Snow emergency: Storm wreaks havoc on roadways

Feb. 4—Winter storm Landon dumped less than half the snow predicted on Boone County this week, but it was enough for commissioners to call a state of emergency Thursday.

The National Weather Service predicted sleet and ice followed by 6-20 inches of snow beginning Wednesday and ending Friday.

Zionsville received 4.7 inches and Lebanon 3.7 inches, while Frankfort had 11.5 inches, according to the NWS. But high winds caused those snow accumulations to drift.

Boone County emergency responders were called to more than 150 slide-offs and crashes from Wednesday through Friday morning, while many incidents went unreported but were remedied by the driver and others who wanted to help.

The county's wrecker services, police departments and even fire departments pulled vehicles out of ditches and medians. A farmer in a tractor helped free a semitrailer stranded in snow on Ind. 32 at County Road 500 East. Passersby pushed and pulled vehicles from the snow all over the county, and motorists also kept private tow companies busy or just abandoned their vehicles along the roadside and sought shelter, according to Boone County Dispatch.

The bulk of the calls came from U.S. 52 in the Thorntown area, Ind. 32 and Ind. 47 from Thorntown to Zionsville, and Interstate 65 from Whitestown to the Clinton County line. No serious injuries were reported because of crashes or slide-offs throughout the storm.

The northern half of the county, from C.R. 300 North to Clinton County, received an estimated 10 inches of snow, Boone County Emergency Management Director Mike Martin estimated. One man in Thorntown measured 13 inches on a table in his yard. But the NWS did not release Thorntown- or Sheridan-specific numbers, and drifting makes it more difficult to measure, Martin said.

East/west roads were particularly impassible due to ice, deep snow, and drifting snow. Emergency responders depended on snowplows to lead them and wreckers into and away from stranded vehicles, but the roads filled back in with snow within minutes of being plowed, and blowing snow caused intermittent white-outs Thursday afternoon, Martin said.

To compound difficulties, two Indiana Department of Transportation plow trucks slid off the highway and onto their sides Thursday, closing Ind. 32 and Ind. 47 for a time and sending the trucks to the shop for repairs, Boone County Sheriff's Deputy Wesley Garst said.

The state snowplow drivers fell victim to the same calamity as other motorists. They couldn't discern where the edge of the road was, got too close, "and it sucks them down in there," Garst said Thursday afternoon.

"The main problem is the snow is deep on the roads and deeper in the ditches," Garst said. "The challenge for anyone right now is to know where the edge of the road is. And people are driving too fast for the conditions. You can see a patch with no snow, but there's a sheet of ice there."

Semitrailer drivers were left stranded along highways, I-64 on- and off-ramps and in the rest parks along the interstate north of Thorntown on Wednesday. The rest parks became overcrowded, including the lanes leading into and out of them. Truck drivers argued among themselves about getting a place to park at a Whitestown truck stop and the rest parks. They called police to help them navigate ramps without jackknifing. And several did jackknife, causing lane closures.

Police had to intervene when a pickup driver refused to back up so a semi driver could stop blocking a rest park entrance to other motorists. And they were called numerous times Wednesday and Thursday to Lebanon's Flying J Travel Center to settle disputes among truck drivers looking for a place to stop without blocking all the others into the parking lot.

So numerous were the crashes Thursday afternoon that Boone County Commissioners called a 24-hour state of emergency to begin at 5 p.m. County highway crews were able to clear roads and end the order at 2 p.m. Friday. A state of emergency prohibits all unnecessary travel and permits police to ticket those out making unnecessary trips. No one was reported ticketed for that reason by Friday morning, although motorists in Lebanon and Zionsville were reported doing donuts in public spaces Thursday night.

The state of emergency also allowed Boone County Highway Department drivers to clear roads for residents to get home from work Thursday and wait until winds died down to resume plowing in earnest Friday morning.

Boone County Commissioners last called a snow emergency in the wake of a storm in February 2021, Martin said. Clinton County also called a snow emergency Thursday.

No major power outages were reported in Boone County by Friday morning, although some Jamestown residents were left without power for a period when power lines fell onto a street.

The NWS reports temperatures will remain below freezing until next Wednesday sees a high of 35 degrees.

Garst posts live Facebook updates from Boone County roads during inclement conditions and emergencies. To be notified of upcoming live feeds, follow the sheriff's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/BCSOIN/videos/670417707311988.