The first — and so far the only — snowstorm of the year to hit Jackson County put snowplows to use, canceled school and hindered motorists.

That storm began early Monday morning with a light snowfall and resulted in a blanket of white with temperatures spanning 10 to 18 degrees.

A travel advisory — although the lowest such level — was issued Monday morning by the Jackson County Emergency Management.

The National Weather Service predicted between 3 and 7 inches of snow during the day Monday with a wind chill of -1 degree.

“When it hit, it hit,” said Warren Martin, superintendent of the Jackson County Highway Department.

Martin said county snowplows struggled early Monday morning but were starting to get “ahead of the game” by midmorning.

“This morning, we were fighting it pretty hard, and once we put material down, an hour later, you have as much as an inch back on it again,” he said.

The department had about 14 plow trucks out across the county with two to three additional ones sent to areas based on need.

The plows, which were set to make rounds all day Monday, pushed the snow off the roadway before spreading a mix of salt and sand.

The worst areas of fallen snow were in Seymour in Redding, Jackson and Hamilton townships.

“We try to hit the hills and the intersections and the bridges and the trouble spots,” Martin said.

He said the department’s salt supply is in good shape, considering the lack of snowfall and ice that’s occurred so far this year.

“There’s no issue with that,” he said.

Martin was hoping the snowfall would decrease by Monday afternoon, but he warns motorists can’t expect immediate bare roads.

“They will have to understand we’re not going to be able to get these county roads to base asphalt for two to three days,” he said.

The reason for that, Martin said, is because the product they put on the roadways won’t work as well with the low temperatures expected to occur overnight. If the sun comes out during the day, he said that will help tremendously.

As for the state roads, the Indiana Department of Transportation reported a “slow-go” for plow trucks by early Monday morning.

INDOT spokesman Harry Maginity said in a news release it had taken at least two hours to plow a route because snowfall was re-covering lanes before the trucks could rerun their routes.

The department relied on snowplows without salt and were planning on maintaining a “full call-out” of trucks in southern Indiana until conditions curtailed operations.

At noon Monday, fresh drivers were expected to have replaced the ones who had been out on the roads since midnight.

Police in both Seymour and Jackson County reported very few accidents by midmorning Monday.

“We’ve had nothing serious, only a few slide-offs,” said Lt. Andy Wayman with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department. “Nothing that’s resulted in injuries.”

He said deputies had worked about five to six accidents, which is a low number probably because all of the schools were either closed due to weather or because of Presidents Day — the same for banks and some other businesses.

“That keeps a lot of unnecessary traffic on the roads when schools and businesses are closed,” Wayman said.

Police Chief Bill Abbott said there were only three property-damage accidents his officers were called to by 11 a.m. Monday — one in a private parking lot, one near the railroad tracks by Tipton Street and one at Tipton Street and Stevens Way.

Officers also helped with a few stalled vehicles blocking roadways.

“We got those moved, and traffic in town has been pretty good,” he said. “I want to thank the people for their cooperation for slowing down and allowing more time to stop.”

He said any time there’s snow or ice on the roads, motorists should allow themselves extra time to get to their destination. He said they should also be aware of other drivers around them.

Extra clothing, blankets and a charged cellphone are important items to have in the car, and also knowing the directions and areas where you’re at — particularly if you’re driving out on county roads.

Trooper Tommy Walker, a spokesman with the Indiana State Police, said there were two property-damage accidents state troopers investigated as of Monday afternoon. One was on U.S. 50 at County Road 600E and the other was southbound on Interstate 65 near the 39-mile marker.