Condition 2 (Not Code 2 Jeff)

Well we were in Condition 2 for two full days this week. And both days we were very close to going to Condition 1. Read on, you will understand what this means in a minute. And no Jeff it doesn't mean that we were driving around using lights and sirens. Here is the definitions of the three weather conditions in McMurdo:

Weather Condition III: which is defined as having winds less than 48 knots, wind chills warmer than -75 F, and visibility greater than 1/4 mile. This is to be considered the normal weather condition in McMurdo.

Severe Weather Condition II: which is defined by one or more of the following conditions: wind speeds of 48 to 55 knots sustained for one minute, wind chills of -75 to -100 F sustained for one minute, or visibility of less than 1/4 mile sustained for one minute.

Severe Weather Condition I: which is defined by one or more of the following conditions: wind speeds greater than 55 knots sustained for one minute, wind chills colder than -100 F sustained for one minute, or visibility of less than 100 feet sustained for one minute.

Don't you like that, wind chills about -75F are considered normal conditions here! So this week we had two days of snow, actual snow falling out of the sky not just snow blowing around, and winds that were in the 35 to 45 knot range consistantly. So visibility was very limited. Day one, which was Wednesday, was like a good storm in Buffalo. It was quite windy and the visibilty was down to 100' but walking from the shop to the galley for lunch wasn't too bad. Did I mention that along with the storm came warm temperatures. I was between 10F and 20F on both days. A very nice change.

On day two, when I left the room in the morning headed to the galley I actually stopped at the corner of my building to see if I wanted to go out into the wind. It was blowing so hard I actually had second thoughts about going outside. Visibility was down to 25' at that time. It was a very interesting day.

So, what happens when Cond. I or II is called. Well Cond. III is normal so you can travel by foot or vehicle any where on in McMurdo without checking out. If you go out into the field or onto the sea ice, you have to checkout with the fire house and give a headcount and a time of return. When we go to Cond. II only essential vehicle travel is allowed in McMurdo and any foot travel is suggested to be in pairs. So not much of an problem, just some commonsense stuff. When Cond. I is called NO travel is allowed outside at all without station managment approval and an escort by the SAR team (Dearch and Rescue). So if we went to Cond. I at any point you have to stay in the building that you are in until the weather changes. So if you are at work during a Cond. I this is bad. In your dorm, this is good; in the galley, this is great.

But we survived the storm without and Condition I in McMurdo. However it was Condition I on the sea ice every night this week, so the second shift crew of equipment operators had the entire week off. This put a dent into the airfield preperations. So it is now Sat. night and the operators are out working tonight.