Slick roads lead to 12 early morning accidents in Cape Girardeau

A wintry mix that accumulated on roadways made travel treacherous for some drivers late Monday night and early this morning and was blamed for numerous motor vehicle accidents throughout Southeast Missouri, including 12 in Cape Girardeau alone.

However, Sgt. Kevin Orr of the Cape Girardeau Police Department's traffic division said the situation didn’t compare to Dec. 23, 2008, when freezing rain caused nearly 40 weather-related traffic accidents in the city and walking conditions were unsafe for pedestrians.

"We had reports throughout the night of drivers losing control of their vehicles and sliding off the roadway Monday and Tuesday," Orr said. "But this was not even close to what we had over Christmas. It just doesn’t even compare."

Temperatures throughout Southeast Missouri struggled to reach above freezing during the morning hours today. By mid-afternoon, the temperature in Cape Girardeau had not climbed above 32 degrees. The last time Cape Girardeau was above freezing was 8:53 p.m. on Jan. 4, when the National Weather Service recorded a temperature of 33 degrees.

The area had been under a winter weather advisory since 6 p.m. on Jan. 5 and expired at noon today. The Cape Girardeau Regional Airport recorded light freezing rain from 11:53 p.m. Jan. 5 and 12:03 today.

According to Ben Harrison of the Scott City Police Department, at around 10:07 p.m. Jan. 5 a motor vehicle accident between mile marker 89 and 92 on Interstate 55 shut down both the northbound and southbound lanes through early this morning. Several motorists had to be transported to the hospital, Harrison said. Traffic was backed up for several hours but had returned to normal by 1 a.m. today.

In Cape Girardeau, most of the accidents occurred on Interstate 55. Two of 12 weather-related traffic accidents were injury related, Orr said.

The first injury accident occurred at 7:07 p.m. when a motorist struck a light pole at the intersection of Kenneth Drive and Carriage Crossing. The motorist sustained minor injuries but refused to be transported to the hospital.

The other crash occurred later in the evening when emergency crews responded to an injury accident on the Missouri side of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge around 11:10 p.m. Highway 74 had been blocked to traffic while firefighters and emergency personnel responded to the crash. At least one individual involved in the wreck was transported to a nearby hospital.

Icy conditions also forced Missouri State Highway Patrol to shut down a part of Highway 25 late Monday night near Gordonville. The road reopened earlier this morning.

The National Weather Service expects temperatures to climb above the freezing mark and reach 38 degrees. Tonight’s forecast calls for a 30 percent chance of rain and snow, with a low around 30 degrees.

Southeast Missourian reporter Bridgette DiCosmo contributed to this story.

bblackwell@semissourian.com

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