47.0°,
Fair Long Beach fights the big freeze
Long Beach saw near record-breaking low temperatures Friday amidst a month of freezing weather conditions. While actual temperatures hovered under 10 degrees for most of the day, the wind chill resulted in conditions that felt like temperatures in the negatives.
The National Weather Service issued a special winter statement on Friday morning and said, “If venturing outside, make sure to cover any exposed areas to avoid frostbite.”
“We would certainly recommend staying indoors when possible and to bundle up if you have to go outside,” said Gordon Tepper, the city’s director of communications.
Additionally, a winter weather advisory was issued for Saturday, with 1 to 4 inches of snow forecast along with up to one tenth of an inch of ice.
Wind gusts of over 30 mph kept temperatures down throughout most of Friday, reaching a high of just 21 degrees. The morning commute was especially frigid, with the low point for the day coming at 6 a.m. when the wind chill factor was estimated at -18 degrees.
City officials said that the Long Beach Public Library is serving as a warming center for residents who need a place to get out of the cold.
The low temperatures Friday come during an unusually cold February that has seen frequent snow and ice events. The Long Beach Fire Department took to Facebook to warn residents to keep their pets indoors and to check on their elderly neighbors.
“Everyone should have a working carbon monoxide detector,” Fire Commissioner Scott Kemins said, who explained that many residents are utilizing heating units around the clock and that the heaters can get clogged or damaged by overuse.
He added that icy road conditions and frozen pipes are two of the biggest threats during a cold winter like this one.
“You should leave the furthest faucet from the street dripping over night to avoid your pipes freezing,” said Kemins, who added that water moving continuously through pipes can help keep them from freezing up.
He added that while the Fire Department had only received two emergency calls for frozen pipes on Friday, there had been an increase in such calls over the past week.
