Snow

Though spring might be just around the corner, Old Man Winter isn't letting go of Michiana just yet. According to meteorologists at WSBT, a storm will bring snow throughout today and into Wednesday morning, with the heaviest snow falling this afternoon and evening. The predicted snowfall for South Bend and areas south and west of the city is 4 to 7 inches. Because the system is tracking southwest, counties that don't often see high snowfalls from lake-effect snow will see high snowfalls from this storm.

Rick Mecklenburg talks April weather.

SOUTH BEND --   This last bit of snow pushed totals over 100 inches and has caused a spike in traffic to local car repair shops.  South Bend police were called to more than 50 fender benders just from this last storm alone. At Karl Weis Auto Body in South Bend, on Monday and Tuesday, cars just kept on rolling in. As of Tuesday afternoon five vehicles sat in front of the body shop from accidents that happend over the past two days, with many more sitting in the back.

A winter storm moving into our area will bring snowfall late tonight. A Winter Storm Warning has gone into effect for the entire area, with the exception of St. Joseph County in Michigan, from Tuesday morning until early Wednesday.   The heaviest snow will fall Tuesday afternoon and evening.   This is system snow, so it will be a heavy, wet snow.   On average, 4 to 8 inches of snow is expected in South Bend and areas south and west of the city.

Snow showers have been falling across the area causing slick roads and a return to winter!   Overnight, accumulations ranged from just a dusting to 2 1/2 inches.  This light snow covered up icy patches that formed from this week's rain then freezing overnight.  Wind has also been a huge factor.  While those snow totals aren't enormous, there are still travel issues.  Since most of the snow is light and airy, it is easily blown around creating visibility problems covering up areas that were once cleared.

STURGIS — Sturgis police say a man suspected of stealing several snow blowers in the Kendallville area was arrested Monday. Police tracked down a pickup truck on North Centerville Road near International Way matching several descriptions from the thefts. When police stopped the vehicle, officers found two snow blowers in a trailer attached to the truck. After an investigation, officers found the driver was suspended and the cargo was stolen. The trailer and plate were stolen from the Angola area and it is still unknown where the snow blowers were taken from.

Crews have been working non-stop to clear roads, but many are having a tough time keeping up with Mother Nature. LaPorte and Starke Counties have seen the most snow from this storm. LaPorte is still under a “state of emergency” as cars stuck in 4-foot snow drifts along U.S. 30 wait for their owners to come dig them out. With the snow falling at 2 to 3 inches an hour, it's difficult for road crews to keep up. And along U.S. 30 in LaPorte and Starke counties Monday, the white-out conditions meant a lot of slide-offs.

MISHAWAKA - Crews will work around the clock Thursday night into Friday morning to stay on top of this storm and they did not wait for the snow to fall. Some crews have been out all morning treating the roads. While crews were using the tools to keep the roads safe, people were out stocking up to avoid getting out into this blast of winter. As forecasters predicted another snowy blast, Steve Taft, Kroger's Store Manager had a forecast of his own: crowds with a chance of chaos.

PLYMOUTH - Some parts of northern Indiana picked up nearly a foot of snow Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. North Webster recorded the highest amount in our area at 11.9 inches. Plymouth had 11.3 inches and Goshen and South Bend had nearly 8 inches of snow. It made for dangerous driving conditions, forcing many area schools to run on a two-hour delay or cancel classes altogether. A big snow like that, especially in March, isn't something people who live in and around Marshall, Kosciusko, Starke, Pulaski and Fulton counties are used to seeing, but kids who got a day out of the classroom and on the sledding hill in Plymouth's Centennial Park didn't complain a bit.  Neither did their teachers who made it out into the elements.

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY — If you didn't have to get out today; good for you! Drivers from the north to the south battled heavy snow this morning and it hasn't stopped since. The drive anywhere Thursday was a messy one. And it only got worse. “I actually came from McKinley by First Source which the main roads aren’t too bad but once you get into the neighborhood roads and stuff like that, it gets a little rough,” Ty Thomsen from Mishawaka said. But it wasn’t long until even the busiest roads were covered.

