U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris LiaghatNAS Meridian Public Works employee Detrick Drake places salt on the sidewalks around the administration building to help with preventing slips and falls as the ice accumulates from the winter weather passing through the area Friday. NAS shifted to essential personnel only by mid-day Friday, while other agencies closed due to the weather. 

Lauderdale County avoided the worst of a winter weather pattern that hit Mississippi Friday, but officials are reminding residents to remain cautious over the weekend. 

Officers with the Mississippi Highway Patrol and Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department responded to about 20 accidents Friday.

“We’ve responded to more that needed to be pulled out (without damage),” said Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop H Sgt. Andy West. “But we don’t keep a count of those.”

“It has calmed down at this point in time,” Calhoun said around 1:30 Friday. “There were bridges with icing earlier and we anticipate that again in the evening.”

The threat of severe weather caused many local schools and organizations to close for the day, including Meridian Public Schools and Lauderdale County Schools. 

The National Weather Service predicted a cold upcoming weekend, with gusts of wind as high as 20 mph.

“(Saturday) morning there will be some leftover frozen precipitation but that will melt as the sun rises,” a forecaster with the NWS said. “It will be in the single digits (Saturday) morning and lower teens on Sunday morning.”

According to a map from the NWS from 3 p.m., the northwestern part of the state will receive snow. Central and southern Mississippi will receive a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain.  

“We urge people that if they have to drive to drive slowly,” Calhoun said. “Leave plenty of distance between cars and be extra cautious on bridges and other elevated points. You might not even be able to see the ice if it’s there.”

The Mississippi Department of Transportation reported various accidents and delays due to the winter weather and stressed that drivers should be careful.

MDOT reported ice in the following counties: Alcorn, Attala, Benton, Bolivar, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clay, Copiah, DeSoto, Grenada, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Jefferson, Kemper, Lauderdale, Leflore, Lowndes, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Newton, Oktibbeha, Panola, Prentiss, Quitman, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tate, Tippah, Tishomingo, Tunica, Warren, Washington, Webster, Winston and Yazoo.

MDOT encouraged the public to limit travel only in case of emergency and to pay close attention to weather and travel advisories issued by the National Weather Service, Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, the Mississippi Highway Patrol and local law enforcement.

The agency offered the following tips: buckle up for safety; slow down, especially when driving in winter weather conditions, allow more space between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you; brake early to allow plenty of time to stop; brake gently to avoid skidding and never slam on the brakes; turn on lights to be more visible to other motorists; do not use cruise control or overdrive on icy roads; stay alert and look farther ahead in traffic than you normally do..

Due to hazardous travel conditions caused by falling temperatures, Mississippi Power offices in Clarke, Lauderdale, Leake, Newton, Neshoba and Scott Counties closed at 3 p.m. on Friday. Line crews remained prepared to restore service as needed.

Customers can report and monitor the status of an outage from their tablet, smart phone or computer by visiting Mississippi Power’s online outage map. Mississippi Power customers can also report an outage at 1-800-ITS-DARK.

The East Mississippi Electric Power Association encouraged its members to stay indoors and off the roads if at all possible. EMEPA its offices at 1 p.m. on Friday but dispatchers remained on duty.

EMEPA offered the following tips: when using emergency heating equipment and kerosene heaters, maintain ventilation to avoid a build-up of toxic fumes and always refuel outside the home. Vehicles should be fueled and in good repair with adequate antifreeze. Insulate pipes with insulation or newspapers and plastic and allow faucets in unheated areas to drip a little during cold weather to avoid freezing.

EMEPA also encouraged members to check on neighbors, friends and family during extreme winter conditions and remember to provide pets with a warm place to take shelter from the extreme cold.

To report an outage or downed power line, call EMEPA at 601-581-8600.