Frigid temperatures follow sleet, snow
Frigid temperatures moved into mid-Missouri behind sleet and snow Sunday evening.
Wind chills dipped below zero across the area as sleet and snow moved out, forcing many school districts to cancel class Monday. Closed districts included Columbia, Jefferson City, Fulton and Moberly. You can find the full list here.
As of 7:45 p.m. Sunday, Columbia Public Works said it still had crews out treating priority streets with cinders because the frigid temperature made salt solutions ineffective. The city reported icy conditions on side streets and in neighborhoods.
MoDOT issued a “no travel advisory” for the state Saturday through Sunday night because of road conditions.
Governor Jay Nixon activated the State Emergency Operations Center on Saturday ahead of the storm, canceling a previously scheduled trade mission to Canada. The center continued 24-hour operations into Monday morning.
The initial freezing drizzle Saturday night caused at least five serious crashes on Interstate 70 through Columbia, plus dozens of slideoffs across the area.
ABC 17 Stormtrack chief meteorologist Sharon Ray said warm air aloft turned falling snow into rain and then into sleet as it reached the surface Sunday morning, meaning much of the area saw predicted snow fall simply as sleet or freezing drizzle.
Stay with ABC 17 News and abc17news.com for updates on this winter storm.
