Pettis County residents should be prepared to stay home this weekend, as the National Weather Service has issued an Ice Storm Warning for a large swath of Missouri, including Pettis County.
The warning goes into effect at 9 a.m. Friday until midnight Sunday. According to Sedalia-Pettis County Emergency Management Agency Director Dave Clippert, Pettis County could see between one-fourth and three-fourths of an inch of ice. As of Thursday morning, Clippert told city officials there is an 80 percent chance of ice.
“The warmer air above is turning the snow into rain and when it hits the ground it freezes,” Clippert explained during a meeting Thursday morning with KCP&L and city officials. “It’s going to be raining until it hits the ground. It’s going to stick to the trees, cars, power lines, anything that’s outside.”
Light freezing drizzle could begin around 9 a.m. Friday in Pettis County. Chances increase around noon, with freezing rain continuing off and on until Sunday afternoon, Clippert said. Saturday night will see the heaviest freezing rain.
Clippert said weekend temperatures will not be arctic. Temperatures are expected in the upper 20s, warming Sunday to the mid-30s or low 40s. Clippert has continued to tell citizens to not panic about the weekend storm, but to be prepared. Residents should have enough non-perishable food for a few days, as well as blankets and warm clothes in the case of a power outage.
Mayor Stephen Galliher urged Sedalia citizens to stay home during the weekend, to “be part of the solution, not part of the problem.” The Missouri Department of Transportation has also issued a Winter Weather Advisory for Reduced Travel from late Thursday night through Sunday.
The MoDOT release noted that many universities and colleges across the state begin classes Tuesday. Students are advised to avoid travel this weekend and consider travel after the ice storm is clear and conditions improve.
If travel is absolutely necessary, road conditions including winter weather conditions and traffic speeds can be checked on MoDOT’s Traveler Information Map at http://traveler.modot.org/map/. The map is also available as a free app on iTunes and Google play listed as MoDOT Traveler Information. MoDOT’s customer service center is available for information 24 hours a day at 1-888-ASK-MODOT (275-6636).
“The problem we’ve got is it’s what MoDOT told people last week: if we put calcium chloride down, it’s going to wash off from the rain that’s coming in in front of it,” Sedalia Public Works Director Brenda Ardrey said. “So we may pretreat intersections, just to be safe, but we’re probably wasting material, so the majority of this is going to be salt.”
The City of Sedalia has activated the Emergency Snow Route effective at 7 a.m. Friday until announced otherwise by the city. According to a city news release, this will allow the designated roadways to be easily cleared for emergency and other vehicles. A map detailing Snow Emergency Routes is available on the City’s website.
If icing does occur, city officials encourage citizens to stay at home and limit travel until Street Department crews have an opportunity to clear roadways and the electric utilities have the opportunity to repair any downed power lines.
KCP&L’s representative said they have supplies and local crews ready to respond to possible power outages. Since KCP&L’s entire operating system is forecasted to receive ice, contractors from other areas can’t be brought in to help Sedalia, as they’ll be focusing on their own areas.
KCP&L customers who lose power should call 1-888-LIGHT-KC to notify the company. A map on the KCP&L website is also available to show reported outages.
Sedalia Police and Fire department officials said their crews, equipment and buildings are ready for the weather. SPD did note that officers may not be responding to non-injury accidents this weekend, so citizens should exchange information, take photos of their vehicles and report the accident next week.
SFD reminded residents to not heat their homes using items not made for indoor use, such as grills or other propane heaters.
