Mother Nature's wrath not over yet

For most people, this seems to be the most snow Indiana has seen. For those who have been around for a while, this snow is nothing. \nDavid Hurst, director of the IU Physical Plant Campus Division, remembers bigger snowfalls in the early '90s. \n"This (snowfall) has been aggravating because it keeps coming over and over again. It's not letting up," Hurst said. "There has been no break."\nThe National Weather Service issued a snow advisory Sunday evening for 14 counties in Indiana, including Monroe County. The NWS predicted residents in these counties could wake up to between four to eight inches of snow today.\nThis will be the second week in a row that students will have to wake up and trudge through slush, ice and snow to make it to class on time. Commuting students will have to deal with the hazardous road conditions that have caused nine property damages and one hit and run since Saturday night, said IU Police Department Sgt. Don Schmuhl. \nChancellor Sharon Brehm said Sunday night the administration is "watching the weather closely to see what develops." \nAccording to the NWS, about 70 percent of vehicle accidents are due to ice and snow.\nSchmuhl advises people to stay off the roads at all possible costs. If driving is a must, try taking alternative transportation such as buses or carpooling, Schmuhl said. The fewer cars on the road, the better. \n"Leave 30 to 45 minutes earlier than usual," Schmuhl said. "Watch your speed and don't tailgate."\nIUPD Lt. Jerry Minger echoes Schmuhl's advice. Having cars out on the road during wintry conditions makes the roads all the more dangerous, Minger said. The hazardous road conditions make it harder for cars to operate. Emergency vehicles also have a more difficult time getting through, especially when the roads are hazardous and traffic is congested. The slightest inclines make driving difficult for emergency vehicles, he said.\nDrivers are not the only people that need to travel cautiously. Walkers also need to show caution on sidewalks and streets. The snow that has been plowed onto the curbs and the streets is slowly turning into ice, and people are not noticing it, Minger said. They are stepping onto the ice-covered sidewalks to discover that it's not really snow that they are walking on. \nSevere lacerations can occur when people slip on the ice-covered ground, Minger said. \nCampus Division crews have been plowing all weekend. They worked all night Saturday to keep the roads clear and safe. Sunday was a long day for the crew. They were out plowing at noon and did not stop until 7 p.m. They got a little break after that and were back on the roads plowing again at 4 a.m. \n"This has been one of the most troublesome (snowfalls) in the past 10 years," Hurst said.\nThis winter has been extremely rough on the crew at Campus Division. Crew members have been working overtime to keep the roads as safe as possible for pedestrians and drivers, Hurst said. \nWith a staff of 45, it gets difficult to keep the roads clear at all hours of the day, especially when all crew members cannot make it to work. \n"My crew has the same problems as everyone else. They get sick and get snowed in too. I've got people on my crew that live in places like Mitchell and Bedford that cannot make it out of their driveways, let alone get to Bloomington," Hurst said.\nAccording to the NWS, 2002-2003 is the 3rd snowiest "meteorological winter" so far, with accumulation at 43.7 inches. A "meteorological winter" is defined as the time frame starting December first and ending on the last day of February.