4Warn Weather – Dense fog is going to be sticking around on Thursday for most of Southeast Michigan.
The National Weather Service extended the dense fog advisory until 10 p.m. on Thursday, for all counties in Southeast Michigan.
A dense fog advisory is issued when widespread fog is expected to reduce visibilities to 1/4 mile or less over a large area for an extended period of time (2 or more hours).
Fog, particularly when dense, can be hazardous to drivers, mariners and aviators. Fog contributes to numerous travel accidents every year. Restrictions in visibility resulting from fog can also impact takeoff and landing procedures and requirements for pilots, and can be the cause of weather-related aviation delays.
If you must drive in foggy conditions, keep the following safety tips in mind:
- Slow down and allow extra time to reach your destination.
- Make your vehicle visible to others both ahead of you and behind you by using your low-beam headlights since this means your taillights will also be on. Use fog lights if you have them.
- Never use your high-beam lights. Using high beam lights causes glare, making it more difficult for you to see what’s ahead of you on the road.
- Leave plenty of distance between you and the vehicle in front of you to account for sudden stops or changes in the traffic pattern.
- To ensure you are staying in the proper lane, follow the lines on the road with your eyes.
- In extremely dense fog where visibility is near zero, the best course of action is to first turn on your hazard lights, then simply pull into a safe location such as a parking lot of a local business and stop.
- If there is no parking lot or driveway to pull into, pull your vehicle off to the side of the road as far as possible. Once you come to a stop, turn off all lights except your hazard flashing lights, set the emergency brake, and take your foot off of the brake pedal to be sure the tail lights are not illuminated so that other drivers don’t mistakenly run into you.