Anyone living in southwestern Wisconsin and reading this blog doesnt need to be told how extraordinary Wednesdays weather was.
After a brief bout of snow that dropped 5 inches on the Monroe area on Tuesday afternoon and evening, there was a lull while Super Tuesday results were pouring in. Then, overnight, it started snowing again. And snowing, and snowing, and snowing. And the winds picked up and blew, and blew, and blew. As Im writing this, its getting close to 3 p.m. and more than a foot of snow has fallen. The snow drift outside my office hides the view of the minivan that brought me here and may or may not get me home.
I made it to work this morning at 5:30, just as the roads were starting to get dicey. A few hours later, they were nearly impassable. By 11:30 a.m., Green County pulled its snow plows off all roads except for the stretch of Wisconsin 11 between Monroe and Brodhead. The plows were rendered ineffective by Mother Nature, which blew snow back over the highway as soon as it was plowed.
The police scanner has provided some captivating listening today. The voices transmitting over it have told of the struggles and absolute peril anyone venturing out on the roads faced Wednesday.
Cars, semis trailers and rescue vehicles were in ditches by the dozens, or simply stuck in snow drifts on the middle of the road and blocking traffic. Plow drivers talked about being unable to see the road, or to see through their frozen windshields. The frustration was audible in voices.
Ah, ah, ahhhh ... I dont know, one driver said, trying to figure out how to unstick a number of trucks that were clogging an interchange off Wis. 11 in Monroe.
Another spoke in amazement at seeing two people just walking down the middle of a highway. Can you run somebody out here to get them before somebody runs them over, he said?
Days like these serve as reminders of just how grueling, and invaluable, the job of snow plow drivers and rescue personnel must be. This winter has been brutal for them, with the number of significant snow events weve had. By Wednesday afternoon they had to feel like there was no end in sight to this insufferable winter. I know Lafayette County Highway Commissioner means it when he says Thats what were here for, but if there arent dozens of blossoms submitted for their efforts by Friday morning Im going to be disappointed. Thanks so much for all that you do, folks.
As they day grew longer, the calls became more dire.
A woman with appendicitis needed to be transported from Wisconsin 59 to Monroe Clinic hospital, but the path was blocked by a squad car that was stuck. Personnel discussed creating an armada of rescue vehicles to lead the way over an alternate route to Monroe.
A disabled man could be heard crying in his van, which was stuck on Brooklyn-Albany Road. He said his vehicle was teetering and in danger of rolling over.
A call was placed to the Browntown Fire Department for a number of citizens, including children, who were stranded on County M. Minutes later, arrangements were being made to get the travelers out of the cold and into the Winslow, Ill., fire station.
Two of our reporters, one of them who has been here since Tuesday evening, just came back from a Monroe hotel that is allowing people to spend the night in their lobby. All of the hotel rooms are full of people with no way home.
For now, Ill just wait it out. The snow will end sometime this evening, and the winds are supposed to slow a bit. When they do, Im sure the plow drivers will be back out there clearing the way.
I can count on them.
After a brief bout of snow that dropped 5 inches on the Monroe area on Tuesday afternoon and evening, there was a lull while Super Tuesday results were pouring in. Then, overnight, it started snowing again. And snowing, and snowing, and snowing. And the winds picked up and blew, and blew, and blew. As Im writing this, its getting close to 3 p.m. and more than a foot of snow has fallen. The snow drift outside my office hides the view of the minivan that brought me here and may or may not get me home.
I made it to work this morning at 5:30, just as the roads were starting to get dicey. A few hours later, they were nearly impassable. By 11:30 a.m., Green County pulled its snow plows off all roads except for the stretch of Wisconsin 11 between Monroe and Brodhead. The plows were rendered ineffective by Mother Nature, which blew snow back over the highway as soon as it was plowed.
The police scanner has provided some captivating listening today. The voices transmitting over it have told of the struggles and absolute peril anyone venturing out on the roads faced Wednesday.
Cars, semis trailers and rescue vehicles were in ditches by the dozens, or simply stuck in snow drifts on the middle of the road and blocking traffic. Plow drivers talked about being unable to see the road, or to see through their frozen windshields. The frustration was audible in voices.
Ah, ah, ahhhh ... I dont know, one driver said, trying to figure out how to unstick a number of trucks that were clogging an interchange off Wis. 11 in Monroe.
Another spoke in amazement at seeing two people just walking down the middle of a highway. Can you run somebody out here to get them before somebody runs them over, he said?
Days like these serve as reminders of just how grueling, and invaluable, the job of snow plow drivers and rescue personnel must be. This winter has been brutal for them, with the number of significant snow events weve had. By Wednesday afternoon they had to feel like there was no end in sight to this insufferable winter. I know Lafayette County Highway Commissioner means it when he says Thats what were here for, but if there arent dozens of blossoms submitted for their efforts by Friday morning Im going to be disappointed. Thanks so much for all that you do, folks.
As they day grew longer, the calls became more dire.
A woman with appendicitis needed to be transported from Wisconsin 59 to Monroe Clinic hospital, but the path was blocked by a squad car that was stuck. Personnel discussed creating an armada of rescue vehicles to lead the way over an alternate route to Monroe.
A disabled man could be heard crying in his van, which was stuck on Brooklyn-Albany Road. He said his vehicle was teetering and in danger of rolling over.
A call was placed to the Browntown Fire Department for a number of citizens, including children, who were stranded on County M. Minutes later, arrangements were being made to get the travelers out of the cold and into the Winslow, Ill., fire station.
Two of our reporters, one of them who has been here since Tuesday evening, just came back from a Monroe hotel that is allowing people to spend the night in their lobby. All of the hotel rooms are full of people with no way home.
For now, Ill just wait it out. The snow will end sometime this evening, and the winds are supposed to slow a bit. When they do, Im sure the plow drivers will be back out there clearing the way.
I can count on them.
