MARSHALL COUNTY, Miss. — Parts of northern Mississippi are looking at the possibility of dangerous, icy conditions.
That’s why the Department of Transportation isn’t taking any chances.
Roads and bridges have already been salted. And they’ll be salted as needed, with crews treating problem areas overnight.
Of course, it’s not just officials that are getting ready for the weather. Grocery and hardware stores will be busy as people get off of work.
Jonathan Moore has been through icy weather many times. He owns Booker Hardware in Holly Springs, Mississippi.
“We’re ready. We’re always ready,” he said.
Moore is ready and stocked with outdoor faucet covers, windshield de-icers and plenty of rock salt for people to buy.
“Driveways. Your sidewalks, you know. Especially for the elderly people getting in and out of their vehicles and going up and down the steps. The salt is a good thing to use,” he said.
Moore says he just wishes his customers would come in before the weather hits, because most of them don’t.
“They will panic after it’s over. After it’s here, they are rushing in.”
It’s a different story over at Carlisle Grocery.
Some shoppers are getting things done early. But Ken Edlin isn’t one of them. He says he doesn’t worry about freezing temperatures.
“There’s some people buying bread, milk and everything like it’s going out of style,” Edlin said.
He doesn’t worry about driving on potentially icy roads either.
“I drove a truck for 22 years and have been around trucking. So it don’t bother me that much.”
But Moore knows a lot of people will be bothered. That’s why he’s willing to keep his store open late.
“If it causes us to be open during bad weather, we’re here. We’re here when our customers need us,” he said.
If you end up driving in icy conditions, MDOT suggests you drive slow, break early and gently and leave extra room between you and other cars.