Region prepares for bitter Arctic cold, dangerous wind chills
Dec. 22—PRINCETON — Plans for warming stations and warnings to be cautious when taking holiday trips were pushed ahead Wednesday as the region prepared for a winter weather front including freezing rain, single-digit temperatures and dangerous wind chills.
The National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Va. issued a winter weather advisory and a wind chill advisory Wednesday for the region including Tazewell, Bland, Giles and Wythe Counties in Virginia as well as Mercer, Summers and Monroe Counties in West Virginia. This advisory includes mixed precipitation with up to 1 inch of snow and up to a one-tenth an inch of ice.
Dangerous wind chills as low as 30 below zero are possible, according to forecasters. Wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes. Temperatures as low as 14 degrees tonight, zero on Friday night and 3 degrees Saturday night have been predicted.
Slippery road conditions could impact morning and evening commuting, and winds gust between 30 to 50 mph could damage power lines. The winter weather advisory remains in effect from 7 p.m Wednesday to 1 p.m. today.
In Mercer County, plans have been made to create a warming station for the homeless and for other people needing refuge from the Arctic cold.
"We had an emergency meeting (Tuesday) because we wanted to address the issue of the cold coming, especially at the holidays," County Commissioner Greg Puckeet said Wednesday.
Emergency Service Director Keith Gunnoe and City Manager Mike Webb with the City of Princeton came up with a plan because of a potential homeless population in the eastern end of the city that could struggle with the cold, Puckett said.
"So with the (Princeton Rescue) Squad's help, they will be putting up a large tent that will be at the eastern end of town like you're going down to the historic district," Puckett stated. "It will be available there for about 72 hours; again, this is a short-term solution to a long-term problem."
Heaters will be in this tent and it will be staffed by the Princeton Rescue Squad. Mercer County and the City of Princeton have each provided $1,800 for the shelter's oversight, Puckett said.
The Salvation Army in Princeton has plans for offering shelter as well. Major Linda Nickerson said the tent would be the first option for finding warmth, but if necessary, the Salvation Army would house people in a local motel "for a night or two."
"If they need us, we're here," she said.
There are plans for shelter at the Bluefield Union Mission as well.
"We'll be a warming station and also there for whatever people need to get warm," said Executive Director Craig Hammond. "Some people have been donating space heaters; but boy, they go out as fast as they come in."
In Tazewell County, Va., Director of Public Safety Barry L. Brooks Jr. said he had a briefing Wednesday morning with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Va.
"We are doing quite a bit of planning right now and will be placing our designated warming stations on standby beginning Friday morning through Monday," Brooks said. The plans will depend on circumstances such as power outages.
Plans were also being made for warming stations in McDowell County. People seeking a warming station will be able to call the 911 center at 304-436-4106, said 911 Deputy Director Bobby Bowman.
"They are on standby in case we need them," Bowman said. "I really don't foresee that we will need them. We have reached out to our warming station partners this morning and they understand that the weather could get nasty and they will open if needed. We have them all throughout the county."
Christmas holiday travelers were advised to adjust their plans ahead of winter weather beginning today and continuing until Friday. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) advised against traveling today, especially through the western regions of Virginia along the Interstate 81 corridor, to avoid potentially hazardous conditions created by forecasted winter weather.
Temperatures are expected to drop rapidly through the day on Friday leading to the potential for refreeze in areas where the pavement remains wet.Periods of heavy snow are expected along the northern sections of I-81 and the mountain passes including Interstate 64 over Afton Mountain and Rt. 33 between Standardsville and Harrisonburg early Thursday.
VDOT crews were pretreating roadways and interstates Wednesday in anticipation of the weather.
With extreme low temperatures expected to move in Friday, 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.
The West Virginia 511 website provides traffic cameras showing road conditions as well as road condition by route and by county. The website is wv511.org.
— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com