THE GREAT SCRAPE

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Feb 8, 2008 by Tim Hrenchir

By Tim Hrenchir

THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL

Mild, frigid. Freeze, thaw. Slip, slide. Just like a seesaw, conditions in the air and on the ground have bounced back and forth in recent days.

As a result, city officials warned Thursday that despite some thawing on streets, motorists need to remain vigilant because overnight lows will refreeze precipitation that fell earlier in the week, producing treacherous driving conditions.

On Monday, temperatures reached the upper 60s. By Tuesday night, heavy snow began to fall, stopping only after 7.3 inches covered the ground.

City spokesman David Bevens asked Topekans to be patient after multiple accidents were recorded Thursday morning on streets where moisture from this week's snowstorm had melted, then refrozen. But motorists' patience apparently was wearing thin.

"We have had many complaints from citizens frustrated by the snowpacked, ice-covered streets," Mark Thiel, director of transportation operations for the city, said in a statement Thursday evening. "This snow event, the 15th of the season, has proven a challenge for us as well."

Thiel explained rain prevented crews from pretreating roadways. From 8 p.m. Tuesday through 5 p.m. Thursday, crews have worked 1,780 hours on the roads.

Bevens said city road crews were continuing to work around the clock to treat streets with salt and sand, as they have done since the snowstorm.

Traffic crashes on slick streets had prompted Topeka police at 6 a.m. Wednesday to enter accident investigation Phase III, in which officers respond only to injuries involving accidents, drunken drivers or hit-and-run drivers while asking those involved in noninjury crashes to exchange information and report the accident later at police headquarters.

Police discontinued Phase III at 9 p.m. Wednesday.

But slippery streets prompted police at 5:45 a.m. Thursday to reinstate that phase, which was kept in place until 11:03 a.m., said Sgt. Lance Feyh.

Officials said roadways appeared slickened by a factor beyond the city's control - the refreezing of moisture that had melted overnight on the streets, some of which also were snowpacked. Pedestrians also were affected as Topeka hospitals reported treating 33 people Wednesday and Thursday for injuries suffered in falls outdoors.

Police are urging motorists to exercise particular care while night-time conditions remain cold enough to refreeze water on the streets.

"Remember to be patient, allow more time than usual to get around, and be cautious of cleared roadways because ice can build up," Feyh said. "Also, don't forget to give yourself plenty of time and distance to stop, especially on side streets that might not have been cleared yet."

Bevens said 13 dump trucks and at least seven pickup trucks were being used 24 hours a day to spread salt and sand throughout the city, with crew members working 12-hour shifts.

In addition, he said, 19 dump trucks had been picking up snow in the downtown area, and city crews were continuing to plow snow.

Bevens said city officials hope to see temperatures rise soon to melt the snow and ice.

A forecast for Topeka released Thursday morning by the National Weather Service casts doubt on that possibility, predicting highs would be around 36 degrees today and around 30 on Saturday before falling to the upper 20s on Sunday.

But the weather service amended the forecast Thursday afternoon to call for highs of around 39 today and in the mid-40s on Saturday, then in the upper 20s on Sunday.

Tim Hrenchir can be reached

at (785) 295-1184

or tim.hrenchir@cjonline.com.