Full Public Works crew pretreated streets, now actively treating streets

(COLUMBIA, MO) - Precipitation began at 11 am today. A full street crew came in at 7 a.m. prepared for the event. All priority routes have been pretreated. Temperatures are falling rapidly and exposed surfaces beginning to ice. Between 0.25 and 0.5 inches of ice is expected, but up to 1 inch is possible and some models show less.


Expected hazardous road conditions through at least Sunday evening. Forecast is for the precipitation rate to be moderate to heavy near the start of the event meaning that it may wash off road treatments. Pavement temperatures are below freezing at the start of the event so slick conditions could develop quickly. Depending on the scope of the icing, power outages may occur. Preparations have been made with Columbia Utilities and Parks & Recreation and Community Development to assist with power outage response should it be necessary. Expected temperatures for Sunday are above freezing late evening with temperatures on Monday forecast to be around 55 degrees. The biggest threat for long term issues at this point is downed power lines and trees. Initial response to downed trees and limbs across roads will be to remove or partially remove them from the road and leave at the site for later cleanup. Some road barricade closures may occur due to ice or tree damage. Any driver should be aware of not just ice conditions, but tree/limb and power lines across the road. Operational modifications to our response will be made as the situation develops. Backhoes, loaders and line crews to be activated by Columbia Utilities as conditions develop. 

CoMoSnow.com