SIKESTON -- Residents were forced to deal with slick roadways and bitter-cold temperatures on Tuesday after a snow storm moved through the area late Monday.
Seven inches of snow was reported Monday in Sikeston by the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky. The highest amount reported to the NWS was 8 1/2 inches in East Prairie, Mo.
Schools and businesses closed their doors Tuesday while law enforcement personnel, emergency workers and road crews responded to the highways.
As of 9 p.m. Monday, Troop E of the Missouri State Highway Patrol had investigated 41 traffic crashes and 21 slide-offs/stranded motorists and counting.
Some injuries were reported as a result of the snow/ice-related crashes.
At 5:30 p.m. Monday on northbound Interstate 57 at the 0.8 mile marker in Mississippi County, the northbound vehicle driven by Corey D. Spence, 39, of Charleston lost control, ran off the road and overturned in the median. Spence received minor injuries and was taken by private vehicle to Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston.
A Cape Girardeau woman received moderate injuries in a single-vehicle crash late Monday in Scott County. According to the Patrol, at 10:30 p.m. on southbound Interstate 55, four miles south Benton, the vehicle driven by 24-year-old Elizabeth N. Basso ran off the road and overturned. Basso was flown to Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau for treatment.
Then, a Tennessee truck driver was injured in a two-vehicle crash early Tuesday in New Madrid County. According to the Patrol, the crash occurred at 12:30 a.m. on northbound Interstate 55 at the 30-mile marker as a freightliner driven by James E. Harrell, 52, of Memphis, Tenn., lost control on the slick road and was stationary when a northbound vehicle driven by Taylor R. Vernon, 65, of Saline, Ark., struck the vehicle in the rear.
Harrell received minor injuries and was taken by ambulance to Pemiscot County Memorial Hospital in Hayti.
By Tuesday afternoon, the Missouri Department of Transportation, roads were still covered with ice and snow in some places.
In addition to the slick roads, the cold air posed a danger to the region.
The Weather Service issued a wind chill advisory that ended at 11 a.m. Tuesday in portions Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois.
With the advisory, which included Sikeston, Charleston, New Madrid and Benton, wind chills of minus 5 to minus 10 degrees were expected. These cold wind chills can cause frostbite in as little as 30 minutes to exposed skin.
Wind chills continued to make it uncomfortable later in the day and even into Wednesday, the Weather Service said.
By Tuesday afternoon, temperatures climbed through the single digits into the teens, combined with northwest winds at 6 to 12 mph, produced wind chill readings of 5 above to near 10 below zero today.
"These conditions will not only be very uncomfortable, but it will make it difficult for road crews to treat and clear area roadways," the Weather Service said. "People need to be very cautious when traveling, and wear plenty of warm clothing when venturing outside."
Winds dropped off a little Tuesday evening, but with lows in the single digits, wind chill readings overnight were in the zero to 10 below zero range. Wednesday's high is expected to be 24 with a wind chill value as low as minus 6. The low will be around 13. Thursday is expected to be a little warmer with a high near 34.