More snow predicted ... again

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PRINCETON — There’s good news ... and there’s bad news when it comes to this week’s weather in Bureau County. After a weekend of subzero weather, temperatures are expected to warm up today, Tuesday, through Friday, into the high 20s, according to WQAD meteorologist Anthony Peoples. That’s the good news.

On the bad news side, those warmer temperatures will bring to Bureau County the chance for at least another two winter storms, and another possible five inches of snow, Peoples said.

According to records kept by WQAD, Saturday’s two inches of snowfall for the Quad Cities area brought the total December snowfall to 15.7 inches, which is two-tenths shy of making December 2008 one of the Top 10 snowiest Decembers on record, Peoples said.

If the Quad Cities area and Bureau County receives the projected five inches of additional snow this week, then December 2008 snow amounts could surpass the December 2007 record of 19.6 inches, which was the fifth snowiest December on record, Peoples said.

In Princeton, Superintendent of Water Treatment Mike Eggers said the city received only about one-fourth inch of new snow on Saturday and no new snow on Sunday. The high temperature on Saturday was 27 degrees with a low of two degrees.

However, the temperatures took a downward plunge on Sunday in the Princeton area. The high temperature on Sunday was only two degrees, and the low temperature was a minus seven degrees, Eggers said. Those temperatures do not take into account the wind chill factor.

Though Princeton residents are experiencing some very cold December temperatures, it’s far from record-breaking, Eggers said. In 1983, there were several days in a row where temperatures stayed in the 15-to-20 below zero range, he said.

With the cold temperatures and sometimes dangerous traveling conditions, Kris Donarski, coordinator for the Bureau County Emergency Services and Disaster Agency, has encouraged residents to take care of themselves and their neighbors. Fortunately, living in a rural area can be a blessing because everyone knows everyone else, and people are good to watch out for each other, she said.

Especially with Bureau County’s frigid and snow-covered winters, it’s important to make sure neighbors, friends and family members have the supplies they need to be kept safe and warm, Donarski said.

As needed, warming centers may also be set up, through ESDA and the Bureau County Chapter of the American Red Cross, to provide shelter to stranded travelers as well as local people in need, Donarski said.

Princeton Fire Chief Gary Hanna urged all travelers to keep their vehicles in good working condition and to also keep emergency safety kits in those vehicles. Some of the items needed for those kits include blankets, non-perishable food items, water and salt or sand for tire traction. Also, residents shouldn’t leave their homes without making sure their cell phones are charged, he said.

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