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Icy Start To Cold Week; Travel 'Strongly Discouraged'

Updated Feb. 8, 5:15 p.m.

A winter weather advisory in effect for eastern Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas was extended until midnight Tuesday with freezing drizzle expected late into Monday night.

The National Weather Service in Tulsa forecast additional ice accumulation of up to 0.1 inches and said travel along and north of I-44 is "strongly discouraged."

"Expect slick spots on roadways this afternoon and evening especially on untreated & elevated surfaces. Use extreme caution if travel is necessary," NWS Tulsa posted on Facebook just after 4 p.m.

In a 5 p.m. update, EMSA said it had responded to 125 crashes across Tulsa, Bixby, Jenks, and Sand Springs on Monday. On a typical February weekday, it responds to 24 in the same time.

Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum posted on Facebook several city fire trucks were hit by cars while responding to other crashes.

City of Tulsa Street Maintenance Operations Manager Leon Kragel said crews have been working with brine and salt solutions to try to prevent icing, but it’s made harder with temperatures so low.

"We're doing the best we can, and most of the calls ... were on the state highways. Not that we didn't have some locations of our own, but for the most part, our roads were pretty well treated," Kragel said.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation has responsibility for clearing highways of ice and snow. Kragel said Tulsans should expect any side and neighborhood streets not treated by the city to continue to freeze and refreeze in the days ahead.  

As of 5 p.m. Monday, EMSA had also responded to 113 falls, up from the typical 36, and eight reports of cold exposure.

Freezing drizzle caused collisions and major traffic delays across the Tulsa metro Monday morning, with meteorologists predicting colder and windier conditions later in the week.

"All bridges & overpasses are iced over," the Tulsa Fire Department wrote in a 5:30 a.m. tweet. "Tulsa Fire has already responded to dozens of vehicle collisions."

"Please be very careful as you head out this morning," the Tulsa Police Department tweeted at 7:00 a.m. "We're getting numerous calls for wrecks and people spinning out on bridges and overpasses due to ice."

The NWS also warns of dangerously cold temperatures and wind chill readings later in the week.

"Dangerous wind chills will be possible across the region much of this week as the cold air moving in Mon gets a reinforcing shot of Arctic air Wed. Wind chill values in the single digits are forecast for parts of Northeast Oklahoma through mid week. By late week with the second surge of arctic air, wind chill values ranging from near 5 below zero to 15 above zero look to be possible across Eastern Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas Fri and Sat mornings. With the cold air in place, multiple chances for wintry precipitation will be possible through Thursday and again Saturday," a notice reads.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.
Chris joined Public Radio Tulsa as a news anchor and reporter in April 2020. He’s a graduate of Hunter College and the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, both at the City University of New York.
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