Dangerous winter weather in Vinita: Kaitlyn Deggs shares emergency efforts

The snow continues to fall in Vinita, with bone-chilling winds causing wind chills to plummet to -9 degrees. As snow blows in all directions, city and ODOT crews have been working tirelessly to clear roadways, but conditions remain hazardous.

The frigid temperatures and snow accumulation have forced many businesses and schools to close, while some restaurants closed early. City workers have even resorted to leaf blowers outside of City Hall in an effort to keep the snow manageable before needing to scrape it off the sidewalks.

Schools are canceled and many businesses in town are closing early for the day.

LIVE UPDATES: Winter storm bringing icy roads, powdery snow to Northeastern Oklahoma

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OPERATIONS

Jeff Wood is the Director of Emergency Management for Craig County.

He says early Tuesday, the City of Vinita and County Commissioners were pre-treating the roads, especially dangerous intersections, curvy roads, and roads around hospitals and nursing homes.

“We’re going to be monitoring it,” said Wood. “If we get any calls that we need to open shelters, we got some warning stations open right now, but if we need to go overnight we’ll have to open up shelters.”

ADVICE FOR RESIDENTS

Wood says it’s best to avoid being on the road unless you have to.

“If you can stay home, it’s best to stay home,” said Wood. “Don’t get out in this if you don’t have to. That’s the biggest thing.”

He says people need to make sure people are taking care of their homes because this cold can damage them.

“We’re going to get really cold for the next several days,” said Wood. “People ought to watch their water lines. Drop a little water, open their cabinet doors, things like that.”

Wood says if you need to travel, it’s important to pack warm gear and items you need in case you get stranded.

“If you have to travel, make sure you got the right stuff in your car if you get stranded somewhere, extra blankets and things like that,” said Wood.

CLEARING THE SNOW

Workers have been using leaf blower to clear the snow outside City Hall.

“We’re just trying to keep the snow down, at least a little bit, coming back, leaf blowing before we have to come and scrape a whole bunch,” said Trevor Mynatt with the City of Vinita Parks and Cemetery. “Makes it easier on us in the future. Trying to keep it down for all the city workers here at City Hall, and we have a couple of other places too like the Senior Citizens and the library.”

UPDATES FROM LEADERS

Craig County Emergency Management has been putting updates on the storm and on winter conditions on their Facebook page here.

You can find updates on Oklahoma road conditions here.

SCHOOL CLOSURES

Vinita Schools are closed on Tuesday.

See more on our school closings page.