Alabama Emergency Management Agency Urges Residents to Avoid All Travel After 5 PM Tonight
The Alabama Emergency Management Agency is urging residents to complete necessary shopping or travel before 5 p.m. tonight (Sunday, February 14).
The EMA's guidance comes in advance of an approaching winter storm that could bring freeing rain to West Alabama.
"If you live near or north of I-59, you should have all preparations (shopping, shelter needs, etc.) completed by 5 pm today. Treacherous travel conditions will start this evening, and especially on Monday," said EMA Meteorologist Jim Stefkovich.
"Besides the potential of trees falling on power line and power outages that could extend for several days at some locations, my personal concern will be motorists stranded on icy roadways, similar to the 2014 event," Stefkovich added.
Freezing rain is expected to enter West Alabama around 6 p.m. tonight and last through 8 a.m. Monday morning with a second and more significant round of freezing rain to begin Monday around 12 noon.
"Ice accumulation amounts will be around 0.10 inch or less, but even this amount will cause treacherous driving conditions," Stefkovich said.
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