Freezing rain slams S.W. Missouri

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A significant winter storm brought freezing rain, sleet and thunderstorms to southwest Missouri early Monday, leaving an icy crust more than an inch thick in places and causing schools and courthouses to close.

State road crews repeatedly put down salt and plowed aside the resulting slush, but streets and highways remained slippery. The Missouri State Highway Patrol urged people in the area to stay home if possible.

Hundreds of people lost power as lines and limbs iced over. Empire District said about 2,000 customers were out in Ozark, about 10 miles south of Springfield. Joplin-based Empire serves about 164,000 customers in a four-state area.

Springfield's City Utilities reported about 1,500 of its 106,000 customers lost electricity.