Road Conditions Improve Across Central OK; Watch For Ice

NewsOn6.com

TULSA, OK -- Roads are improving Sunday across central Oklahoma, however, some wet areas could refreeze overnight Monday.

Road Conditions Update Sunday – 4:30 p.m.

Roads are clearing rapidly across central Oklahoma; however, some currently wet areas will refreeze overnight and could cause problems during Monday's morning drive. Motorists in the eastern and northeastern portions of the state, including the Tulsa metro area, should allow extra travel time in the morning and be aware of these black ice conditions.

In central and north central Oklahoma, conditions are much improved, and traffic has become extremely heavy on interstates. Congestion in construction zones is causing travel delays.

Now that roads in the central portion of the state have been cleared, additional crews have been dispatched to eastern and southeastern counties, where many roads are still snow covered, particularly in Latimer, Pushmataha, Le Flore and McCurtain counties.

Crews will continue to monitor and treat areas of snow and ice throughout the night as necessary.

Motorists are strongly advised to check conditions before heading out, adjust their route as necessary and to allow additional travel time.

An Oklahoma woman must be feeling lucky after a close call Saturday on the roads.

She was headed from Stillwater to Oklahoma City when she spun out and hit a guardrail. The pole from the guardrail went right through her windshield -- barely missing her head. It was so close, the pole actually pinned her hair to the seat.

The city of Tulsa plans to have close to 50 salt and plow trucks out well into Sunday.

"We're going to work throughout (Saturday) evening and change crews at midnight and the crew that comes on at midnight will work until noon (Sunday) and then another crew will come on then. So we're on a 24 hour operation right now," said Paul Strizek, Tulsa Public Works.

Poor visibility, blowing snow and bad road conditions Sunday morning greeted motorists who did venture out. News On 6 storm trackers spotted several stuck vehicles and even one storm plow that got stuck.

Officers and firefighters responded to numerous collisions and stuck cars Saturday in Tulsa and surrounding cities. EMSA experienced higher than normal call volume between 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. EMSA paramedics provided care to 14 people hurt in crashes and four individuals who suffered injuries after falling on wet or snowy surfaces. None of the patients sustained life-threatening injuries.

During snow and/or ice conditions, motorists are asked to:

• Be aware that conditions are continually changing; drive cautiously and for the conditions on the roadway.
  Check road conditions before getting out on the roads.
• Allow extra space between vehicles, so there is adequate distance for braking in wet and icy conditions.
• Stay at least 200 feet behind road-clearing equipment; crews need room to maneuver and can engage plowing or spreading materials without notice.
• Be aware of "black ice," which looks wet on the roadway, but is actually a thin layer of ice.
• Please be patient, plan trips ahead and allow extra time to reach destinations.

To check CURRENT ROAD CONDITIONS, call the Department of Public Safety's ROAD CONDITIONS HOTLINE at 888-425-2385. Please give this number to the public for the latest road condition information.

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