Concerns Mounting Over Ice Growth On Rivers
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The ice on the Allegheny River at East Brady is a solid crust.
"It is 100 percent coverage is what we're hearing," said Joe Palko, a National Weather Service hydrologist. "We've been getting some pictures in and even all the way up to the Oil City area, it's pretty much solid."
A foot thick in many areas, and as you follow the flow down river, the thickness slowly decreases to about six to eight inches in the Freeport/Natrona Heights area.
"As long as the temperatures are well below freezing, the ice continues to grow," said Werner Loehlein P.E. DWRE, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The story is the same on the Mon River where barges are still moving but struggling through the ice.
"Above Morgantown, there is no navigation up there," Palko said. "It's pretty much 100 percent ice covered on the Mon."
The question now is what impact will the warming this weekend and expected rain have on the ice, as well as the weather system coming in next week, which could increase it flows on the rivers.
"Right after that, there's going to be another cold spell, so we'll have another period of ice growth," said Loehlein.
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