Crews prep for second round of winter weather

MADISON COUNTY, Tenn. — Local officials spoke about preparations to prepare the area for a second day of winter.

“At the moment we are pre-salting. The moisture on the road is just right to pre-treat it with salt, rock salt,” said Johnny Weddle, the superintendent of the Jackson Roads Authority.

A lot of people we spoke to expect Tuesday night to be worse than last night. With the greater chance of snow in this frigid weather, many local counties and cities are bracing for a worse result than they expected last night.

“We started with a truck this morning. We hired two trucks. We salted over 35 bridges in the city of Jackson this morning. I’m kinda expecting more from this second round,” Weddle said.

TDOT say they feel like they know where the worst will be on Tuesday night.

The salt trucks and snow plows are ready when they are needed. They use a calcium chloride additive in their brine to help melt any precipitation that falls on the streets over the next few hours.

“I think this system will be a bit more south. So the systems along I-40 and south of I-40. We’ll have our crews ready to go out there and fight the system as needed,” said Nichole Lawrence, the community relations officer for TDOT.

TDOT urges people to stay safe for the foreseeable future. You want to make sure you know the current state of the roads at all times before you set off.

They say patience and flexibility are important in these weather conditions. TDOT’s SmartWay app is a great place to search for dangerous roads.

“I always want to add that people who don’t have to be outside in these conditions are trying to stay at home or work from home. But if you do, plan ahead. You know, go earlier, go later. Just try to be flexible to adjust your travel times when you can,” Lawrence said.

Chester and Henderson County road wardens said their main concern is tree branches falling onto the road.

Both said they were prepared and would release them as soon as possible.

Find live radar, hourly forecasts and more at WBBJ Weather App.