Poplar Bluff R-I schools closed Monday because of slick road conditions in some areas, and more winter weather is on the way this week.
“I was out yesterday afternoon and everything looked really good, and we were a go for this morning,” said R-I Superintendent Dr. Scott Dill.
“Then, around 5:15 this morning, we started looking again and we had an unexpected batch of precipitation hit us,” Dill said. “It wasn’t everywhere, but it was enough to put a glaze of ice down right as we were getting ready to roll the buses.”
The overnight snow, Dill said, was enough to make him cautious of opening schools Monday.
“When we’re looking at that, we look at the district as a whole. You can’t just run part of the buses of course,” Dill said. “If there are adverse traveling conditions in a portion of the district, that’s enough to trip the thing for the entire district.”
Dill said he also saw cars in ditches early Monday morning.
“The decision to have school and put people on icy roads is one we take very seriously. We know it impacts the community, but we always want people to be safe,” Dill said.
“The best decision there is to always err on the side of caution,” he added.
And there’s more to come.
Meteorologist Rick Shanklin with the National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky, reported in a conference call Monday morning the possibility for precipitation “potentially off and on from later today into Thursday morning.”
Parts of Southeast Missouri already are in a winter weather advisory from 3 p.m. Monday through 6 a.m. Tuesday as another round of light snow is expected to fall on the area.
“(Monday night) will be mostly snow we think,” said Shanklin. “There is a freezing rain concern with that, but a very minimal amount.”
The Poplar Bluff and Dexter areas, Shanklin said, could see up to .02-inch of ice Monday night, while in Van Buren and Piedmont, the totals likely will be closer to .05-inch.
Tonight’s weather, Shanklin said, should have very limited impacts on travel, though he cautions those driving over bridges and overpasses.
The more concerning weather will occur mainly Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning, Shanklin said.
That’s when much of the area, from Poplar Bluff to Cape Girardeau and over to Paducah could see a quarter-inch of ice in the form of freezing rain.
A winter storm watch, he said, likely will be coming from the National Weather Service soon.
Currently, Shanklin said, he doesn’t think Wednesday’s ice will be enough to affect power lines, but he will monitor the situation closely.
“A quarter-inch of ice or more is generally when you start getting into issues with power lines,” he said, so the potential is there.
If necessary, Shanklin said, an ice storm warning also could be issued.
The winter weather will continue, Shanklin said, into the weekend in the form of bitter cold temperatures.
“We’re looking at single digits over the weekend,” he said of the projected morning low temperatures starting Friday.
Road crews in Poplar Bluff and Butler County already have begun working to ensure roads stay as clear as possible.
“We’re out right now trying to get a little salt brine out. We’re trying to do a little preventative work and will play it by ear,” said Butler County Highway Superintendent Robbie Moore.
Crews, Moore said, are focusing on the county’s asphalt roads and are “putting a strip right down the middle of them and hoping for the best.”
The county, Moore said, has plenty of salt in stock for the winter.
“These last two mild winters have really left us in good shape. We haven’t had to use up our stuff, so it’s kind of built up. We’ve actually got a pretty good surplus right now,” Moore said.
In Poplar Bluff, street department Superintendent Jerry Lawson said, crews are “mostly putting brine down, but we have a couple trucks out putting some rock salt down in some areas where they stay shady and the ground stays a little colder, plus a few hilltops here and there.”
Beyond that work, Lawson said, he and his staff will have to “play the waiting game” to see what transpires.