Don’t look now, but next Saturday could be a repeat

A semi accident along the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 near the 38-milemarker in western Putnam County tied up traffic for a time Saturday druing the first real winter storm of the season.

Courtesy photo

It appears as though the first snowstorm of winter last weekend might have established an unwelcome winter pattern.

After enduring a winter storm warning and receiving the biggest snowfall of the season on Saturday, central Indiana appears poised to go through the same routine again this coming weekend.

While last weekend’s winter storm produced four to six inches of snow across Putnam County -- with four inches prevailing across most of Greencastle -- this weekend’s projected numbers are still to be determined, although heavy snow and strong winds are possible, according to most weather forecasters in Indianapolis.

Map of central Indiana show Saturday snowfall totals with most of Putnam County in the five-inch area.

Long-range forecasts point to a pattern that supports another winter storm around the Ohio Valley/Great Lakes followed by temperatures plummeting into the single digits Saturday night into Sunday. Regardless of snow totals, the coldest air of the season is expected for Sunday into Monday, including sub-zero temperatures, windchills as frigid as -20 with highs only in the low teens.

Meanwhile, before that occurs a quick-hitting system could produce a mix of snow and freezing rain on Thursday.

But that’s all ahead of us. Over the weekend, snow developed across portions of central Indiana ahead of an approaching area of low pressure. This winter system led to the first January winter storm warning since 2014. Snowfall totals ranged from four inches to as high as nine inches in Owen County. The 6.9 inches of snow at Indianapolis tied the snowfall record for the day.

In Marion County, the Castleton area saw 7.8 inches of snow, while eight inches fell at Delphi in Tippecanoe County. Terre Haute recorded 5.2 inches, while Monrovia in Morgan County got five inches of white stuff.

No serious accidents were reported in the Putnamville District of the Indiana State Police. Troopers did, however, responded to 41 calls for service, 20 slide-offs and eight property-damage accidents. No personal-injury accidents were reported.

Putnam County Sheriff’s Department deputies worked at least two slide-offs, the first on U.S. 231 at the top of Waterworks Hill, and the second at U.S. 40 at Manhattan Road.

One of Sheriff’s Department’s vehicles was struck Saturday while attending to that crash near Manhattan. A driver going too fast for the road conditions lost control, striking the rear end of a fully marked sheriff’s vehicle with all of its lights flashing.

Fortunately Deputy Matt Biggs was not hurt and the damage was minimal.

The driver, however, received two citations for speed too fast for road conditions and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle displaying flashing red and blue lights.