central Indiana Friday afternoon through Saturday. The Indiana Department of Transportation Web site map this morning describe most roads in the Fort Wayne area as "difficult."
Motorists can access road and weather information by visiting INDOT's Web site TrafficWise.IN.gov or dial 800-261-ROAD (7623).
- Allen County SPCA: The fund-raising event at Chick-fil-A at Glenbrook has been postponed until 5-9 p.m. Jan. 21. Ten percent of all sales benefit the SPCA.
- Fort Wayne youth centers: Cooper, Jennings and Weisser Youth Centers will close at 6 p.m. Thursday evening because of poor weather conditions. There will be no evening activities at these sites.
- The city of Fort Wayne's Community Service Council's follow-up forum about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has been rescheduled to 6 p.m. Feb. 4 in City Council Chambers in the City-County Building. It is open to the public. The meeting was originally scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday in the same place, but was postponed because of the weather.
- Fort Wayne Community Schools closed most middle and high schools early today because of the weather. All evening classes at Anthis Career Center are canceled. To read the entire announcement, click here.
- CinemaCenter said all of its Thursday shows have been canceled because of the "Snow Miser."
- FIRST PRESBYTERIAN THEATER'S 7:30 pm preview performance tonight of THE WAY WE LIVE NOW: 25 YEARS LATER has been canceled.
- The Creative Arts Council of Wells County says the program with the Fort Wayne Museum of Art about Public Art and the works of Christo and Jeanne Claude has been postponed until Tuesday, Jan. 12, at 6:30 p.m. The "Favorite Things" program for Series on the Ouabache, luncheon and music performance by Vickie Kibellus has been postponed to Jan. 15 at noon.
- The Cornerstone Youth Center will be closed for center hours and evening programming today.
- The H1N1 Vaccination Clinic scheduled to be held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Stone's Hill Church near Ligonier has been canceled, the Noble County Emergency Management Agency said.
- The Cap & Trade workshop at the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce has been postponed, and tentatively rescheduled for Jan. 14.
- The prenatal class scheduled for tonight at the Parkview North campus has been canceled.
- The American Red Cross Adult, Child and Infant CPR Review class scheduled for 6 to 10 p.m. tonight has been canceled.
Notices can be sent to jgnews@jg.net or call 466-6397.
Verbatim announcement from the city of Bluffton:
The National Weather Service has predicted that a significant amount of snow will fall in Bluffton today.
If the NWS predictions are correct, the City of Bluffton will respond as follows:
While snow is falling and drifting, Street crews will plow major arteries hourly to ensure that major routes are open to emergency traffic. Those arteries are: Adams, Bond, Clark, East Dustman, Lancaster, Madison, Market, Monroe, Silver, Spring, Stogdill, Wayne, Wabash, Western, Washington and Wiley. The Indiana Department of Transportation is responsible for state routes (Main, West Dustman, Division and Harrison Streets.
When the snow and winds subside, street crews will begin clearing other streets. It takes approximately eight (8) hours to plow every street one time. Plows are stationed in each section of the city; therefore, sections will be cleared simultaneously.
Downtown: City parking lots will be plowed before 7:30 a.m. each morning; however, blowing snow may make parking difficult during the day. In the event of a heavy snow, the snow will be removed from the downtown at a designated evening.
The Parks Department will attempt to plow a walking area throughout the downtown during the snowstorm; however, clearing of sidewalks remains the responsibility of building owners and tenants.
The city will apply ice-melting chemicals to streets; however, the effectiveness of these chemicals decreases dramatically when temperatures are below 20 degrees.
Residents are asked to use off-street parking in residential areas if possible to minimize the chance of accidental damage from snow plows. When clearing sidewalks and driveways, snow should not be thrown or blown into the streets.
The city does NOT anticipate declaring a snow emergency unless conditions become worse than currently predicted. Snow Emergency information will be available via the city's website (www.BlufftonIndiana.net), WellsCountyVoice.com and the Bluffton News-Banner.
County officials in Huntington and Whitley counties have declared Level 3 snow emergencies for the counties.
As a result, routine travel or activities may be restricted because of hazardous situations, and people should use caution or avoid those areas, county officials said in statements. They said schools and businesses may begin to implement emergency action plans.
Whitley's statement said: "Travel on roadways are not restricted at this level, but citizens need to be aware of the road conditions prior to traveling this evening and the early morning hours of Friday, January 8th, 2010."
The statement said conditions may change, and recommended people monitor the media for possible updates.
Announcements from Indiana State Police:
The current road conditions within the Indiana State Police Fort Wayne District which includes Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wells and Whitley Counties, are as follows:
- U.S. and state highways are snow covered and slick.
- Secondary roads (county roads) are snow covered and slick.
Troopers are currently working a number of crashes from the Allen/DeKalb County Line on I-69 to just south of Auburn. Motorists should be on the lookout for emergency vehicles and snow removal equipment. Give them plenty of room to work.
The current road conditions within the Indiana State Police Peru District which includes Cass, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Tipton, and Wabash Counties, are as follows:
- U.S. and state highways are snow covered and slick.
- Secondary roads (county roads) are snow covered and slick.
Troopers have responded to a few slide-offs and property damage crashes, but not an abnormally high number considering the road conditions. Motorists should be on the lookout for emergency vehicles and snow removal equipment. Give them plenty of room to work.
Current road conditions within the Redkey District of the Indiana State Police, which includes Blackford, Delaware, Grant, Jay and Randolph Counties, are as follows:
- I-69 in Delaware and Grant Counties, driving and passing lanes are snow covered and slick. Use caution on bridges, underpasses and ramps.
- U.S. and State highways are snow covered and slick.
- Secondary roads (county roads) are snow covered, slick.
Troopers have investigated a few slide-offs and property damage crashes on I-69 in Delaware and Grant Counties. Motorists are cautioned there may be lane restrictions at various locations, and should be prepared for sudden speed reductions or stops.
We need to leave our phone lines open for emergency calls. Motorists can access road and weather information by visiting INDOT's web site TrafficWise.IN.gov or dial 800-261-ROAD (7623).
Motorists please use the following cautions when driving:
- Clear all windows, head/tail lamps of snow and ice
- Turn headlights on, even in the daylight hours
- Reduce speed
- Be aware of sudden stops
- Keep distance between vehicles, don't tailgate
- Hang up cell phones, and drive with caution
- Buckle up
- MOVE OVER, SLOW DOWN when approaching emergency vehicles
Be on lookout for school buses: A large number of schools in north central Indiana are dismissing students early. Motorist should be cognizant of the fact that school buses will be dropping students of earlier than normal and in slick road conditions. When following a school bus, drivers should give plenty of following distance and expect frequent and sometimes abrupt stops.
