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Truckers hope to pass next snow If the expected storm hits, hotels and relief agencies along I-5 are set to welcome stranded drivers By SARAH LEMON With a flurry of fresh snow in the forecast, motels and the American Red Cross were gearing up Friday for the inevitable stranded travelers. Truckers were hoping to beat the storm over Siskiyou Pass. "My prayer is I make it out of here," said trucker Carl Moyer, of Shelby, Ohio. Moyer dropped off his truck's trailer at Bear Creek Corp.'s loading docks Thursday night. He started calling the company around 8 a.m. Friday to see if his load of holiday gift boxes bound for Columbus, Ohio, was ready. More than eight hours later, he still was waiting at the Petro truck stop. "I keep looking out there expecting to see the white stuff flying," Moyer said, gesturing with a half-eaten ice cream cone. "Now's a good time to get over (the pass)." Four to 8 inches of snow were expected on Interstate 5's Siskiyou summit by mid-evening Friday. Another 4 to 8 should arrive by this morning and flurries could persist throughout the day, said meteorologist Sven Nelaimischkies of the National Weather Service's Medford office. Wind gusts up to 50 mph and temperatures between 25 and 30 degrees on the pass were forecast. With snow levels at 3,500 feet, other mountain routes, including highways 62, 140, 66 and 97, could see serious snow. A rock slide reported on Highway 199 Thursday nine miles south of the state line had been cleared Friday. The Red Cross has asked Southern Oregon University for space to house 75 to 100 travelers over the weekend, said Marj Jameson, director of the Red Cross' Rogue Valley chapter. Jameson said she has coordinated weekend volunteers to staff emergency shelters. About 30 Greyhound bus travelers stranded in Medford Wednesday night found shelter with the Red Cross. Ashland motels hadn't seen any influx of travelers Friday afternoon, but managers were hoping for a full house. "If there's a snowstorm, and they have to get off, they get off here," said Nakia King, manager of Knight's Inn Motel of Ashland. Motels at the south Ashland exit were mostly booked by 4 p.m. Wednesday after Oregon Department of Transportation officials closed Siskiyou Pass. Travelers canceled reservations at some motels, but stranded motorists seeking lodging more than made up for the losses, King said. The valley's truck stops filled up much quicker, forcing many truckers to park for the night on I-5's southbound shoulder. Petro at Phoenix hadn't seen many truckers stopping for the night Friday afternoon. Most said they wanted to get over the pass before the snow hit. "If I can survive 'Nam, I can survive this weather here," said trucker Israel Cant� of Pharr, Texas. Hunched against the wind in his U.S. Air Force jacket, Cant� said he sees bad weather all the time while on the road, and he always carries chains. After spending long hours Wednesday enforcing chain restrictions at the pass, Oregon State Police are making sure that troopers are prepared to respond to the weekend's weather, even if they have to take their patrol cars home. OSP has a state grant that pays troopers' overtime when the Siskiyou Pass goes to full chain restrictions, said OSP Lt. Gordon Renskers. No additional patrols had been scheduled, but Renskers said he has troopers waiting in the wings to handle weather-related emergencies. "Let's just hope it doesn't snow quite as bad," he said. "It gets very costly in a big hurry." Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.