The mix of sleet and snow that moved through the area Wednesday and Thursday (Feb. 23-24) did not cause major problems in Jefferson County, Emergency Management Director Warren Robinson said.
“There were no issues related to the winter weather that elevated to the point that our office had to get involved,” Robinson said today (Feb. 25). “It was a relatively routine incident.
“I feel like everyone heeded the warnings well. We have had similar rounds of weather the last few weeks. We saw a lot of folks let out early to give employees a chance to get home before the worst of the storm. I think that was a positive thing.”
The National Weather Service St. Louis office reported that about 1.3 inches of sleet and snow accumulated in Barnhart and Cedar Hill, about 1 inch in Herculaneum and just less than 1 inch in St. Louis.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol received 344 calls for service throughout the St. Louis area on Thursday. Of those, 192 were for crashes, with 11 of those involving injuries. The highway patrol also responded to 73 calls for stranded motorists, Cpl. Dallas Thompson said.
“It was about what we would expect,” he said. “We put out the message to please slow down and leave plenty of distance between yourself and other vehicles. We also say try to stay in your lane on a highway. Some people listen and some don’t.
"It was typical for the type of storm we had yesterday. It wasn’t really snow or freezing rain. It was sleet that was falling, and there is only so much road crews can do with that. There is not enough to push it with a blade, so they have to treat the services to get it to melt. With the temperatures that we had, there wasn’t a whole lot that was going to melt.”
Jefferson County 911 Dispatch Chief Travis Williams said the number of calls dispatchers received Thursday was about the same as any other day, and there were no emergency calls for weather-related fatalities.
“It was pretty much a non-event,” he said. “It looks like a lot of people stayed home. We had a few slide-offs. I think a lot of people are able to work from home, so we are more prepared for events like this than we were two or three years ago.”
Robinson and Thompson said road conditions have improved today with most primary roads cleared of ice.
Thompson said secondary roads my still be covered or partially covered, and drivers should be cautious of slick spots, especially on off ramps and overpasses on primary roads.
“There are still slick spots out there, and we are encouraging everyone to take a little more time if they are traveling today,” Robinson said.