One More Time Storm Makes An Icy Reminder That It’s Still Winter Out There

Mother Nature pulled a fast one Monday.

Spring was just around the bend and summer was in sight when she handed out that ominous card of chance: “Go directly back to winter. Do not pass into spring.”

Dennis Williams found himself trapped by the little trick.

The snow blew sideways Monday as he sat in the cozy police car looking out at his semi-truck toppled on its side in a snowy median.

“I just didn’t want to hit the person in front of me,” Williams said with a sigh, as a tow truck attempted to right the big rig.

The snowstorm that swept through the Inland Northwest set in motion a game of bumper cars across North Idaho roads and highways.

As police rushed from one accident to the next, tire businesses hustled to fill a fresh crop of studded tire and chain sales.

The storm dropped 3-4 inches of snow and was expected to leave another 2-4 inches by this morning, according to the National Weather Service.

The recent flirtation with springlike weather left many drivers unprepared for Monday’s onslaught.

“People are driving like it’s the first day of winter,” said Idaho State Police Sgt. Jay Komosinski. “They got used to the dry roads and they forgot what winter was like.”

A driver, passing cars on snow-clogged Interstate 90, triggered four accidents involving eight cars Monday, according to the State Police. The accident shut down the freeway’s westbound lanes for more than an hour.

John Oaks, 21, of Coeur d’Alene, was heading west on I-90 when he tried to pass a semi-truck. Oaks lost control, crashed into another car and was then struck by a third car, authorities said.

As other drivers hit their brakes to avoid the accident, they slid off the road and into one another.

Williams tried to avoid hitting the driver in front of him. “As I tapped my brakes, the back end just started spinning and it swung me around and flipped me over,” he said.

Some of the drivers involved in the pileups had already taken off their studded tires.

“They jumped the gun a little,” said David Castor, assistant manager of the Les Schwab Tire Center in Coeur d’Alene.

For the past week or two his store has been swapping studded tires for regular tires, he said. On Monday, his employees were doing the reverse - and handing out tire chains as well.

Heavy snowfall in the mountains of North Idaho is renewing concern about flooding as temperatures warm. The weather service predicts river levels will rise 1 to 2 feet later this week.

But “my understanding right now is that there is no imminent danger of flooding,” said Mike Lopez, director of Kootenai County Emergency Services.

The region should avoid another flood if temperatures don’t warm too quickly, he said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: FORECAST The probability of snow drops to 30 percent Wednesday. Overnight lows should be in the low- to mid-20s this week, forecasters said. High temperatures should rise into the 40s by Friday, and Saturday’s high could nudge 50 degrees.