The cold snap is expected to be over by Friday. But once the cold weather eases up, there will be new issues for the state to handle.
The dramatic freeze and upcoming rise in temperatures is bad for roads, and the Michigan Department of Transportation is getting ready.
Paul Ajegba is the director of the department. He says MDOT has had about 1,200 trucks on the road putting salt and sand out. But they also expect to have to patch roads once there’s a thaw.
“This is a very, very unusual weather we are experiencing and our crew has been working hard on meeting the challenge,” he says.
There’s some good news – weather experts are not predicting major widespread flooding once the temperatures increase.
Whitmer calls for review of energy supply following cold snap
Governor Gretchen Whitmer wants a review of Michigan’s natural gas, electricity and propane supply, and she wants to make sure the delivery system is working well.
On Wednesday night, Consumers Energy asked all of its customers to keep their thermostats at or below 65 degrees, due to a concern about energy availability after a fire at a Consumers facility.
“It is important that we get a handle on what’s happened here and how we make sure that we are in a stronger position the next time we confront something of this nature,” says Whitmer.
Whitmer wants a contingency plan by July 1 with a final report afterwards. The fire is being investigated by the Michigan State Police and the federal government.
