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Some 80 full-time workers at Welco had an extended Christmas holiday after snow caved in a roof on one of the mill’s buildings in Naples.

No one was hurt, yet the cave-in is just one of the hardships created by the 51 inches of snow that fell in the Bonners Ferry area in December, according to Bob Bonner, meteorologist technician with the National Weather Service in Spokane, Wash.

There’s an 80 percent chance that Wednesday’s rain will continue today, Jan. 8, with snow expected above 5,000 feet. By late afternoon, that snow will begin to fall at 3,500 feet. A 40 percent chance of rain or snow showers is expected tonight.

“We’re going to warm up this week,” Bonner said. “The temperatures will be near 40 with a lot rain.”

The cave-in at Welco, which manufactures cedar fencing boards, occurred sometime overnight on  Dec. 28 on the green chain building, said safety manager Bobby Hammond. The roof on the building had a shallow slope. A 16- by 20-foot section of the roof collapsed when snow from an attached building slid onto it.

“We had to clear and demolish the part that crashed in,” Hammond said. “Our maintenance department did a really good job.”

Fulton Construction of Bonners Ferry replace the roof, allowing Welco to return to operating by Monday.

The mill was shutdown for the Christmas holiday when the roof caved in. Employees were expected to return on Dec. 29 for two days before taking off three days and the weekend for the New Year’s Eve holiday.

December’s snowfall for Bonners Ferry was about average, Bonner said. A record 63.6 inches fell in December 1996. For December 2007, Bonners Ferry had 33 inches of snow.

A record 129 inches of snow fell in the winter of 1969-1970.

As for the forecast, temperatures are expected to range from 30 to 36 degrees through Thursday, Jan. 15. The greatest chance of precipitation is 30 percent.