Interstate 29 is open again in northwestern Missouri. It closed Sunday evening from St. Joseph to Rock Port due to severe winter weather. According to Sgt. Shane Hux with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the weather caused several stalled vehicles and wrecks.
“The roadway conditions were treacherous,” he told KFEQ in St. Joseph. “I mean, it was not safe for travel. We were inundated with calls for service. We had stranded motorists. Matter of fact, the First Christian Church here in Mound City had to open an emergency shelter just for a place for troopers to transport people for safety.”
Hux, a nearly a 25-year veteran with the Highway Patrol, said the conditions Sunday night were among the worst he has ever seen.
“We had hills like, for example, on Interstate 29 southbound at the 79-mile marker, they call that Squawk Creek Hill,” he said. “Semis could not get up that hill due to the slick conditions. Traffic was backed up there approximately six and a half hours.”
Hux added that they “wreaked havoc” getting MoDOT trucks there to treat I-29 at Squawk Creek Hill. Even though the interstate is open, MoDOT and MSHP are advising drivers to avoid I-29.
“I mean, it’s going to take a lot of help from Mother Nature here,” he said. “Another thing to remember is we have countless vehicles that are still stuck in the median and off the edge of the roadway, so wrecker services are going to be out there as well.”
Hux has some advice for travelers: “Decrease your speed, increase your following distance, and just be patient. I mean, don’t be in any hurry. Allow yourself plenty of time. The main goal is for everybody to reach their destination safely.”
Brent Martin of KFEQ Radio in St. Joseph contributed this report.
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