Icy Roads Make for Hazardous Travel on Many Roads in the Palouse Ranger District (Idaho)

NEWS RELEASE
Clearwater National Forest, 12730 Highway 12, Orofino, ID 83544
Contact: Elayne Murphy (208)476-8200

Potlatch, ID – The combination of various weather conditions and events has made travel hazardous on many Forest Service roads throughout the Palouse Ranger District. Light to moderate snow that fell across the region, followed by extremely cold temperatures and clear weather, has created an extremely slick and dangerous layer of ice in many spots.

“To varying degrees, situations such as this occur every year on the district”, said Dave Brady, Engineer on the Palouse Ranger District. “However, with the weather we have had recently, conditions seem to be worse than normal. Right now, I’d urge anyone who is thinking of venturing out on our road system to think twice – and if they decide to head out, bring all the proper winter survival gear with them.” While the condition of all District roads is not known, the icy conditions seem to be affecting roads at lower elevations to a larger degree.

The likelihood of road conditions improving is not good for the foreseeable future. The forecast for the next couple of days calls for the possibility of light amounts of snow, followed by a period of relatively cold temperatures.

For updates regarding district road conditions, contact the Palouse Ranger District at (208) 875-1131.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/clearwater/News/Assets/091221_palouse_roads.pdf