(Le Mars) — The entire northwest Iowa region, including Plymouth County, is under a Winter Storm Warning with all roads snow covered. The weather forcast for Le Mars and Plymouth County is calling for a possibility of five to six inches of snow by late this evening. Tom Rohe is the county engineer and oversees more than 1300 miles of roads in Plymouth county. He says his department is ready if we should get the heavy snow.
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Rohe says priority is first given to the 365 miles of paved roads.
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The county engineer says crews will be applying a combination of sand and liquid calcium-choride on the slick roadways.
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Rohe says under normal snow conditions, his crews can clean the entire county within a few hours.
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Statewide, Iowa Department of Transportation officials say they are prepared for a major snow storm that’s headed for the Hawkeye State which forecasters say may drop four to eight inches of snow starting this (Monday) afternoon and into tonight. Bob Younie (YOU-nee), the D-O-T’s state maintenance engineer, says they prepare for this type of storm months in advance.
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The prediction calls for strong winds and wind chill factors by tomorrow (Tuesday) morning of 20 to 30-degrees below zero. Many tons of rock salt are stored in various state facilities across Iowa, ready to be spread on the highways, but the salt won’t be used if it gets too cold, too fast.
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It’s tough to imagine just how much salt is dumped on Iowa’s roads every winter.
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In addition to the many tons of sand that are spread on the state’s thoroughfares, there’s another tool in the arsenal to fight a build-up of snow and ice.
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Iowa typically sees 25 winter events every year and Younie says they’re all different, but they also have many similarities.
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See the full forecast at www.weather.gov.
