Norman city offices, rec centers closed Monday due to winter storm; crews pretreating roadways
NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) – The City of Norman's administrative offices and recreation centers will be closed on Monday in light of the dangerous winter storm hitting Central Oklahoma.
City officials issued a news release announcing the closures as a massive winter storm approaches.
The 4Warn Forecast has the following outlook for the next six days:
- A 20 percent chance of snow showers with a temperature high of 20 degrees and low of 7 degrees on Saturday;
- A 100 percent chance of blizzards with a high of 9 degrees and a low of -3 degrees on Sunday;
- A 30 percent chance of heavy snow with a high of 6 degrees and a low of -10 degrees on Monday;
- A 40 percent chance of flurries with a high of 10 degrees and a low of 6 degrees of Tuesday;
- A 60 percent chance of heavy snow on Wednesday with a high of 16 degrees and a low of 5 degrees;
- A 20 percent chance of flurries with a high of 18 degrees and low of 5 degrees on Thursday.
Residents in need of shelter or assistance are urged to call the help hotline at 2-1-1 or go to the city's website – www.normanok.gov – for additional homeless resources.
Public works crews have been pretreating bridges, overpasses and major intersections with brine and salt.
"The primary snow routes are being treated first, followed by secondary routes as resources permit. Crews will continue to monitor the situation and remain on standby to perform clearing operations as needed," the news release states.
City officials do not anticipate regular trash collection being impacted by the snow storm. Officials will announce any condition changes.
Officials ask community members to do the following when driving during icy conditions:
- Allow extra space between vehicles to provide adequate distance for braking.
- Be aware of black ice, which looks wet on the roadway but is a thin layer of ice.
- Accelerate and decelerate slowly.
- Do not use cruise control.
- Be patient, plan trips ahead and allow for extra time in reaching destinations.
- Avoid unnecessary travel.
- Keep a bundle of cold-weather gear in your car, such as extra food and water, warm clothing a flashlight, a glass scraper, blankets, medications and more.
Community members are reminded to let faucets drip and open cabinet doors during freezing temperatures to prevent pipe bursts and flooding.