MUSKEGON, Mich. — It never fails: every year West Michigan gets socked by at least one heavy blanket of snow. In 2021, that blanket came on Feb. 5.
Despite Michiganders' experience with past winters, every big snow seems to come with a flurry of car crashes and slide-offs. It's a tradition that keeps police and plows busy.
“Started at about 4 o’clock this morning, and we’ve been going ever since," said Drew Nichols, superintendent of the Muskegon County Road Commission. “It is February, so here we are.”
The falling temperatures on Friday mean that salt won't melt the packed snow and ice off the road, leaving road commissions without a key tool to make the pavement safe to drive on.
“We got sun Friday. Maybe by then it’ll start peeling,” said Nichols. “We’re going to be going for a few days, I think.”
And while snow and ice is on the road, state police say it is so important to take things slow.
“It’s really hit or miss. You never know what’s going to happen. You could be going along, and all of a sudden, someone makes a strange move,” said Lieutenant Michelle Robinson. “A lot of times we’ll get people who say, 'You know I was going below the speed limit'…but if you’re losing control of your vehicle, you’re still driving too fast for conditions.”
If you do end up in an accident, state police say the safest spot to be is likely inside your car.
