By Genine Hopkins
The past week has seen record breaking cold temperatures for Northern Michigan, including Clare County, including temperatures well below freezing. The only consolation is there was little wind. Accuweather’s readings by the early morning hours of Friday, January 23, were given as -27 air temp, with a “real feel” of 0 degrees. Pipes froze in homes, along with car doors and even some house locks for folks in our area. This frigid weather broke a bit for Saturday, only to come crashing down as the work week began. It does look like the first week in February will provide a “heat wave” into the teens during the day, but there are still drops below freezing for night temps and of course, any increased wind will make those seem even colder.
Temperatures are dipping due to changes in the atmospheric streams and a weakening of the conveyer belt system in the Atlantic due to warming waters, that allow the polar air to dip much lower than it historically has done. As the climate continues to change and disruptions to these vital systems continues, our weather will continue to experience swings from the now infamous polar vortex – which caused our current severely cold temperatures – to heat waves in the summer.
The New England coast down through D.C. will see a N’or Easter hit late Saturday through Sunday, with the edges of that system touching into the Eastern part of the Lower Peninsula and winds will still affect Clare County even if we manage to miss the heavy snowfall or rain other areas of the country will get.
These winter conditions began early for our area and with few breaks, has seen one of the strongest winters in Clare County in years. While the actual snowfall isn’t breaking any records, wintery conditions have worn out their welcome for many people.
Shoppers in Clare at Witbecks and at Save-a-Lot in Harrison were all expressing their frustration with the winter so far but there are many people whose homes don’t have insulation or proper heat and many families are running far too low on their propane with high use on their furnaces.
Area warming centers are staying open longer hours to provide a warm place to sit for awhile and some of those provide a warm meal as well. Thankfully there have only been a few scattered power outages but Clare County Emergency Manager Jerry Becker receives calls from organizations, township representatives, and county residents requesting help. This week he and Marion Community Fire Department helped a woman who was living in a camper in Winterfield Township, providing a path down the two-track to her camper to allow an ambulance to take her for treatment of frostbite; she had only a small heater and the camper was very poorly insulated.
Becker said many people feel they should “tough it out” and don’t call for help until its too late. He also said there are multiple agencies and organizations that call him to offer help if there is need.
“I would highly recommend that residents who are in need, those whose propane tank is low, who need wood or heaters, to call 2-1-1 for help. I’ve worked with a lot of organizations that have registered with 2-1-1 so when people call, they often don’t have to jump through the hoops of applying through DHS or if they’ve been denied, they have other ways to get help before they end up with a serious health condition,” he said, “There was an organization in Farwell that offers more than just clothing and food and I was unaware until I spoke with someone in their organization. They are not only registered with 2-1-1 now but they also went through the application process to become a designated warming center in the county.”
Punxsutawney Phil will come out to let us know if we have another six weeks of winter or not but whether you believe in the legend or not, the beginning of spring is only about 50 days away so there is relief ahead. Until then, if you are in need of assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to 2-1-1 and find out what organizations in Clare County can provide help.
