Oklahoma Now Closed - Yes, the entire state!

Spectre

Spectre

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Per CNN:

Winter storm forces interstates, turnpikes closed in Oklahoma
December 25, 2009 -- Updated 0015 GMT (0815 HKT)

* NEW: Oklahoma governor orders state roads, interstates, turnpikes closed after declaring emergency
* Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City closes, reports 12 inches of snow
* Louisiana man killed when tree falls on house during strong winds
* Storm likely will affect travel plans, Weather Service warns

(CNN) -- Oklahoma's governor ordered every state highway, interstate and turnpike closed Thursday night, hours after declaring a statewide emergency because of a major winter storm battering the state and the rest of the central U.S.

"I am urging all Oklahomans to take winter storm precautions and stay off the roads unless travel is absolutely necessary," Gov. Brad Henry said earlier in the day after declaring a state of emergency. "This is a very serious winter storm, and we want Oklahomans to stay safe."

Heavy snow and limited visibility has left treacherous road conditions in Oklahoma on Christmas Eve, snarling holiday travel, according to CNN affiliate KOCO-TV.

In Midwest City, Oklahoma, nearly 50 vehicles were involved in a chain-reaction accident, the station reported. The quickly accumulating snow also caused the roof collapse of a well-known, landmark furniture store in Oklahoma City, officials told KOCO-TV.

One motorist was killed Thursday in the storm on Interstate 44, south of Lawton, Oklahoma, Comanche County Public Information Officer Chris Killmer told CNN. Killmer said there are hundreds of car accidents and stranded motorists in Comanche County. He said officials were still sending out people to find stranded motorists. They had already rescued between 65 and 70 from the conditions Thursday.

A band of extremely heavy snow, capable of producing up to 4 inches of snow per hour, and isolated thunder was moving into northeast Oklahoma Thursday night, according to the National Weather Service.

Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City reported 13 inches of snow and was closed Thursday night. The airport's Web site said it did not expect to re-open Thursday night but should be open Friday morning.

In the past 106 years, residents of Oklahoma City have only awakened to snow six times on Christmas morning, CNN's Sean Morris said.

Blizzard warnings have been issued for central and southwestern Oklahoma, including Oklahoma City, and parts of northwestern Texas. Blizzard warnings also were issued for Nebraska, extreme western Iowa, western Missouri, North Dakota, much of north-central and northeastern South Dakota, and the Duluth area in Minnesota.

The Minneapolis Department of Transportation urged motorists to stay off the road Thursday night, saying it would be "life-threatening" based on forecasts from the Weather Service. The Minneapolis-St. Paul area had received about 4 to 7 inches of snow Thursday night from the storm, CNN affiliate KARE-TV reported.

Minnesota State Patrol Capt. Matt Langer told CNN that between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Thursday, the department had responded statewide to 630 calls regarding vehicles that went off the roadway, 276 property damage crashes and 60 personal injury crashes. He said there were no fatalities in any of those accidents, though one person was killed in a storm-related accident Wednesday night.

Northwest Texas has already seen between 3 and 7 inches of snow with 4-foot drifts, Morris said.

The Weather Service is forecasting up to 2 inches of snow in northwestern suburbs of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro.

"Anyone with travel plans over the Christmas holiday period should keep up to date with the latest weather information," said the Weather Service office in Duluth, Minnesota. "It should be emphasized that dangerous travel conditions will exist across most of the region from late tonight through Christmas."

A Louisiana man was killed Thursday when strong wind caused a tree to fall on his house, police told CNN affiliate KATC in Lafayette.

Police in Scott, just outside Lafayette, identified the victim as Ryan Hebert, 44.

Localized flooding was reported in and around Little Rock, Arkansas, after heavy rain fell throughout Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

An ice storm warning has been lifted for most of the Chicago metro area, but continues in the far southeastern suburbs.

An ice storm warning is also in effect for the mountains of North Carolina and southwestern Virginia. A winter storm watch is in effect for the mountains of western Virginia and northeastern West Virginia.

Over a quarter-inch of ice is expected on trees, power lines, overpasses, bridges and highways. But the freezing rain is expected to change over to rain later Thursday, and road conditions in the area are expected to improve across the region by midafternoon Thursday.

Flood watches, warnings and advisories have been issued for much of Missouri and Illinois, where several inches of rain is causing flooding in streams and rivers.

The inclement weather is the second major storm system to hit the United States in a week. Last weekend, a nor'easter blanketed a swath of the East Coast in snow, forcing the cancellation of hundreds of flights.
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Video at the link. Basically, Oklahoma is now snowed under and is closed for business.
 
I guess that's the difficult thing for states like this where:
1. Large amounts of snowfall not expected so it doesn't make sense to have all the infrastructure in place for dealing with this
2. And the few times the snow really falls everyone is screwed
 
Well, finally. I always thought we were building the wall along the wrong border...

(I keed, I keed. :p)
 
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*epp_b lulz at people going nuts over a breezy snowfall* :canadian:

I mean, for crying out loud, there's still bare pavement! :rolleyes:
 
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Eh, nobody was gonna go there, anyway.

Sorry, Clockwerk. :D
 
epp_b said:
I mean, for crying out loud, there's still bare pavement :rolleyes:
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Not anymore:lol:. Here in Tulsa we had a nice 4 hours of ice and sleet followed by another ~6 hours of snow (it's still snowing), also take into account we really are not outfitted to handle large amounts of snow (read: no snow plows) and the snow can really add up. It's not an issue of driving skill anymore, it's a matter of vehicle clearance on the streets here.
 
It's where they put the casinos so we don't have to have them in Texas. :p
 
I figured it'd just be closed for lack of interest.

Someone had to say it.
 
Spectre said:
It's where they put the casinos so we don't have to have them in Texas. :p
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Au contraire...that's Louisiana and New Mexico, too.

Okieland is the one with midwesterners in it.
 
< is angry, disappointed and bitter because her snow didn't stick :cry:
 
Can I just say, I understand how adversely this is effecting everything there (since I'm down in Texas right now and experiencing it the same way) but as a Wyoming native I have to laugh at the sheer chaos going on. This is normal for us from October through June. :lol:

Spectre said:
It's where they put the casinos so we don't have to have them in Texas. :p
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Before my Grandmother died last year we flew down over Halloween to see her while she was still up and around, and she made us take her to Winstar. I walked in with $150 (after she gave me $100) and walked out with $273 or so after playing 3 different slot machines for a total of about 15 minutes. It was somewhat sad though, that was the first time in probably a decade or two that she lost the money she went in with, normally she'd go on vacation and stop in at any casinos along the way and only playing slots make $500-1000 easy.
 
Nabster said:
Can I just say, I understand how adversely this is effecting everything there (since I'm down in Texas right now and experiencing it the same way) but as a Wyoming native I have to laugh at the sheer chaos going on. This is normal for us from October through June. :lol:
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Yeah, even as a Texan I laugh at the idiots. Its not that hard to drive on slightly snowy road.
 
Snow my ass. I would hijack a plane to get the snow over here, but then it would just melt halfway through. :(
 
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