Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 31, 1995 TAG: 9501310160
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAN CASEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Unlike the treacherous ice that glazed the valley last winter, ``this is great. You can play in it,'' the 10-year-old said.
Over at Orange Avenue and 10th Street Northwest, Richard M. Daniel surveyed the crunched front end of his late-model Oldsmobile and disagreed. The damage was the result of an unfortunately close encounter in the snow with a tractor-trailer.
On Ogden Road in Southwest Roanoke County, tow-truck operator Buck Rutherford - who looked like he could use about 20 hours of shut-eye - pulled Kevin Rhodes' Chevrolet Cavalier out of a steep roadside ditch.
And nearby on Colonial Avenue at Poplar Drive, film-developing company driver Barry Belcher shook his head in dismay at his employer's overturned Ford Escort. Ice and an inconvenient embankment conspired to make him feel like a Hollywood stuntman, he explained.
``The airbag worked real well,'' he added.
If snowstorms were named after Top 40 hits, this one could have been dubbed ``Slip Slidin' Away.''
Old Man Winter got an unexpected second wind Sunday night and most of Monday, dumping another 5 inches of snow on the Roanoke Valley, and more down toward Blacksburg.
The total count for the three-day storm: 8 inches on the ground in Roanoke, and 9 inches in the New River Valley.
The result: Plowers and tow-truck operators like Rutherford lost some sleep but cashed in; area police reported that more than 100 motorists skidded off roadways or into each other; and school-weary youngsters frolicked on area hillsides as their creaky-boned elders gazed on enviously.
Bread, predictably, was in short supply at area supermarkets. Malls opened late and closed early, as did many offices.
``I love snow,'' said Amanda Cyphers, 9, who was one of a dozen sledders at Grandin Court. ``Even though it takes away from summer vacation, I like the break.''
Some of her cohorts, however, prefer last winter's treacherous ice.
``Last year it was much better,'' offered 10-year-old Brynna Yentz. ``It was slicker, the sledding was faster.''
But hey, wasn't the snow supposed to end Sunday?
That's what the forecasters had said, at least through Sunday morning. Instead, Monday proved once and for all that, unlike the completely unsuspenseful Super Bowl, there are no sure bets when it comes to the weather.
In weather-speak, what happened has to do with low pressure that didn't turn high and winds that didn't blow as forecasters had expected.
``The low pressure center that caused this moved a little slower than we anticipated. The winds didn't shift to the northwest as quick as we thought they would,'' said Harry McIntosh, a National Weather Service meteorologist based at Roanoke Regional Airport.
In other words, the front that moved out of the Mississippi Valley into Virginia on Saturday stalled and stuck around for a while longer. Moist air from the south breathed new life into it by late Sunday; the result was more snow.
Today should bring another tough day getting to work, as overnight temperatures were expected to drop below freezing once again. Getting home tonight, however, should be a piece of cake.
McIntosh is expecting partly sunny skies and temperatures in the 40s, warm enough to start some serious melting by the afternoon. There's no more snow on the horizon for this week, he said.
Anybody want to bet on that?
by CNB