Wintry weather leads to multiple accidents in Cape Girardeau

Ber weather led to multiple vehicle accidents and headaches for motorists Monday night into Tuesday morning in Cape Girardeau and the surrounding area.

The Cape Girardeau Police Department responded to multiple weather-related traffic calls Monday night into Tuesday, Cape Girardeau police Sgt. Joey Hann wrote in a text message Tuesday.

Two vehicles collided at Bloomfield Road and Wolf Lane in Cape Girardeau on Tuesday morning, one vehicle requiring extrication, Hann wrote.

One vehicle left the road and struck a tree, and the driver had to be extricated from the vehicle, Hann wrote. The driver was transported by ambulance to a local hospital.

“This accident, like our others, were weather related,” Hann wrote, adding overpasses were most affected — the cold air under exposed roadways contributed to freezing.

Several secondary roads, specifically those with a steep grade, were also slick Monday night into Tuesday, Hann wrote.

Brian Okenfuss, area engineer with the Missouri Department of Transportation, said as the Monday night storm moved through Cape Girardeau County, “we noticed roads were starting to get covered in sleet and ice.”

That meant some dangerous conditions Tuesday morning, but, “In the morning hours, the sun came out, helping us out quite a bit,” Okenfuss said.

The sun warmed the pavement and allowed accumulated snow and ice to melt faster, even as temperatures hovered around freezing, Okenfuss said Tuesday afternoon.

Temperatures climbed into the upper 30s Tuesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Over the weekend, at least five people died in weather-related crashes in Missouri, according to The Associated Press. Storms dumped nearly a foot of snow in places, and led to school closures.

In a tweet Sunday night, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said it had responded to 525 calls from stranded motorists and to nearly 560 other traffic crashes.

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Winter driving tips from AAA

n Stay home. Only go out if necessary. Even if you can drive well in bad weather, it's better to avoid taking unnecessary risks by venturing out.

n Drive slowly. Always adjust your speed down to account for lower traction when driving on snow or ice.

n Don't stop if you can avoid it. There's a big difference in the amount of inertia it takes to start moving from a full stop versus how much it takes to get moving while still rolling. If you can slow down enough to keep rolling until a traffic light changes, do it.

n Don't power up hills. Applying extra gas on snow-covered roads will just make your wheels spin. Try to get a little inertia going before you reach the hill and let that inertia carry you to the top. As you reach the crest of the hill, reduce your speed and proceed downhill slowly.

n Don't stop going up a hill. There's nothing worse than trying to get moving up a hill on an icy road. Get some inertia going on a flat roadway before you take on the hill.

Source: AAA.com