MDOT and Lee County make preparations ahead of weekend winter storm
Officials are preparing for the worst and praying for the best
TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – At MDOT’s District One headquarters in Tupelo, crews are busy mixing a salt brine solution that will soon go on the roads.
Johnny Shields is a Maintenance Engineer for District One, which covers sixteen counties. He said starting Friday afternoon, the Emergency Operations Center will be up and running.
“We coordinate our operations out of this room with our crews in the room, we monitor weather as it is changing, we coordinate with the traffic management Center in Jackson, our emails, keeping them up on what is going on,” Shields said.
The EOC is equipped with flat screen monitors, which give personnel a real-time look at road conditions and potential weather threats.
So far, Shields said more than 60,000 gallons of salt brine solution have been applied to roads and bridges. And snow plows are on MDOT Trucks. However, Shields said the snow plows aren’t effective if ice accumulates.
“As far as ice, it is not like a snow event, where we can plow snow off the road; ice is dangerous, quarter inch or half an inch. If the temperature is low for a few days, we are limited in what we can do,” Shields said.
And the Lee County Board of Supervisors approved a “Proclamation of Existence of a Local Emergency” ahead of the winter storm.
It allows crews and personnel to legally go onto private property, if needed, during a natural disaster
“We have got to be prepared, we can’t be lackluster, we want to have everything ready, if something were to happen,” said District 3 Supervisor Wesley Webb.
Local and state agencies will monitor the winter storm around the clock, and the message is the same. If ice accumulates, don’t get on the roads unless you absolutely have to.
To keep up with current road conditions, you are encouraged to download the MDOT Traffic App or log onto mdottraffic.com
