BY LEANN DILBECK –
Polk County residents are waking to a blanket of snow this morning as the intricate flakes began to fall Friday afternoon just before 4 p.m. and began to accumulate along roads and bridges quickly. By 6 p.m. roads were completely covered and driving conditions quickly deteriorated. Reports from surrounding areas varied between .5 inches to 2 inches.
State highway sand trucks serviced local area highways between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. but Arkansas State Police issued a press release at 9:30 p.m. last night concerning the high number of crashes, particularly in the Garland County and Little Rock Metro area. “There are a few reports from some of the crash scenes that involve injured motorists who have been transported to area hospitals. Most of the crashes do not involve injuries and are not blocking traffic.”
State Troopers are asking area residents to stay off the roadways tonight [Friday night] in an effort to reduce the volume of traffic, which will allow emergency vehicles to more easily to the crash scenes. If possible, motorists involved in a crash or those unable to negotiate through the snow are asked to move their vehicles to the shoulders of the highways and out of the way of moving traffic.”
Polk County Sheriff Mike Godfrey said that state highways are clear with patches of ice but secondary/county roads are still covered with ice and snow. Law enforcement officials are urging everyone to limit driving to only required/necessary travel and are hopeful that by being a weekend, stranded motorists and collisions can be kept minimal.
Temperatures are forecasted for mid-40’s today with cloudy conditions and more wintry precipitation is expected in the next 2 to 3 days as residents in west-central Arkansas, along with many other parts of the U.S., continue to endure one of the most severe winters in two decades.
For updated highway conditions, click: http://www.idrivearkansas.com.
About Author
Jeri Pearson
Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.
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