Snowstorm Blog: Police Report Only Minor Accidents, Including Plow Vs. Parked Car

Potential for more snow tonight, '25 minutes to pass eight houses'

4:30 p.m.: Could even more snow be in the forecast? The National Weather Service is reporting a 40 percent chance of snow tonight with temperatures dipping down to 13 degrees. The next time snow pops up on the weather map is Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon.

When asked about her early morning commute, ' Assistant Superintendent for Business Services Debbie Piesz said this afternoon it took her 25 minutes to pass eight houses while driving into work this morning — and that was just on her street.

Dog park closed for the rest of the day

3:30 p.m.: The Department of Public Services announced that the dog park at the will be closed Monday until further notice.

Stuck motorists, minor accidents keep police busy

Noon: Commander Terry Kiernan said there have only been a few accidents Monday morning, all minor. However, he noted that since Sunday night, the department has been called to assist 15-20 stuck and stranded motorists.

"(It's been) giving our contract tow company a lot of business today," he said.

One of those accidents, he said, was on Torry Street and involved a snow plow hitting a car parked in the street. "This is why we have a snow ordinance," Kiernan said.

Snow emergency lifted downtown

1o a.m.: The snow emergency parking ban has been lifted for downtown Birmingham. Drivers are still advised to use caution when driving. On a good note, because it's a holiday, parking is free throughout the city Monday.

For those early-morning coffee seekers, announced on its Facebook page that it would be closed Monday morning, reopening around lunchtime. Meanwhile, and remains open.

Road Commission seeks all 'available bodies' for plows

7 a.m.: The Road Commission for Oakland County had a time hard time keeping up with the quickly falling snow Sunday night, according to a press release. Crews were out since 2 p.m. Sunday and by 11:30 p.m., all 106 trucks were out on the roads.

However, keeping up with the snow overnight was a challenge, with many trucks moved off the main roads to help plow the freeways. Now, with many drivers reaching the end of the 16-hour shift, the road commission is looking for any “available bodies” to help keep all the trucks on the road.

With President’s Day keeping many drivers off the roads anyway, the road commission predicts county plows should be able to clean up the streets quickly during the morning hours.

Birmingham declares snow emergency parking ban

6 a.m.: Birmingham has issued a snow emergency parking ban for all city streets. Under the ban, it is a civil infraction to park a vehicle or allow it to remain parked on a city street until it’s been cleared of snow. Illegally parked vehicles will be ticketed and may be towed, and the registered owner of such vehicle will be responsible for the towing cost.

The only exception to the ban is those residents without a driveway. Those who qualify must register with the Department of Public Services and display an identifying sticker in the driver’s side rear window. Drivers are encouraged to park their vehicles as close to the curb as possible.

Area schools not already closed for mid-winter cancel classes

5:30 a.m.: Combined with poor road conditions, many schools are closing their doors Monday. Most area schools are on mid-winter break today or closed because of President's Day — including — but several are canceling classes. These include:

• Detroit Country Day

Do you have any updates or snow pictures? How about cancelations? Send what you have to laura.houser@patch.com, and we'll make sure to include it in our Snowstorm Blog.