Snow, Ice Cause Havoc in Oklahoma and Arkansas

Schools closed and vehicles crashed on icy highways in northwest Arkansas on Jan. 20 as a winter storm moved across the state, the second snowstorm this month.

As much as 5 inches of snow was forecast for north Arkansas, with 1 to 2 inches expected in the central part of the state. The storm system had dropped 2 to 3 inches of snow in Oklahoma before heading east.

State police reported that at least five vehicle accidents occurred on the slick roadway of Interstate 530 in northwest Arkansas on Thursday morning.

At least one person was killed in Oklahoma when a vehicle skidded off an icy highway near Cheyenne in Roger Mills County, according to Oklahoma Highway Patrol Capt. Chris West.

Numerous minor accidents were reported in Oklahoma City, in addition to people falling on icy sidewalks, causing head injuries, hip fractures and broken bones, but no life-threatening injuries, according Emergency Medical Services Authority spokeswoman Lara O’Leary.

The University of Arkansas at Fayetteville was among many schools to close because of the winter weather.

“The last report we got from Fayetteville was they were at 2 to 3 inches, but they’ve still got some more coming at them. They could see 4 to 5 inches,” National Weather Service meteorologist Pete Snyder in Tulsa said.

In Oklahoma, schools in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa areas were closed because of the weather, as were the University of Oklahoma in Norman and Oklahoma State University’s Oklahoma City campus.

Northeastern Arkansas around Newport saw some freezing rain that was expected to turn into snow, said meteorologist B.J. Simpson of the National Weather Service Office in North Little Rock.

In central Arkansas, snow will accumulate on grassy areas, but “the question will be on the roadways,” Simpson said. Temperatures might remain above freezing during the day in central Arkansas, which could keep roads from icing, he said.

However, travel is hazardous over much of the northern portion of the state, which was under a winter weather advisory on Thursday. A blast of cold air is expected to follow the precipitation, with lows in the single digits in parts of north Arkansas overnight, Simpson said.

Forecasters said highs would reach the 40s in Arkansas on Saturday, but another round of wintry precipitation would come late Sunday into Monday. It’s too early to predict how severe that next system will be.

Associated Press writers Kurt Voght in Springdale and Ken Miller in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.