Winter storms make travel difficult
Eric Story
Story # 7
With BSU students preparing to head home for fall break, winter left its snowy footprint, dumping 6-10 inches of powdery white snow on Monday alone. Wednesday brought the second storm of the week, along with high winds making a mess of student travel plans for fall break.
As students, faculty and the rest of Bemidji arose Monday morning, they were greeted to a winter-wonderland. Snow began falling early Monday morning, and continued throughout the rest of the day. Big white flakes fell to the ground collecting on everything in sight. Cars became buried under the fluffy new powder, and the roads became a mess.
 |
| Car lined along Birch Lane Photo by: Eric Story |
A couple students stopped to help push a minivan up Birchmont Drive in front of the A. C. Clark Library, after the van had stopped and wasn’t able to get going again.
With the second storm set to hit Wednesday students were left scrambling to change their travel plans, with the uncertainty that lay ahead. One student decided it was better to stay, cancelling his plans to fly home to Kansas. “I just decided it would be easier not to go” said, BSU student Buddy Rice. “I’ll be home for winter break in a couple more weeks.”
With the possibility of snow, freezing rain and drifting snow, many students decided it was better to leave Tuesday even if it meant missing a class or two. “I was suppose to leave on Wednesday, but ened up skipping my last class of the day on Tuesday so I could get home before the weather got bad,” said BSU student Courntey Barvels. “I don’t think my professor even went himself.”
“I was defiantly paying close attention to the weather,” said BSU senior Mac Friedrichs. “I was heading home first, then to visit my fiancé in Wisconsin. I decided it was best to leave after class on Tuesday instead of facing worse conditions, It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
 |
View from Lower Union Photo by: Eric Story |
The National Weather Service had issued a winter storm warning for the Bemidji area for noon on Wednesday, continuing through 6 p.m. Thanksgiving Day.
The Bemidji area received another 3-6 inches of snow Wednesday afternoon making travel slow for anyone who waited. Travelers headed south out of Bemidji Wednesday were greeted to heavy snow, slowing travel on State Highway 64 to 30 mph. “It was terrible,” said BSU senior John Sivertson. “You couldn’t see the road let alone the lines, all you could see was white.”
“I wish I would have left Tuesday,” said BSU student Mike Bownes. “You could barely make out were the road was, and someone actually tried to pass me. I couldn’t believe the lack of common sense.”
The further south you went the better the road conditions were, as southern Minnesota received significantly less snow. That coupled with warmer temperatures lead wet roads. “Once I finally made it to Motley, it was pretty easy going,” chuckled Sivertson. “The first two hours was nothing short of exhausting, and my whole body was so tense. It felt like I could finally breath again.”
“At least when I got to Motley, there was one lane completely clear to drive in,” said Bownes who was on his way back to Plymouth. “The roads were just wet once I reached St. Cloud.”
BSU sophomore Bryan Syrstad didn’t have any weather related problems over break, it was the other occasional problem he ran into when traveling. “My car broke down on Friday when I was on my way to the twin cities to visit my girlfriend. That wasn’t fun.”
As the temperature plummeted fell over Wednesday night and Thursday, leading to icy roads. Three different single car accidents were reported in northwestern Minnesota over Wednesday night and Thursday morning, adding another element for travlers to caution.
At 7:37 p.m. Wednesday, a motorist was attempting to pass another westbound vehicle on state Highway 11 in Roseau County when he lost control rolling his vehicle before coming to a rest on the roof. The driver and two passengers suffered non-life threatening injuries. Two other drivers were involved in separate accidents caused by icy roads on U.S. Highway 2 escaped without injury.
As most students made it back for class on Monday, the ones who decided to take an extra day and travel back on Monday were greeted to yet another winter storm. Another 2-4 inches of heavy wet snow fell Monday. “I missed it the first time around, I guess that’s what I get for missing class on Monday,” joked Friedrichs. “ It wasn’t a fun drive though, the roads were a mess.”
With temperatures hovering around 32 degrees it made perfect snowball or snowman weather. “It was fun to get out and throw some snowballs,” stated Sivertson. “It is officially winter whether you like it or not, so get used to it!”
Word count: 800
No comments:
Post a Comment