FAYETTEVILLE, AR— As winter weather is expected to hit Arkansas hard this week, the utility and road crews are preparing to handle the storms and advise the residents to do the same.
“The key is planning, preparation, and communication,” said ARDOT Public Information Officer Dave Parker.
The crews already started with pretreating the roads on Feb.1, but the rain makes it difficult to get ahead of the storm.
“It changes our game plan a bit,” Parker said. “In that, we will not be using the salt brine to prepare the roads.”
ARDOT said that they will not use salt brine as the rain will wash it away, so they will use rock salt instead. They will also have chainsaws ready to deal with any fallen trees on the road.
“That could mean power outages,” Parker said. “With ice on trees, trees fall in the wind. They fall on the power lines.”
If you have a generator, make sure it’s working properly in case you’re faced with a power outage.
“You want to make sure the oils changed, the spark plugs are changed out, air filters,” said paschal service electrician David Wilson.
Wilson says to run your generator before you need to use it and if you have one you must manually start.
“The main power coming into the house must be turned off because you’re powering it from that source,” said Wilson.
The utilities’ director for the City of Fayetteville Tim Nyander reminds you to check the pipes inside the house, as they can also freeze.
To prevent this, turn your thermostat to minimum 66 degrees, drip your faucets, remove water hoses and leave your cabinets open.
“First of all, use a hairdryer or rag soaked with hot water to thaw the lines. Do not use an open flame,” said Tim Nyander, Utilities Director for the City of Fayetteville.
If you have a burst water pipe, shut off the water supply valve at the location.
