Winter Weather in Michigan, January 4, 1998

A strong cold front moved south across Michigan's Lower Peninsula during the early morning hours of Sunday, January 4th. Temperatures behind the cold front fell into the upper 20's and lower 30's, changing light rain to freezing rain across much of central and southern lower Michigan. One period of light freezing rain fell from after midnight to around 10:00 AM EST, resulting in light ice accumulations of around one-tenth of an inch. No serious problems were reported, other than icy spots on secondary roads and bridges/overpasses. A more significant period of freezing rain developed later in the afternoon across central lower Michigan from Montcalm and Gratiot counties north across Mecosta, Isabella, Mason, Lake, Osceola, and Clare counties. This precipitation was associated with an area of low pressure moving northeast across Iowa. Temperatures held near or slightly below freezing from 5:00 PM to 11:45 PM EST across the affected areas, resulting in additional ice accumulation from one- to three-tenths of an inch. Law enforcement officials reported a coating of ice on trees, the ground, sidewalks, and on area bridges and secondary roads. Tree limbs, which broke from the weight of the ice that had accumulated from both morning and evening events, were reported down on some area roads and blocked a few roads near Sheridan in Montcalm County. Downed tree limbs and power lines resulted in power outages. Nearly 2,500 customers lost power in the Greenville area of Montcalm County. Other sporadic power outages were reported in Edmore and Stanton. At least one serious accident was attributed to the icy road conditions. The accident occurred in Sidney Township in Montcalm County Sunday afternoon and injured both the driver and passenger. Dense fog and icy road conditions brought school closings and delayed openings to some districts in Montcalm, Gratiot, and Isabella counties on Monday, January 5th.