FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – Fort Wayne has broken its snow record for January 25, receiving 6.2 inches Wednesday.
The old record of 5.4 inches was set in 1978 during the blizzard. Snow in Fort Wayne has risen to 9.3 inches for January, slightly above average.
Thursday morning brought some light scattered showers. Some lake-effect snow is expected for Thursday afternoon. Scattered snow is expected for Friday.
For its part, the City of Fort Wayne Street Department began salting streets Wednesday afternoon as the amount of snowfall began to diminish and the weather system started moving out of the area.
Motorists who must travel are encouraged to slow down around trucks that are plowing and salting and not follow them too closely. Streets are slick and motorists should allow for additional travel time.
The City issued the following:
The city is divided into eighteen snow routes with each route assigned a minimum of two trucks. Streets in each route are prioritized as one (arterials), two (collectors and Citilink bus routes), and three (residential). Priority one streets are the first streets to receive plowing and salting. Whenever the priority one streets are deemed safe for travel during or after a snowfall, the city’s plow trucks begin operations on the priority two streets. After these streets are completed, trucks will move in to residential streets if there is an accumulation of three inches or more of snow. If during plowing operations on priority two or three streets it begins to snow again and priority one streets become slippery, trucks will be dispatched back to these streets as needed.
While no snow event is exactly the same, as a rule of thumb it usually takes 10-12 hours AFTER the snow stops falling to plow and salt priority one and two streets. Residential streets generally take 48 hours to plow, assuming the plow trucks can continue working on those areas and don’t have to move back to priority one or two streets.
The Street Department is responsible for 1,200 miles of streets and roads.
Residents are encouraged to go here for winter weather updates.
For now, a Travel Watch is still in place for Allen County
Get the latest forecast from the National Weather Service
Area schools are still being impacted by the weather. There are still multiple schools and districts that are closed, delayed, or on eLearning on Thursday.
Check with your local district or school for updates.