UPDATE: Snow continued to fall at a steady pace into the night in Woodward. Between 7 and 9 inches had fallen by 10:30 p.m., and the near blizzard conditions forced the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to close U. S. Highway 270 between Woodward and Seiling just after 10:30 p.m.
Snow began falling in Woodward around 5 p.m. and has not let up. There was little traffic on city streets during the late evening.
The snow was forecast to continue until sometime Saturday morning. All of Northwest Oklahoma is under a blizzard warning until 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Several other roads were closed in the area, including virtually every highway in the Panhandle and U. S. 412 between Fort Supply and Guymon, one of the major east-west arteries in the state.
There were reports of over 25 inches of snow in the Fort Supply area and well over a foot in other communities in Northwest Oklahoma. The snow continued to fall at a slower pace Saturday morning.
All travel was treacherous at best with even emergency vehicles getting stuck in patches of heavy snow.
An ambulance traveling to the scene of an accident 14 miles southeast of Woodward rolled onto its side Friday morning after the driver lost control on an icy roadway .
The accident served as a reminder that motorists should stay home because of a treacherous snow storm moving through the area, said County and City Emergency Management Director Matt Lehenbauer.
No one in the ambulance was injured. However, a person in the accident the ambulance was traveling toward was hurt and had to be picked up by emergency help from Seiling, Lehenbauer said.
Woodward by noon Friday had received about a quarter of an inch of ice, while heavy snow and blizzard conditions were hitting the Panhandle and Harper County.
On the Weather Channel Friday morning, the word, “blizzard,” was written across the state of Oklahoma, covering an area between Kansas City, Kan., and Dallas, Texas.
Gov. Brad Henry declared a state of emergency for 50 counties in the state.
“Ice and snow resulting from this winter storm poses serious challenges to everything from roads to power lines, so it is critical that we be prepared for the worst,” Henry said.
The executive order enabled state agencies to make emergency purchases needed to expedite delivery of resources to local areas. In addition, it provided a first step toward seeking federal help should it be necessary. Included in the order were Woodward, Harper, Dewey and Ellis counties.
While Woodward was experiencing ice, Buffalo and areas in Harper County were under blizzard conditions, losing power for a couple of hours early Friday morning.
“We got the power back about 8 a.m.,” said Kim Clouting, dispatcher for the Harper County Sheriff’s Department.
Clouting, who was contacted about 10 a.m., called the weather in her area “bad” and said, “We discourage any traveling.”
“We have an accumulation of ice and snow between three and four inches right now,” she said. “It’s blowing really hard. The wind comes and goes, but about 8:30 this morning visibility was reduced to about a quarter of a mile.
“We don’t want people traveling at all,” she said.
Dewey County Sheriff Carl Freeman said there “wasn’t a whole lot of activity” in his area Friday morning.
“So far there are no accidents yet, but it’s slick in spots,” he said. “Other than that we’ve been getting light drizzle.”
Audrey Barnum, dispatcher for Ellis County said there were no accidents reported in her area, either.
However, she said, “Roads are pretty slick.”
Lehenbauer said he expected the snow and wind to pick up in Woodward County by mid-afternoon Friday.
He noted that about 100 homes in Harper County were without electricity as power outages due to icy conditions continued.
A spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, which was experiencing a power outage near Buffalo, said crews in Cimarron County were “shutting down because of blizzard conditions.”
“In Texas County, it’s the same thing,” said Royce Jordan, ODOT assistant manager for maintenance. “We’ll be shutting everything down in Woodward and the surrounding counties because of zero visibility.”
Jordan advised against travel and said motorists should “stay home.”
“You’re going to get in trouble out there, because we won’t be out there either,” he said, noting, “Visibility is about 100 yards in Buffalo.”
Jordan said ODOT trucks would be out grading and salting highways after the storm passes through.
Several highways in the Guymon area had been shut down by noon.
In addition, U. S. Highway 412 west of Fort Supply was also closed by authorities at noon on Friday. U. S. Highway 64 from Buffalo to Guymon was also closed, along with all the highways in Beaver County due to snow and white-out conditions.
Meanwhile, the American Red Cross was on standby.
“We are not setting up a shelter yet,” said Illanna Bell, Red Cross Health and Safety Services Director. “We won’t be moving until one of our emergency managers calls in.”
She said there was worry about what might happen Friday night, and that volunteers were worried about power outages.
“We’re doing what emergency management feels is necessary,” she said. “If we do have to open an emergency shelter, we’re ready and prepared.”
Bell said cots and blankets had been sent to Guymon, Balko and to Harper County and other areas.
“We sent 75 cots in Woods County,” she said, noting that included volunteers who went to help manage the locations.
“The Baptist Convention is on standby in case we need to provide food,” she said.
A number of events were cancelled including the Plummer Family Show scheduled tonight at the Woodward High School Auditorium. Organizers said the show, a benefit for the Shriners, would be rescheduled.
A blizzard warning continued across the area until 1 p.m. on Saturday. The National Weather Service continued to say heavy snow was expected throughout the afternoon and night on Friday, winding up Saturday afternoon.
Schools were closed througout the area on Friday and several counties, including?Woodward, shut down the courthouse due to the weather.
