Notes From Global “Warming” Country

RIVER FALLS, Wisc: The local newspaper, The River Falls Journal, reports that the western tip of Lake Superior has frozen over for the first time in many years. Local ice fishermen seem to be happy. They are looking forward to ice fishing. Some locals say this is the most ice on the western edge of the lake in the last 17 years.

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan: The current deep freeze is likely the longest streak of low temperatures below 13 below zero F that has numbed the city since record keeping began way, way back in 1892. The 24-day streak of temperatures that cold or colder started on December 13. “It is really a shocker,” said a forecaster for Environment Canada, which is the Canadian equivalent to the National Weather Service. The forecaster said he could not find a longer cold snap in Saskatoon’s recorded weather history. The forecaster also said that January is expected to be colder than normal. The average mean temperature for January is near zero and overall the three-month period of January through March is forecast to be colder than average. As of a few days ago, snow plows still had not touched almost 1/3 of the main streets in Saskatoon. “Just a Little South of Saskatoon,” is a famous song made famous by the Sonny James band from Hackleburg, Alabama.

BEMIDJI, Minn: The Bemidji Pioneer reports that the dog sled race near Frazzee, Minn., has been canceled because of too much snow. The snow is fluffy and keeps drifting making it impossible to maintain a groomed trail. That poses a safety risk to dogs. The Frazzee area has received about 3 feet of snow, but winds keep creating drifts of 4 feet or more.

POLAND: Seven persons froze to death during the coldest night of winter so far as temperatures fell to as low as 11 below zero farenheit. Officials say that 76 people have died from hypothermia in the last 9 weeks.

ROTTERDAM: Dutch authorities at the Port of Rotterdam had to deploy an ice breaker ship for the first time in trying to keep the port open.

LONDON: The fountains in Trafalgar Square were full of ice.

FRANCE: Heavy snow has covered part of the country. Thick snow also covers much of Bulgaria and part of Germany. Ice breakers were at work on the rivers, including the River Elbe in East Germany. In Paris, the Eiffel Tower is closed.

TURKEY: Blizzards have closed 1,000 village roads in the country.

ALASKA: Extreme cold, as low as 60 below zero, has grounded planes and disabled cars. Villages some 90 miles NW of Fairbanks were running low on food because they could not be reached on a regular basis. Local residents in the area say they have never seen it so cold for so long.

CHICKEN, Alaska: Temperature has been below 60 below in that small town several mornings lately. Yes, there is a town by the name of Chicken. It is located in extreme East/Central Alaska on the Taylor Highway, which goes into the Yukon Territory. It is imperative that I find out how that town got its name, but I don’t have time to worry about that today. Chicken is in the same general region of some wellknown cold spots like Northway and Ft. Yukon, Alaska and Dawson and Mayo in the Yukon.

FAIRBANKS: Their forecast for tonight is mostly clear, but areas of dense ice fog forming int he valley with visibility 1/4 mile or less and temperatures tonight around 50 below in the valley. When that thick ice fog forms, it is literally tiny floating ice crystals. It makes a beautiful sight if you can stand the cold.

MORE ALASKA COLD: It was 49 below this morning at Woodsmoke subdivision at North Pole, Alaska. This could be confusing, because the community of North Pole is no where near the North Pole. It is east of Fairbanks. It was 60 below this morning at Northway, Alaska and 55 below at Eagle. In the Yukon Territory of NW Canada, it was 56 below at Dawson and Mayo.

So much for global warming–at least for the current time.

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