Local law enforcement worked a dozen non-injury traffic accidents as of 10:15 a.m. today by the time snow tapered off from a storm that dumped 4 inches of snow on Mt. Sterling overnight into this morning, according to authorities.
The north end of the county appeared to have gotten the most snowfall, authorities said.
Two and a half inches of snow were reported in Jeffersonville and 3 and a half inches in Camargo, Emergency Management Director Greg Beam told the Advocate.
Beam had not received a snow report from Judy as of 10:15 a.m.
Considering the depth of the snowfall, you might have expected even more accidents, 911 Center dispatch supervisor Gary Chaffins said.
"It was not nearly as many as we thought it would be," he said.
The early warnings about the storm kept many people off the roadways and likely prevented more accidents, Chaffins said.
Most of the accidents involved vehicles that slipped off the roadway. None of the accidents involved injuries, authorities said.
Early this morning, Sheriff David Charles shared a photo of conditions on Interstate 64. He said his office was responding to multiple vehicles that had slid out of roadways.
"Reduce your speed, increase your stopping distances and wear your seat belt. I can't stress this enough," Charles wrote.
Beam said there was a semi that overturned on Orear Road Friday morning, but there were no spills and no injuries. The truck did not belong to Rumpke, which operates the landfill on Orear Road, he said.
No local power outages were reported, Beam said.
Montgomery County Schools were closed today due to the weather. It was a regular snow day.
Schools were also closed Monday and a Non-Traditional Instructional day was in place.
Mt. Sterling Mayor Al Botts said Public Works crews were dispatched just after midnight due to the accumulating snowfall.
"The length of the weather system created some challenges for our crews to clear roads and streets. Thankfully the temperatures were warm enough to allow the salt to work. We are down one vehicle due to maintenance issues, so they've done a tremendous job covering for each other. We appreciate the public's patience with our team as they clear the streets.
The mayor added, "I know these snowfalls create a nuisance for many. I hope everyone knows that our teams work very hard to get the roads in good shape as quickly as possible. And, if we miss something, just let us know and we will get it addressed ASAP. If we could ask for one bit of help from the public, it would be to have residents park off of roadways and in driveways, if available, during these snowfalls."
Botts said crews often have a hard time clearing streets when a lot of vehicles are parked on the street.
"I'm really pleased with our response, and also appreciate all of the hard work state and county crews put in also," he told the Advocate.
The road crew was called out about 11:30 p.m. Thursday night, Montgomery County Judge-Executive Chris Haddix said.
"They were able to make multiple passes plowing snow and distributing salt on county roads throughout the night. According to our road supervisor, Mark Walters, they used approximately 150 tons of salt," Haddix said.
Haddix added, "I am extremely proud of our road crew for always being willing to come out at any hour and stay until the job is done. I also want to thank our first responders for their efforts in keeping us all safe."
He also thanked the public.
"Thank you to everyone for your patience during inclement weather, our crews are doing everything possible to keep our roads safe. If you need to be out on the roads, please give yourself extra time to reach your destination," Haddix said.
As of the time of this posting, the National Weather Service in Jackson was forecasting new snow accumulation of one to two inches overnight Saturday.
Sunday's forecast calls for extremely cold temperatures with highs just in the teens.
Be sure to check out next week's Advocate for additional details about the weekend's winter weather.
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