Serving the Mt. Morris area since 1967
MT.Times MORRIS January 9, 2014 Volume 46, Number 45 - $1.00
Hall of Fame
Tree Pick-up
Funding Cut
Retired Oregon track coach Doug Engle will be inducted into coaches Hall of Fame. A10
Local FFA members will pick up Christmas trees Jan. 11. B4
An unexpected state funding cut means area school districts must dig deeper to pay bill. A2
Record lows force closures By Vinde Wells Editor
An Ogle County Highway Department truck drives into Oregon Saturday morning during a light snowfall. The highway department has faced numerous breakdowns due to the extreme cold temperatures that blanketed the area Monday and Tuesday. Photo by Chris Johnson
Plows had trouble with the cold By Chris Johnson Reporter The extreme subzero temperatures have left some county snowplows in the shop just when they’re needed on the roads. Ogle County Engineer Curtis Cook said the extreme weather has caused some trucks to malfunction. “Right now the temperatures are causing havoc,� said Cook Monday morning. “Over the last 24 hours we have had trucks
freeze up.� The malfunctions are due to the blowing fine snow and the extreme cold and wind. This has left 3 or 4 of the county snowplow fleet on the sidelines to deal with the drifting snow on county roads. “I think this morning alone I have had 3 or 4 of the 13 trucks down,� said Cook. “Their filter systems have frozen up.� This was just one issue the trucks were having when the temperature outside was
nearing 20 below with wind chills of 40 below. “It has been an uphill battle,� said Cook. “Our guys are working hard to keep the trucks running and the roads open.� Steady winds of 15-20 miles per hour and gusts over 30 have contributed to the drifting on the road. Fortunately, the winds have been from different directions over the past few days, Cook said. “Every road in the county has experienced drifting
Family banjo company has Oregon connections
however it is not horrible because the drifts are lower because of the wind direction changes.� He said if the wind was all out of one direction then the drifting would have been high enough that only heavy equipment would have been able to clear the roads. With the shift in winds there was drifting but each drift was smaller than they could have been. Any drifted roads that the county snowplows are unable to clear during routine routes will be addressed when the wind speed lowers. When the winds finally die down and the temperature rises, Cook said a front end loader will be utilized to help clear the edges of the roads and push the drifts back.
Students in schools across Ogle County got their Christmas break extended on both ends thanks to the quirks of the weather. Vacation started a day early when an ice storm led to classes being called off on Dec. 20, which was supposed to be the last day of school before the holidays. Then bitter arctic cold with strong winds swept in Sunday night, breaking 20-year-old records and closing schools Monday and Tuesday, which would have the first days back for students. Ogle County Sheriff Michael Harn said the mercury had dipped to -20 degrees at his home in Forreston by Monday morning. The winds were estimated at 25 to 35 miles per hour. “With the wind that put the wind chill at -49,� Harn said. Tuesday morning was only slightly better the temperature at -13 degrees and somewhat diminished winds. “It’s a safety issue. We can’t have kids outside in weather like this,� Oregon Superintendent Tom Mahoney said Monday, after canceling classes for the second day. School wasn’t the only thing closed. Ogle County government offices and the judicial center was closed both days, and the Oregon City Hall was shuttered on Monday. The Polo City Council and Forreston Village Board canceled their Monday night meetings and rescheduled them. Mahoney said the district calls off school for the cold
“It’s a safety ISSUE 7E CAN T have kids outside in weather like this,� — Tom Mahoney Oregon Superintendent when frostbite is likely in a half hour or less of exposure. “We have lots of kids who wait at bus stops, and many others who walk to school,� he said. “They’re not always dressed for this kind of cold.� Experts said frostbite could occur on exposed skin within 15 minutes in the intense cold. Polo Superintendent Chris Rademacher said students’ safety is foremost in canceling classes for the cold. Part of the concern is that buses may stall even after they are loaded with students. “Our buses are inside, but we worry about the fuel gelling when it’s this cold,� he said. The Oregon and Polo School Districts are each approximately 125 square miles. Forrestville Valley, which also called off school, is even larger at 180 square miles. Many students in the three districts live in rural areas. The extra vacation comes with a price, however — the three days will be made up at the end of the school year with students attending classes into June. Harn said the decision to close the county offices was made jointly by himself, county board chairman Kim Gouker, county engineer Turn to A2
Editor’s note: Paul Salstrom is a history PROFESSOR AT 3T -ARY OF THE Woods College near Terre (AUTE )ND %DITOR S NOTE Paul Salstrom is a history PROFESSOR AT 3T -ARY OF THE Woods College near Terre (AUTE )ND By Paul Salstrom While searching recently for something on google. com, I impulsively clicked on something else that said “Salstrom banjos.� That led to a website called “Banjo Hangout.� As a result, I learned a lot more about Salstrom banjos than I used to know. I learned that, over the years, many postings at Banjo Hangout had called Salstrom banjos unique and had asked how they came about. No one knew much — just that they first appeared in the early 1960s and then in Phil Salstrom III, Oregon, plays a Salstrom banjo, the mid-1960s were bought A female cardinal spreads her wings as she leaves a bird feeder in rural Oregon continuing a long-standing family tradition. Photo by out by Fender Electric Saturday afternoon. Many birds were at feeders eating seed before the colder Chris Johnson Turn to B1 temperature set in on Sunday. Photo by Chris Johnson
Flying Away
In This Week’s Edition...
Church Bells, A5 Classifieds, B5-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4 Marriage Licenses, A4
Pine Creek News, A3 Public Voice, A9 Property Transfers, B4 Sheriff’s Arrests, B4
Social News, A4 Sports, B1 State Police, B2 Weather, A3
Deaths, B2 Willis M. Collman, Joseph Draugelis, Karen M. Martin, Alan R. Steele, Kenneth E. Tornow
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