Region braces for Arctic temperatures Friday as Christmas Eve approaches

Dec. 23—PRINCETON — Preparations for today's forecasted Arctic temperatures continued Thursday as a state of emergency was declared in West Virginia while officials in both West Virginia and Virginia readied warming locations and road crews got their snowplows and salt spreaders on standby.

The National Weather Service predicts heavy snow, freezing rains, dangerous wind chills, and strong winds today and continuing throughout the week and into the coming holiday weekend.

Gov. Jim Justice issued a State of Emergency proclamation Thursday as well as an updated proclamation declaring today as a full-day state holiday for public employees. Public employees involved in emergency response will continue to be on-duty, as required by their supervisors.

"All West Virginians need to absolutely be ready for the potential impact this winter storm may bring to our state," Justice said. "West Virginians should pay extra close attention to emergency officials and media outlets, and be prepared if there are power outages. West Virginians take care of one another, so on this holiday weekend, make sure you check on your neighbors and loved ones."

Forecasts including high wind gusts changed plans for warming stations against the bitter cold forecasted for today with temperatures reaching a high of 8 degrees and a low of 4 degrees below zero. A wind chill warning issued Thursday by the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Va. told the public to beware of wind chills as low as 30 degrees below zero. A high of 14 degrees was in the forecast for Saturday with a low of 6 degrees.

Mercer County Emergency Management Director Keith Gunnoe said a warming station planned on Mercer Street in Princeton was being moved for safety reasons. The plan was to have a heated tent, but the predicted wind gusts raised safety concerns.

The warming location has been moved to the Princeton Rescue Squad at 701 Stafford Drive, and will be set up in the main squad building's bay area, Gunnoe said.

This is a warming station only that will allow people to come in to get warm. Light snacks and water will be provided.

The Princeton Rescue Squad Warming Station times of operation will be as follows: 8 p.m. Friday to 8 a.m. Saturday; 8 p.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Sunday; and 8 p.m. Sunday to 8 a.m. Monday. Gunnoe said he had spoken with the Salvation Army in Princeton about providing shelter at a local motel if needed. Information will be provided at the Princeton Rescue Squad warming station for the Salvation Army or by calling the Mercer County 911 center's non-emergency number at 304-425-8911.{/div}"Information will be made available if they show up at the warming station," he said.

The Bluefield Union Mission will also serve as a warming station if needed, Gunnoe said.

Tazewell County Emergency Services will have a series of warming stations which will be activated Friday morning. People in Tazewell, Va. who need assistance can call Tazewell 911 at its non-emergency number, 276-988-0645. Warming stations will be in the following locations:

—Bandy Volunteer Fire Department at 3286 Bandy Road, Bandy, Va. 276-598-4706 or 276-596-9033.

—Clearfork Volunteer Fire Department at 7146 Clearfork Road, Bastian, Va. 276-970-5271 or 276-988-3473.

—Thompson Valley Volunteer Fire Department at 8905 Thompson Valley, Tazewell, Va. 276-988-4435.

—Burke's Garden Volunteer Fire Department at 6164 Burke's Garden, Tazewell, Va. 276-472-2691.

—Tazewell County Volunteer Fire Department at the Fuller Perry Building, Fairgrounds Road, Tazewell, Va. 276-264-0984.

—Richlands Police Department, 1851 Crandell Drive, Richlands, Va. 276-964-9134.

—Jewell Ridge Volunteer Fire Department. 805 Jewell Main Road, Jewell Ridge, Va. 276-881-8304 or 276-596-0362.

In McDowell County, plans were made for warming stations. People seeking a warming station will be able to call the 911 center at 304-436-4106, said 911 Deputy Director Bobby Bowman. The county's warming station partners were notified Wednesday morning and will be open if needed.

Highway crews in both West Virginia and Virginia were preparing to treat highways to help keep motorists safe during the Christmas weekend.

Crews in the West Virginia Department of Transportation's Division of Highways (WVDOH) are ready to treat the roads and help keep motorists safe during the holiday weekend.

"We remained prepared for a winter storm," Jimmy Wriston, Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Transportation said. "We conduct dry runs in October. We are fully stocked on salt and abrasives. Our trucks have been prepped for months and we are as ready as we can be for this upcoming storm."

There are approximately 1,080 SRIC trucks mounted with snow-fighting equipment around the state belonging to the WVDOH. Over the past two winter seasons, WVDOH crews have used an average of 250,000 tons of salt and 1.3 million gallons of de-icing liquid (salt brine) to clear the roads.

All roads maintained by the WVDOH fit into one of four priorities. The Interstate, Expressway, National Highway System, and all other United States and West Virginia routes are Priority 1 routes in a Snow Removal and Ice Control strategy.

Some Priority 1 routes also include high-traffic county routes. Priority 2 routes are all other school bus routes that are not considered Priority 1. Priority 3 routes are the remaining routes, not including park and forest routes. Priority 4 routes are park and forest routes.

For the latest updates and information on travel conditions throughout West Virginia, visit wv.511.org.

In Virginia, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) highway crews were pretreating roadways and interstates to prepare them for the inclement weather.

With extreme low temperatures expected to move in today, motorists, if traveling, should pack an emergency kit and blankets, and have mobile devices fully charged in the event of a breakdown or emergency, VDOT officials said.

VDOT's free mobile 511 app offers information about construction, traffic, incidents and congestion as well as access to traffic cameras, weather and more. Traffic information is also available at 511Virginia.org or by calling 511 from any phone.

— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com

Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com