Wednesday, February 17th, 2021
Residents dig out from snow
Engineer says storm one of the worst snow events in years
By Daily Standard Staff
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard
Burke Lange sleds with his brothers, Oliver and Jace, on Tuesday afternoon at Bremenfest Park in New Bremen.
CELINA - A winter storm that swept into the area Monday dumped more than 9 inches of snow and unleashed strong wind gusts, leaving most roads impassable until Tuesday morning and closing schools and some businesses.
Over the course of two days, the area saw 9.3 inches of snow and wind gusts up to 25 mph, local weatherman Dennis Howick said.
"It's one of the worst events we've had in recent years," Mercer County Engineer Jim Wiechart said, noting that several county and township roads and even a few state routes at one point were impassable to normal vehicles.
Mercer County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Gery Thobe said operations in the county went "amazingly well" during the heaviest snowfall. The office handled no serious injury accidents due to the weather and few slide-offs occurred.
Sheriff Jeff Grey issued a Level 3 snow advisory at 10 p.m. Monday, meaning only emergency traffic was permitted on the roads. Thobe said hardly any traffic was moving Monday night, especially once the Level 3 advisory had been issued.
The Level 3 snow advisory remained in place Tuesday morning with many county and township roads at 5 a.m., and state routes still experiencing blowing and drifting snow. County government offices were closed for the day due to the weather.
Grey eventually downgraded the county to a Level 1 snow advisory at 10 a.m. Tuesday, advising that some township roads may still be impassable but county and state roads had been cleared for travel. The county snow advisory was lifted by noon Tuesday, but drivers were still urged be cautious.
The Mercer County Engineer's Office's fleet of 13 snowplows took to county roads on Monday afternoon. The drivers' goal was to keep roads open as long as possible, knowing people would still be out amid blizzard-like conditions.
"That situation degraded pretty quickly as the event went on," Wiechart said. "We wanted to get as much cleared to make the roads as safe as we could as long as we could until it got to the point where it was hard to see and hard for (crews) to do what they needed to do."
Crews returned a little before midnight.
"It was getting to the point where it was really, really hard to see, and we knew kind of how that storm would track," Wiechart said.
However, three snowplow drivers remained on duty throughout the early morning, making themselves available to assist deputies, firefighters and other first responders.
The full fleet returned to duty at 6 a.m.
"All 13 of our route drivers were back in at 6 a.m. on the road. Virtually everything was opened up on county roads, at least to one-lane passable, by about 10 a.m. or so," Wiechart said.
Snow removal operations wrapped up about 4 p.m.
"It's blowing a little bit in the outlying areas, but everything's more passable. Some areas are still snow-covered, but pretty much most have two lanes available on the county roads," he said.
In Celina, city crews hit the streets about 6 p.m. Monday, laying down a layer of salt to avert anticipated ice sheets that fortunately never materialized, mayor Jeff Hazel said.
The crews then redirected their efforts toward plowing snow until midnight. They returned to the scene at 5 a.m. Tuesday.
"I went from a Level 1 to a Level 2 inside the city limits because our roads always maintained passibility," Hazel explained. "We could still get around, which is why we did not need to do a Level 3."
Hazel said about 12 employees on Monday and 18 employees on Tuesday worked to clear city streets. Some businesses closed part of the day Tuesday, Hazel said.
With assistance from contractors VTF Excavation and Shinn Brothers, the crews hauled out 90 to 100 loads of snow from downtown, Hazel said.
"The first thing we do is we have to get the roads open, and because the downtown being all concrete, there's nowhere really to put that snow," Hazel said.
The snow was moved to city park parking lots and the old city landfill along Summit Street.
"I am so proud of our crews and how we handled it, getting things open," Hazel said.
Fort Recovery police chief Jared Laux said no accidents or slide-offs were reported on Monday night or early Tuesday morning. He estimated the village received roughly 8-10 inches of snow overnight.
St. Henry Police Chief Michael Link also reported no accidents or slide-offs overnight. Link said snowplows were out off and on throughout the night, beginning at 7 p.m. and picking back up at 5 a.m. after the village received about 8 inches of snow.
"The village streets still have snow but are much improved over the last 18 hours," Link said Tuesday afternoon.
Tuesday's COVID-19 vaccine clinics in Mercer County were postponed. Mercer County Health District officials postponed their drive-thru clinic scheduled for today, which had been for people 65 and older and individuals with severe congenital, developmental or early-onset disorders.
In a Tuesday news release, district officials said they plan to reschedule the clinic for next week with further information expected later this week.
Officials still plan to hold Friday's drive-thru clinic at the Mercer County Fairgrounds for people eligible for their second dose of Pfizer vaccine.
Mercer Health officials on Tuesday also announced their vaccine clinic scheduled for today is postponed until next Wednesday. The clinic will remain at Mercer County Community Hospital, Coldwater, and scheduled appointment times will remain the same.
With winter weather likely to continue posing travel difficulties, Mercer Health each day at 1 p.m. will announce on their website, social media and radio if they change the next day's clinic.
Auglaize County officials never declared a Level 3 emergency. Sheriff Michael Vorhees issued a Level 2 snow advisory at 6 p.m. Monday. Some roads were closed during this time.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Auglaize remained on a Level 1 snow advisory.
Chief deputy Mike Peterson said the office handled fewer than five calls for slide-offs, accidents or motorist assists - a pleasant surprise. Deputies patrolled as much as possible during the weather, and Peterson reported no issues for those working on the roads during the storm.
In St. Marys, most residents apparently heeded calls on social media to remove vehicles from the roadways ahead of the snow. City service and safety director Greg Foxhoven said the effort allowed snowplow drivers to clear the streets more thoroughly and reported no issues regarding snow removal.
"Our workforce does a fantastic job clearing our streets, and I'm sure everyone appreciates their efforts," he said."
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard
Cody Newland on Tuesday morning digs out his driveway on South Leblond Street in Celina.
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard
Charlie Stucke fills his city dump truck with salt at the City of Celina Public Works Department before a trip to treat streets on Tuesday morning.
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard
Jabier Posada uses a snowblower to clear the sidewalk along North Lake Street in Celina.
