Michiganders prepare for major snow fall
Residents stock up on salt, scrapers as southeast Michigan braces during storm
The storm systems that brought snow to the Midwest and tornadoes to the South moved eastward Wednesday as promised.
Rock salt and scrapers are flying off store shelves as southeastern Michigan residents brace for the first major snowstorm of the season.
List: Metro Detroit cities under snow emergencies
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Snow was falling across southeastern Michigan at Wednesday, with winds gusting to 30 mph and temperatures just below freezing.
The National Weather Service says a winter storm is expected to dump four to seven inches of snow on the region through Thursday morning.
Read: How to safely remove snow from roof
The heaviest accumulations are likely along Lake St. Clair.
At an Aco Hardware store in Southfield, assistant manager Chris Mokrzycki says the usual day-after-Christmas gift-exchange rush has been replaced by people stocking up for the storm.
The Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula got up to 20 inches of snow in a storm that hit last Thursday.
In Wayne County, people are enjoying the snow
Not even gusty snow could stop Kevin Gearin from his daily jog – in shorts.
“Snow is better than rain,” he said.
Slippery roads are slowing drivers down but other are looking forward to bringing out winter toys.
“We love it here in Michigan like this. Get the toboggans out and fire up the snow blowers that you paid for,” said Derek Johnson.
Deputy CEO of Wayne County Department of Public Services, Cindy Dingell, says the county is working hard to make the commute easier.
Watch: Snow causes slippery commute through Wayne County
"We've been really busy. Mother Nature always deals these to cards to us and we do the best we can to grapple with it,” she said.
Crews are gassed up and rolling out by the hour.
"We're telling people don't come out unless you have to. Just stay at home,” Dingell said.
Slick roads across Oakland County
The Oakland County Road Commission tells Local 4 the snow is coming down uniformly across the county. The OCRC has it's full fleet on the road, more than 100 trucks, and will continue through evening rush hour. Top speeds on major arteries like Big Beaver Road are about 30 miles an hour with 45 mph on the freeways. Extremely slippery, drive with caution.
Watch: Oakland County roads under snow
Sterling Heights resident John Larocca said he doesn't mind the scrapping and salting.
"We had a mild winter last year. So, we're ready for some snow," he said.
Macomb County says it'll call in extra crews
Macomb County Road Commission crews worked all morning before the snow trying to get ahead of the storm focusing on the area's biggest trouble spots.
Watch: Macomb County stores busy despite snowy weather
Once the snow started piling up it became slow going just about everywhere.
The Macomb County Road commission getting ready to call in extra crews to work overnight or until the snow stops falling. For now, they'll just continue to try to keep the roads clear and make sure they have enough salt on hand to get through the night. They're estimating they'll use 6,000 tons before this storm is over.
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