Some of us had more snow to deal with on Monday, especially those living in our southern counties. Many communities woke up to 3 or 4 inches of snow, some even more. Marshall county was one area that saw quite a bit of snow from this system, especially compared to other areas in Michiana.  Jerry Lamb, the general foreman at the Marshall County Highway Department says the snow Monday morning was a nuisance, but his crew was able to keep roads clear. Ironically, the weather was on their side.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Early warning helped officials across Indianapolis and the state plan ahead of Sunday's storm. Central Indiana could get more than 9 inches of snow. 1-3 inches are expected for extreme northern Indiana, 2-4 inches for the southern counties in the WSBT viewing area with quite a bit more as you head further south. Stephanie Sample with the Indy Department of Public Works said a heads up on the forecast provided a head start on preparing roadways and clearing efforts.

Part of the U.S. Bypass on the southside of South Bend had to be closed this morning. An accident near Ironwood forced both directions to be shut down for about an hour. We're told no one was hurt. At this point we don't know if this accident was weather related... But we did hear several reports that the Bypass was very slick because of the snow.

People in Elkhart are finding out that not clearing their sidewalk of snow is more than just a hassle for pedestrians - It's a decision that can come at a price. The City of Elkhart started enforcing its snow-shoveling ordinance Friday and issued 400 tickets in one day. The ordinance requires that property owners shovel their sidewalks 24 hours after it snows two inches or more. The mayor says even though that seems like a lot of tickets, there are a lot of owners that did follow the rule.

Many roads in our area were still slippery long after the snow stopped falling Wednesday, according to many drivers. We saw plow trucks from the state, county and cities working to clear streets, but some main roads were still covered more than 12 hours after the storm. The Mishawaka Street Department says it plows as much snow as possible from main roads before moving on to smaller ones. But it's not as simple as going down a street once. The city has several hundred lane miles to clear.

At the end of last year the city of Elkhart gained ownership of the old Elkhart Armory. It's a vacant 106-year-old deteriorating building. The city was looking to see if someone wanted to rehab it. But after this week's snow the building started to cave in. In the video above, WSBT's Ed Ernstes takes a look at how that could affect its future.

Official snowfall totals from our latest winter storm have hit nearly a foot in places. North Webster recorded the highest amount in our area at 11.9 inches. Plymouth had 11.3 inches and South Bend nearly 8 inches. The winter storm either delayed or closed more than 100 schools across northern Indiana and southwest Michigan. A lot of us are digging out today. THE FOLLOWING IS A BRIEF HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE RECENT SNOWFALL AT SOUTH BEND AT SOUTH BEND...7.7 INCHES FELL ON MARCH 5TH AND 0.1 INCHES WAS RECORDED ON THE 6TH FOR A TWO DAY TOTAL OF 7.8 INCHES.

PLYMOUTH - Some parts of northern Indiana picked up nearly a foot of snow Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. North Webster recorded the highest amount in our area at 11.9 inches. Plymouth had 11.3 inches and Goshen and South Bend had nearly 8 inches of snow. It made for dangerous driving conditions, forcing many area schools to run on a two-hour delay or cancel classes altogether. A big snow like that, especially in March, isn't something people who live in and around Marshall, Kosciusko, Starke, Pulaski and Fulton counties are used to seeing, but kids who got a day out of the classroom and on the sledding hill in Plymouth's Centennial Park didn't complain a bit.  Neither did their teachers who made it out into the elements.

A crash on the U.S. 20 bypass slowed traffic in the snow late Tuesday afternoon. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. WSBT's Kelli Stopczynski reports from South Bend's south side.

Though spring might be just around the corner, Old Man Winter isn't letting go of Michiana just yet. According to meteorologists at WSBT, a storm will bring snow throughout today and into Wednesday morning, with the heaviest snow falling this afternoon and evening. The predicted snowfall for South Bend and areas south and west of the city is 4 to 7 inches. Because the system is tracking southwest, counties that don't often see high snowfalls from lake-effect snow will see high snowfalls from this storm.