SURPRISE SNOWSTORM DUMPS 8 INCHES ON SOME AREAS

Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois residents were surprised when they awoke Monday to the first significant snow of the season.

A 30-mile-wide area from Poplar Bluff to Marion, Ill., received 3 to 8 inches of snow. It closed schools, created slippery roads and stranded motorists in portions of Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois.

There were no reports of serious weather-related problems, but authorities throughout the two-state area had numerous reports of cars sliding off roads and minor vehicle accidents.

The National Weather Service at St. Louis reported heavy snow -- from 5 to 7 inches -- fell in Marble Hill, which is in Bollinger County. The Weather Service in Paducah, Ky., said the heaviest snow in Illinois was 8 inches in Zeigler, a small town about 15 miles northeast of Carbondale.

Monday morning's 3 inches of snow in Cape Girardeau was not the first of the season here: The area received two-tenths of an inch of snow over the weekend of Nov. 9-10, but it melted quickly because of the warm ground.

More snow may be on its way.

Today's forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies with a chance of flurries and a high temperature in the low 30s. The extended forecast through Friday calls for very cold temperatures with lows around zero and highs in the mid-20s, with chances of snow.

The Cape Girardeau Public Works Department was called out Monday about 3 a.m.

"The weather surprised us," said street foreman Harry Salazar. "We weren't expecting that much snow."

The Missouri Weather Cooperative at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport reported that just under 3 inches fell through 9 a.m. Monday.

Workers were out in three trucks by 3:45 a.m. plowing snow off the streets. By 5 a.m., all seven big trucks and a city pickup were out.

"We didn't have to use any material," said Salazar. "The snow was wet, so it was easy to get off the streets with plows."

Salazar said there could be some slick streets with a hard freeze.

Warming temperatures during the day Monday melted much of the snow, but below-freezing temperatures were forecast Monday night.

The first noticeable snow created markets for sales of winter items.

Salt was cleaned off the shelves in a hurry at True Value Hardware in Town Plaza Shopping Center. The brisk sales sent staff to a warehouse to restock.

In Marble Hill people were buying salt and other ice-melting chemicals and snow shovels.

Sleds were in high demand at Cape Girardeau businesses. One business, Wal-Mart, had plenty of snow equipment in stock. "We sold a bunch of them," said a store spokesman. "Sleds and snow shovels were in high demand."

In Carbondale, customers were waiting at the True Value Store in Murdale Shopping Center.

"They cleaned us out of shovels and salt in a short period of time," said assistant manager Tina Crisp. "We had to restock."

The snow caught most people by surprise.

As late as 11:30 p.m. Sunday the National Weather Service was predicting rain, possibly freezing rain, but no snow. That crept into the forecast soon after midnight.

The Illinois State Patrol reported one-lane traffic on each side of Interstate 57, but all the lanes were open by mid-morning.

"A semi-tractor-trailer truck overturned on Interstate 24 near Metropolis," said trooper Dave Turner. "Traffic was tied up awhile," he said.

Turner said patrol headquarters at DuQuoin received 20 to 25 reports of motorists sliding off highways.

A semi-tractor rig also turned over in the Marble Hill area, said Sgt. Travis Rose of the Bollinger County Sheriff's Department. The rig was carrying motor oil, which spilled on the highway. "But the oil was in containers, and no problem was created," said Turner.

He said about a dozen accidents had been reported during the early-morning hours.

A number of vehicles had problems traveling on Cape Girardeau streets during the early morning, but only three accidents that resulted in vehicles being towed were reported.