Winter Weather Advisory Issued for Hardin and Surrounding Counties

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory from 7 a.m. Saturday to 9 a.m. Sunday for several counties in our region, including Hardin, Auglaize, Shelby, Logan, and Union.

Snow is expected throughout the advisory period, with 1 to 4 inches of accumulation possible and wind gusts up to 35 mph. Roads — especially bridges and overpasses — may become slick and hazardous.

While snowfall amounts are not expected to be heavy, forecasters say 1 to 3 inches could fall between Saturday night and Sunday morning, which could prompt a Level 1 Snow Emergency in Hardin County.

Hardin County Sheriff Keith Everhart explains the different levels starting with 1 and 2,  “Level 1, generally what we do is when we start getting people sliding off into the ditches, roads start getting slick, obviously the definition of Level 1 is the roads are snow covered and slippery, I will call a Level 1. In my mind that is just alerting people to ‘hey roads are getting bad, take some extra time.’ Level 2 is when it’s starting to get pretty serious and if you don’t have to go to work, you don’t have to go out, you shouldn’t. Again, not shutting down the county, not shutting down workplaces. I believe in everyone having the ability and option to make those decisions for themselves, but Level 2 is if you don’t need to be out, don’t be out. “ 

Though rare, Sheriff Everhart could issue a Level 3, which means, “Level 3 the roads are shut down to public traffic, you need to stay in. You can be cited if you are out without a valid reason. I’m not saying you will be, but I can certainly tell you that I’m not going to put my deputies’ lives in danger just because you wanted to go see what the roads are like, okay, I mean Level 3 is very serious. That is why I use it sparingly, so people in Hardin County should know if we go to a Level 3, it’s bad.

Again, nothing big this weekend, but be aware that several inches of snow could be on the ground for Sunday morning travel.