Putnam under Travel Watch

As snow continues to fall across the area, Putnam County remains under a Travel Watch that was put in place on Wednesday evening by the Putnam County Emergence Management Agency.

A watch is the second level of travel status, which means “conditions are threatening to the safety of the public. During a watch local travel advisory, only essential travel, such as to and from work or in emergency situations, is recommended, and emergency action plans should be implemented by businesses, schools, government agencies and other organizations.”

In the counties surrounding Putnam, four other counties — Montgomery, Hendricks, Morgan and Clay — are also under a watch, while Parke is under the more stringent warning, and Owen is under the less serious advisory.

Over the course of Wednesday afternoon into evening, rain turned to freezing rain, to sleet and then to snow, which continued to fall for much of the overnight period.

While snow accumulations do not appear to be adding up to some of the projections from earlier in the week, the county remains subject to a Winter Storm Warning that began Wednesday morning and is set to last through 1 a.m. Friday.

The National Weather Service continues to predict heavy snow and additional snow accumulations of 4-7 inches with winds gusting as high as 35 mph.

Primary and secondary schools across the county, including Area 30 Career Center, Cloverdale, Greencastle, North Putnam and South Putnam, are all on eLearning, while Ivy Tech-Greencastle is conducting classes virtually.

In a video recording along Interstate 70, Indiana State Police Putnamville District Public Information Officer Matt Ames advised that travel was “pretty possible” in one lane of the highway, while in the other “It’s not very good at all.”

Though he was reporting from the 18-mile marker in Vigo County, his advice would best be heeded across the district.

“If you don’t have to get out, please just stay home for the day and enjoy the nice warmth of your residence,” Ames said. “If you do have to get out, make sure that you’re traveling at reduced speed, make sure that you’re buckled up, please don’t travel too close because it makes people around you nervous. And if you see the big, yellow truck and the emergency crews out here working, please allow them enough room that they can work safely and be able to get to your destination safely. Let’s all be safe out there.”

In a Twitter post, the Indiana Department of Transportation advised that 130 yellow trucks are working across the West Central District that includes Putnam County, telling motorists not to be on the roads if they don’t have to be.

Also worthy of note is there were now power outages reported in Putnam County as of Thursday morning, likely owing in part to the relatively light ice accumulations as Wednesday’s weather transitioned from rain to snow.