Road crews face dangerous conditions

 

Callaway County road crews are bracing for a slippery situation. The National Weather Service predicts a winter storm in the area between this afternoon and Saturday evening could deposit a quarter inch of ice or more.

County road and bridge head Paul Winkelmann said his crew is planning on pretreating trouble areas with cinders.

"A lot of the gravel roads, we've been rocking - a lot of the hills so we can get some traction when we've got some ice," Winkelmann said.

He said it's a common misconception the county takes care of snow and ice removal on the highways. That is MoDOT's responsibility, Winkelmann explained. The state road crews also take care of some of the lettered routes.

Winkelmann urged area residents to call MoDOT about issues on those roads, so phones are open for calls about problems on county-maintained roads.

Kyle Bruemmer, Fulton city engineer, said the city is preparing, too. He and Gary Felkner, streets division supervisor, have discussed pretreating roads with salt. The city is also providing salt to the fire department, which will respond to accidents.

"We'll be monitoring the weather as it goes and trying to get pretreatment down just before it hits so it has the most effectiveness," Bruemmer said.

Holts Summit is also planning on pretreating problem spots with salt and cinders beginning this afternoon and continuing until the storm system passes.

In the course of keeping other drivers safe, road crews can end up in danger themselves.

"It's just as hazardous for them as for anyone else out there," Winkelmann said. "When they're driving, the roads haven't been treated."

He asked locals to avoid driving unless it's absolutely necessary, both for their own safety and for that of the road crews. 

Also, make sure to leave plenty of room between vehicles, especially treatment and maintenance vehicles.

MoDOT has issued a winter weather advisory and urged motorists to stay off the roads from late Thursday night until Sunday.