WINTER STORM UPDATES: Plow crews to work overnight in Columbia ahead of potential refreeze
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The City of Columbia will have an 18-member plow crew working overnight on Wednesday to treat roads.
Snow came through Missouri on Wednesday and several roads have been plowed. But, with temperatures expected to drop overnight wet streets could refreeze, which could cause hazardous driving conditions.
A press release from the city says residents are encouraged to avoid unnecessary travel.
Columbia city meetings canceled; one dead in Callaway County crash
The City of Columbia has canceled its meetings Wednesday because of snow.
Precipitation began to fall on Mid-Missouri overnight and moved from east to west. By daybreak, heavy snow was falling on Columbia. It had covered roads by the time most commuters were leaving for work.
Meetings of the Water and Light Advisory, the Substance Abuse Advisory Commission, Parking Advisory Commission and Citizens Police Review Board were canceled, the city says in a news release.
The release says 25 City of Columbia employees were working to clear streets. The city reminded drivers to move their cars from streetside parking when 2 or more inches of snow falls.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop F – which covers much of Mid-Missouri – wrote on its social media that from midnight-2 p.m., it responded to 44 calls for service, 13 stranded motorists, 17 non-injury crashes, three injury crashes and one fatality.
MSHP says a rollover crash on the exit from Highway 54 to Route AA/OO in Holts Summit killed one person.
Most crashes Wednesday happened during the morning hours.
“I think the snow coming all at once is probably what contributed to it," said Sergeant Kyle Green of MSHP Troop F. "And I would say some of that was also due to morning commuters.”
By 9 a.m. the Missouri Department of Transportation's traveler information map showed state highways throughout Mid-Missouri were fully covered with snow.
Another crash later Wednesday morning on Interstate 70 in Callaway County caused one lane to be closed at the 138.6 westbound mile marker, according to MoDOT's map.
— MSHP Troop F (@MSHPTrooperF) February 12, 2025
Fatal Crash in Callaway County
Troopers are assisting the Holts Summit Police Department with a one vehicle rollover crash on the exit ramp from eastbound U.S. 54 to Route AA/OO. There is one confirmed fatality.
The exit ramp is closed at this time. Please avoid the area. pic.twitter.com/ZyNndQ4LNH
Green said if a crash occurs, remain inside the vehicle.
"Many times we get individuals who are struck and seriously injured or killed while trying to exit their vehicle or standing outside their vehicle trying to assess the damage,” Green said. “The vehicle offers a form of protection that you just don't have when you're standing outside the vehicle, walking around.”
He said to always stay buckled up.
Snow begins to cover state highways in Mid-Missouri
The Missouri Department of Transportation's traveler information map showed that state highways around Mid-Missouri were starting to become snow-covered by 8 a.m.
The map showed partial coverage on Highway 63 through Boone and Cole counties and a covered Interstate 70 west of Columbia. Highway 63 in Randolph County and other state highways in the northern part of the region also show that they are fully covered.
Jefferson City's road condition map showed side streets covered in snow and primary routes partly covered at about 8 p.m.
The snow forecast for Mid-Missouri had been downgraded by Wednesday morning, with up to 6 inches of accumulation expected in northern counties. The northern part of the area remained under a winter storm warning through 6 p.m., while the southern part was under a winter weather advisory.
In Phelps County, more than 560 Gasconade Electric Cooperative members were in the dark Wednesday morning but it wasn't clear what caused the outage.
