Spring arrives with white-outs

IRONWOOD — The snow total at noon on Tuesday in Ironwood from the most recent blanketing stood at about a foot, a day before spring officially arrived.

The 24-hour snow total to 7 a.m. Tuesday in Ironwood was 8.5 inches, but it snowed heavily after that through about 1 p.m., in the inch-an-hour range.

The season’s snow total was an even 150 inches up to 7 a.m. Tuesday.

It was fluffy, light, lake-effect snow and the sun occasionally peeked from the clouds. Around 1 p.m., the snow lifted and the sky turned blue.

Area ski hills didn’t need the additional snow, with bases of from two to six feet, but the added powder was a godsend to skiers.

A year ago Tuesday, the high in Ironwood was 78 degrees, setting a 100-year record, and a 78-degree high was also recorded the following day.

While the week of weather that featured temperatures in the 70s and 80s was exceptional a year ago, it didn’t last and overnight lows in the 20s followed, causing tree buds to freeze and wiping out many apple crops.

The early spring also led to early dry conditions and high fire danger.

Today’s forecast called for 100 percent chance of more lake effect snow today and there was a 50 percent chance on Thursday, with total accumulations of two feet possible in the higher terrain from Ironwood to the Porcupine Mountains.

Northwest winds of 25 to 35 mph were expected to whip the snow around to make driving conditions hazardous, with white-outs probable.

—Ralph Ansami