Heavy snow, but few incidents Thursday

By Adam Rollins, Record Staff Writer
Posted 11/7/19

Warren County first responders said there were relatively few incidents despite heavy snowfall overnight into Thursday morning.The area received up to 10 inches of snow, but Warren County Ambulance …

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Heavy snow, but few incidents Thursday

Posted
Warren County first responders said there were relatively few incidents despite heavy snowfall overnight into Thursday morning.The area received up to 10 inches of snow, but Warren County Ambulance District said there were only two weather-related motor vehicle crashes."That is very light. We were not expecting that," said ambulance district Deputy Chief Darren Lenk. "We were geared up for a lot more."Lenk said the weather hadn't caused any major problems for ambulance crews, and credited Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) for making sure major roadways were clear.Just across the county line in Foristell, one traffic incident involved a MoDOT truck that tipped onto its side on Interstate 70 shortly after noon. One lane of the interstate was closed for about an hour.Wright City Fire Chief Ron MacKnight said the low number of incidents was a break from other winter weather in the past that emergency crews have dealt with."There have been other times when we get a dusting or an inch of snow and we run 15 calls," MacKnight commented. But this time, he said people heeded warnings about the weather. "Everybody stayed off the roads, and MoDOT did a phenomenal job."Timing also played a factor, with the snow coming overnight when few people were on the road, MacKnight added.However, snowfall on the ground does cause issues for emergency vehicles driving off the main roads, MacKnight said. Vehicles responding to a structure fire Thursday morning were slowed slightly because they had to drive over a gravel road that wasn't clear, he said.The camper trailer on fire in this incident was completely involved in flames when firefighters arrived, but MacKnight said it probably would have been a total loss even if the roads were clear. The fire was on West Lane, south of Innsbrook.

Interstate 70 was relatively light on traffic Thursday morning, as road crews worked to clear snow that had accumulated overnight.


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