North Texas Preps For Another Winter Storm
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DENTON COUNTY
Just last week Denton streets were covered in ice and snow, some of which hasn't event melted yet.
The city began sanding streets once again around three Wednesday afternoon. Crews will be out in full force all evening.
Meanwhile CBS 11's Brian New found people like Marcos Garcia, who like many of the college students here, rely on the county's bus service to get around. He said he is paying closer attention to the weather after what happened to him last week.
"I remember last week, the buses were shut down and I had to walk to the train station and that took 35 minutes in the slippery ice, so that was pretty bad," he said.
Along with sanding trucks, the city says it has a handful of snow plows on standby. They are preparing for a powerful, yet hopefully, short storm.
DALLAS COUNTY
NTTA Tollway road crews spent Wednesday morning and afternoon loading up and dumping sand in Dallas County. The City of Dallas and TX-Dot crews are now working 12-hour shifts preparing for a cold, icy night.
TX-DOT staffers were monitoring their roadway cameras hoping for a break in the rainfall so they could apply more of that saltwater brine, but it just didn't happen. They believe that brine helped keep the ice from forming so fast during last week's ice storm.
Before the rain started, they were able to pre-treat the High Five and most of those busy roadways that they know will give drivers trouble.
This is the first year that Dallas TX-DOT crews have used the brine mixture to pre-treat roadways and they say they have been pleased with the results.
"Part of it is because you can put the stuff down so early and it'll stay on the road. It'll survive rain storms, it'll survive traffic and still be effective the second a snowflake hits it. So the stuff we put down earlier in week for the storm just a few days ago, will still have some effect and we'll still go back and do some touchups," said Ryan LaFontaine.
They can treat roadways before the rain starts. But, once it does they just have to wait for the ice and treat those trouble spots then.
TARRANT COUNTY
TXDOT crews in Fort Worth have been
out and pre- treating roads since Tuesday night.
Obviously, a lot has changed temperature wise from last night to today and it's going to change again through the evening and into the morning rush.
However, TX DOT says it's keeping a close eye on the changing weather and they've got supplies and a plan in place:
"We have plenty of supplies to last us for another multi-day event if that happens. The granular solution...turn it into slush," said
The main concern tonight for drivers all throughout the area are the overpasses and bridges like the 7th Street Bridge.
COLLIN COUNTY
Early Wednesday morning NTTA crews prepared for a new shift of road treatment by mixing sand, but most of the day saw nothing but rain falling from the sky. That left people across Collin County making preparations of their own with umbrellas and anything to keep the rain off them. The weather has led some to look for extreme measures to stay dry.
Employees in the fishing and hunting section of Cabela's tell us the rainfall is drawing more and more customers to the fishing and hunting sections looking for added protection. Now gear intended for anglers in torrential downpours and extreme conditions is flying off the racks to people who may have never picked up a fishing pole, but just want the gear for everyday wear.
But for some, not even a change of clothes is enough to make this weather bearable.
"I'm a stay-at-home mom, so I get bored. I want to get out and do stuff. I want to get back to my regular activities, and I want the kids to be at school learning, not at home," said stay at home mom Julie Binion.
