City, county continue to treat icy roads
Jan. 31—Roads crews with the city of McAlester and Pittsburg County continued to treat icy road conditions with winter precipitation falling at intermittent times and more in the forecast.
McAlester City Manager Dave Andren said city crews worked into the night and were back again early Tuesday.
"They've been going nonstop," Andren said.
He said a call came in asking the city to help the hospital by helping clear the entrance to the Emergency Department at the McAlester Regional Health Center, with motorists entering the ED entrance having to drive up an incline to reach it.
Andren said some city streets were passable as of early Tuesday "if you have a vehicle that does well in the snow," such as a four-wheel drive. He said he's seen pickups fishtailing at times.
While city crews continue to work on city streets, Andren said salting them isn't working as well as it would if the temperatures were not remaining so low.
"It's so cold, that the salt melts the ice, but it refreezes," said Andren. When city crews use blades to clear even a thin layer of ice, the blades go straight to the concrete or asphalt, damaging the street and the blade, then the spot freezes again as more precipitation falls on it, he said.
Although City Hall was closed Tuesday due to the icy weather, city officials hoped to hold a planned city council meeting Tuesday night because of the need to pay claims and for the council to consider a bid due to expire Wednesday on a new fire engine.
We're putting salt down on the entryways to City Hall," said Andren, who volunteered to pick up council members in his 4-wheel drive Jeep if they need a lift from home due to the icy conditions.
In the meantime, city crews will continue working on the icy city streets.
"They're out there working their tails off," said Andren.
County crews were working into the night and returning in the morning to treat county roads.
"The more time went by, the worse it got," said District 3 Commissioner Ross Selman of the rapidly-changing conditions.
District 2 Pittsburg County Commissioner Kevin Smith also observed the changing conditions.
"It's slick," Smith said Tuesday.
"It seems like some roads are worse than others," said Smith, whose district includes much of southern Pittsburg County. For some reason, many of the county roads in District 2 running north and south were worse than the ones running east and west. Smith said he didn't know the reason, but those are the conditions he observed.
He said county works crews are continuing to salt and sand the trouble spots, with changing conditions adding to the challenge.
"Some places that didn't seem that slick in the morning, you go back in the evening and it's slick, so we bring the salt back," Smith said.
He said District 2 had plenty of salt when the winter precipitation first hit this week, but county crews have used lots of it. That's led to the need to replenish supplies.
"I had a lot when it started," Smith said. Now, he's getting more supplies from additional sources.
"We've bought salt locally; we've bought salt at Ada and at Atoka," Smith said.
Like the other commissioners and McAlester city officials, Smith is waiting to see what the next few days bring.
"It's sleeting up here now," Smith said.
