116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Snow, blizzard winds set to descend on Iowa
UPDATED: Eastern Iowans should stock up on food and fuel while they can as a huge winter storm system swirls toward the region.
Up to a foot of snow could fall by noon Wednesday, and high winds could bring blizzard conditions. Mixes of ice and snow and rain are possible, and temperatures could fall below zero Wednesday night.
“Be prepared to settle in for the next couple days if the weather gets bad,” Linn County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Goldberg said. “Travel's going to be difficult for a while.”
People should be prepared with food, water and warm clothing, and fill their LP tanks and cars with fuel, emergency management officials said.
Johnson County Emergency Management Coordinator Dave Wilson said his office has been coordinating with the Red Cross to make sure emergency shelters are lined up. His advice is to stock up and be prepared for the worst, including potential power outages thanks to the effect of heavy snow and high winds on trees and power lines.
“Make sure you've stockpiled what you need to get through 24 to 48 hours,” he said.
Johnson County has a snowmobile with a medical toboggan on the back, and maintains an agreement with the Johnson County Snowdrifters, snowmobilers who can help retrieve the stranded or head up search and rescue missions when the roads are impassable.
Snowfall was expected to start around 3 a.m. Tuesday and grow heavy by nightfall. Winds up to 50 mph are expected, according to Meteorologist Kaj O'Mara in the KCRG-TV9 Weather Lab.
Rural roads could be drifted shut by Thursday, if the forecast pans out. Roads traveled by 1,300 cars or more per day are the first priority for snowplows in Linn County. It takes crews three days to open all the roads after a ten-inch snowfall, but if winds start drifting roads over immediately, crews will pull back.
“As soon as we've got a couple inches of snow, I'm sending guys out, from 4 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” Linn County Engineer Steve Gannon said. “We advise people to stay at home and not travel.”
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A snow plow truck drives north along Interstate 380 near the 42nd Street exit during a snowstorm in Cedar Rapids in February 2008. (Courtney Sargent/The Gazette)
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