Snowflakes made of lights now decorate the streets of downtown South Bend. But are you ready for the real stuff? Mike Paholski said, "No!" He said he'd prefer the weather stay just how it is now. "I don't like shoveling it," said Paholski. But others to admit there are some good things about winter storms. ""you get to play in the snow a lot," said Jessica Herczeg.
Ready or not a storm that's already dumped snow across the west is headed our way. So INDOT is preparing. Wednesday INDOT Spokesperson Matt Deitchley said, "today we've done a lot of prep work just in terms of making sure our vehicles are ready to go." They made sure they had gas, oil, and everything they needed. This storm will provide some extra challenges for INDOT since it's supposed to start as rain then later change to snow. That means if they salt the roads too early it'll just wash away. "We'll wait til rain is just getting to change to snow and we'll put a little salt down," said Deitchley.
It'll pose some challenges for drivers too. Lt. Tim Williams with the Mishawaka Police Department says they'll see a lot of calls during that first snowstorm. So his advice? Well the main thing is slow down. "The speed limits are meant for ideal conditions, we're not going to have ideal conditions," said Williams.
You should also have supplies in your car in case you get stuck. Williams recommends a flashlight, blankets, jumper cables, food to snack on, a first aid kid, and a fully charged cell phone. Don't count on being able to charge your phone in the car.
Some more tips for safe driving during the storm, leave in plenty of time to get where you're going, make sure your windows are clean and your headlights, also clean off the top of your car so any snow doesn't slide off onto your windows while driving. Make sure your tires are properly inflated and have good traction. If you do start to fishtail or slide, don't slam on your breaks.
