MONROE - Despite being socked by a 24-hour winter storm that brought 8 to 10 inches of snow, winds up to 44 mph and treacherous drifting, Green County motorists remained mostly unscathed in the first major snowfall of the season.
"Traffic volume was down. Apparently people were smart and stayed in," said Cody Kanable, a deputy with the county's Sheriff's Department.
As of 5 p.m. Sunday, about the time the snowfall was beginning to lessen, the deputy had reported two minor crashes on county roads and a dozen slide-outs that left cars in ditches. The incident locations were scattered throughout the county, he added.
"The drifting was terrible, with visibility less than 200 feet, but road crews did a good job of keeping both county and state roads passable," said Kanable, noting crews were due to stop plowing about 7 p.m. They were scheduled to return to plowing early this morning.
Even within Monroe city limits, road conditions made for treacherous driving. Many intersections were deep with blown snow, and the westbound lanes of 8th Street on Monroe's westside were barely passable at one point Sunday evening.
No mishaps were reported in the city, but plows did retreat from the storm due to unyielding winds. They hit the streets at 1:30 a.m. Sunday until 2:30 p.m. later in the same day, according to a Monroe police spokesman who declined to give his name, with a plan to go back out in the wee hours this morning.
"They just couldn't keep up with the drifting," he said. "They were clearing the same thing over and over."
Conditions in Lafayette County were similar, but a dispatcher did not know of any incidents of note.
As of 10 p.m. Sunday, the windspeed was 29. Monroe and other area schools were planning a 2-hour delay in the start of school today because of weather conditions.
"Traffic volume was down. Apparently people were smart and stayed in," said Cody Kanable, a deputy with the county's Sheriff's Department.
As of 5 p.m. Sunday, about the time the snowfall was beginning to lessen, the deputy had reported two minor crashes on county roads and a dozen slide-outs that left cars in ditches. The incident locations were scattered throughout the county, he added.
"The drifting was terrible, with visibility less than 200 feet, but road crews did a good job of keeping both county and state roads passable," said Kanable, noting crews were due to stop plowing about 7 p.m. They were scheduled to return to plowing early this morning.
Even within Monroe city limits, road conditions made for treacherous driving. Many intersections were deep with blown snow, and the westbound lanes of 8th Street on Monroe's westside were barely passable at one point Sunday evening.
No mishaps were reported in the city, but plows did retreat from the storm due to unyielding winds. They hit the streets at 1:30 a.m. Sunday until 2:30 p.m. later in the same day, according to a Monroe police spokesman who declined to give his name, with a plan to go back out in the wee hours this morning.
"They just couldn't keep up with the drifting," he said. "They were clearing the same thing over and over."
Conditions in Lafayette County were similar, but a dispatcher did not know of any incidents of note.
As of 10 p.m. Sunday, the windspeed was 29. Monroe and other area schools were planning a 2-hour delay in the start of school today because of weather conditions.