Schools Close Again Following Winter Storm

Spring is a little more than a month away, but area residents are getting every last drop of winter in the meantime.

Another round of a wintry mix struck last week. While the National Weather Service forecast three to five inches of snow, it never quite materialized, dumping at most a couple.

The latest round began Tuesday night with some freezing rain. Schools around the area, including Bourbon, closed their doors on Wednesday. 

Massive snowflakes fell from the skies that afternoon  and covered the roadways.

The snow eventually tapered off, but the cold temperatures and ground made for some slick driving conditions.

Schools were closed again Thursday as temperatures failed to rebound above freezing and thaw out the back roads.

Troop I of the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported two accidents attributed to the icy roadways.

An accident Wednesday on Interstate 44 at the 135 mile marker in Laclede County led to serious injuries for a pair of Buffalo residents.

Robert Sherman, 52, and Sheri Sherman, 57, were traveling in a 1995 Ford F-150 when they traveled off the roadway and overturned. Robert Sherman, was not wearing a safety device and ejected from the vehicle. Both occupants were taken to Mercy Hospital in Springfield.

Later Wednesday, an accident on Highway 63 in Phelps County resulted in two passengers having moderate injuries.

A 2019 Ford F-150 driven by Robert Rippee, 52, St. Charles slid on the ice-covered roadway, crossed the center line and struck a 2015 Chevrolet Impala, driven by Olen Gibson, 79, Licking.

Gibson had minor injuries.

Frances Gibson, 77, and Doris Lay, 96, had moderate injuries and were treated at Phelps Hospital in Rolla.

Also on Wednesday, a 2005 Toyota driven by Garry Drake, 67, Newburg, slid on the slush-covered road on Highway T in Phelps County. Drake’s vehicle traveled off the left side of the road and struck a tree. He had minor injuries.