First Posted: 1/8/2015
LIMA — The area can expect one thing for the next 10 days. More cold weather.
Spanning from today through Jan. 17, temperatures are expected to get above the freezing mark for only a brief time Sunday, periods of light or intermediate snow with the possibility of snow causing travel problems throughout the Lima area.
A winter weather advisory was in place until 10 a.m. today with accumulations of one to two inches of snow overnight. Strong southwest to west winds had the possibility of causing drifting problems for morning commuters.
So far, the cold has caused little problems in the area other than residents trying to keep warm. Lima Utilities Deputy Director Mike Caprella said there were eight calls to the city Thursday for water line freeze ups. City workers repaired a water main break at 2:30 p.m. Thursday and another sometime late morning that same day. He said while that may sound like a high number, it is par for the course on a regular cold day.
“So far, we are looking good,” Caprella said.
Caprella said crews are remaining prepared and on call as the weather stays bitterly cold.
“There are more problems as the frost line gets deeper,” he said. “As it stays cold longer, that line gets deeper, which can result in more problems with line breaks.”
Caprella encouraged workers to keep faucets dripping if they had problems with freeze ups in the past.
“It helps to be proactive,” Caprella said.
Baton Rouge Health Services and its partners Walgreens, Community Home Health & Hospice Services, Old Barn Out Back, DeHaven Home & Garden, John P. Timmerman, and Community Trusted Senior Services are providing services to senior citizens in need of help over the cold period. Services include a rejuvenation area for seniors needing a comfortable, warm location for short-term stays soup and cinnamon rolls, checkup phone calls, prescription delivery, temporary adult day care, errand chore services, snow removal, portable heaters and heating assistance.
Aire Serv spokesman Jason Lee said residents should consider replacing furnaces instead of repairing them if they have been in operation for 15 years or more.
“Units older than this will continue to lose efficiency every season,” Lee said. “The cost to repair the unit will eventually be greater than the replacement. Also, the EPA Department of Energy recommends a new unit every 15 years.”
The Weather Channel reports that wind gusts will routinely keep wind chills 10 to 20 degrees below the temperature over most of the 10-day period. The low is expected to reach -1 degree today and hit the single digits on several other days.
