Snow in NOLA

[BeaverIII]

This is an non Scouting post, however, it's SNOWING in New Orleans.

 

Wally Hymel

[Buffalo Skipper]

Rumor has it that the National Guard has been called out to retore order and to protect the public (from itself).

 

Nothing is quite as interesting as the spectacle: "Southerners on Ice."

[SR540Beaver]

Or Northerners when they get one of those 85 degree heat waves.

[Hal_Crawford]

I was living in Atlanta in 1982 when 4" of snow quickly blanketed the city in the middle of the workday. You'd have thought it was Armageddon. People fled their offices and tried to race home before the snow shut everything down. They didn't make it. I-75/85 (aka the downtown connector) came to a standstill, drivers abandoned their cars and walked to downtown hotels leaving an interstate highway as a parking lot. Schools were closed for the rest of the week. It was reported that the City of Atlanta only owned one snow plow. Residents seemed baffled as to how to put chains on their tires; some putting chains on the rear wheels of front-wheel drive cars.

 

The storm followed a week of temperatures in the single digits. Water pipes were bursting all over the city in houses that were not designed for that kind of cold. I was fortunate enough to already be home dealing with a burst pipe when the powder hit the pavement.

 

How does a city like Atlanta react to a 4" "blizzard"? They name it: "Snow Jam 82".

[BeaverIII]

Buffalo Skipper,

 

It's not bad enough to warrant the Guard but your "Southerners on ice " is true in oh so many ways. Its fun to watch folks who don't drive well in dry conditions navigate through snow.

 

The forecast is for 75 degrees by Monday. The deep south weather roller coaster.

 

Wally

[Buffalo Skipper]

I spent several winters in Germany working Base Ops in the Air Force. One of my job was to determine the runway conditions and to "scientifically" measure the slickness of the surface when there was snow and ice present. This was done by driving down the runway in a full size 1982 Dodge van, build up speed to 30 miles per hour, intentionally lock the brakes, then while skidding down the runway, take my eyes off the "road" and read the decelerometer between the front seats, to determine how "quickly" I was slowing down. This had to be done every 500-1000' on a runway which was 10,000' long. The worst condition I every experienced was an IR 5 (Ice on Runway, deceleration at 5' per second). In these conditions, helicoptors were not allowed to operate! My girlfriend at the time worked in the tower, and the would regularly take bets as to whether I would flip the van.

 

I don't really mind the ice, but I stay off it because I cannot trust those around me.

[Eagle92]

Wally,

I wish I was back home in Metairie now. How's the troop and Tchoupitoulous District doing?

Eagle92(This message has been edited by eagle92)

[baschram645]

I just took 2.5 feet of snow off my roof last night.

[moxieman]

I got lucky. We only got 1/4 inch of ice overnight here in Augusta, Maine. I can't say the same for folks on the Maine Coast, southern New Hampshire or central Massachusetts. States of Emergency have been declared in NH & MA. Among the three states, over 800,000 are without power and the footage I've seen on the net makes it similar to the '98 Ice Storm. Some of these people will be without power for a week.

 

Keep your fellow scouters and scouts in the affected area in your prayers.