Ice on Arkansas roadways continued melting Friday as temperatures climbed above freezing in most of the state, but officials feared flooding as the runoff is added to the heavy rains that fell Wednesday as the storm system moved in.
The National Weather Service has issued flood warnings for the Black, Cache, Ouachita and White rivers, where waters are expected to rise above flood stages within the next few days.
"It's due to the runoff," said National Weather Service meteorologist Charles Dalton of North Little Rock. "But we had quite a bit of precipitation before the snow and sleet came Wednesday. We had well over an inch of rain in many places before it changed over to frozen precipitation."
Although temperatures hovered around the mid-30s Friday afternoon, snow and ice melted quickly in the direct sunshine. The angle of the sun in March is more direct than it is in December and January, aiding in a quicker melt, Dalton said.
The ground retains heat as well and aids in melting, he said.
"The temperature may be 30 degrees, but the ground temperature going into this [snow] event was in the 40s," Dalton said.
Some cities struggled early Friday to reach the freezing mark before warming up later. Little Rock's 20-degree reading Friday morning set a record low for March 6, breaking the 21-degree record set in 1978.
Stuttgart's low of 21 degrees broke its record low for the day of 25 degrees set in 2014, and Pine Bluff's 20 degrees tied its lowest temperature for March 6, set in 1960.
In northern Arkansas, temperatures fell to single digits. Blytheville and Evening Shade both had a low of 3 degrees Friday morning; Jonesboro fell to 4 degrees; and Walnut Ridge reported a low of 7 degrees.
Wednesday's storm dumped 11 inches of snow and sleet on Bono in Craighead County, 9 inches on Blytheville and Pocahontas and 6 on Little Rock.
The Arkansas State Police attributes two highway deaths to the weather. Samuel Sippo, 41, of Lawrenceville, Ga., died Wednesday when his car collided with another vehicle that skidded on Interstate 40 in Pope County at 5:11 p.m.
Earlier in the day, Elaine Holland, 94, of Eureka Springs was killed when the car she was riding in slid on Arkansas 12 in Benton County during a rainstorm.
Residents in Ouachita County were already preparing Friday for the Ouachita River to flood north of Camden, said Ouachita County Judge Robert McAdoo. Those living along Arkansas 7 moved vehicles to higher ground and prepared their boats which would be needed to get to their homes once the river rose.
The Ouachita River was expected to crest at Camden at 31.9 feet on Monday. Flood stage there is 26 feet.
"This happens three or four times a year," McAdoo said. "People adapt to it. They have certain locations where they know the river goes up, and they deal with it. They watch the river all the time.
"We know it's going to rise."
In Black Rock, the Black River was expected to reach 15.3 feet Friday afternoon. Flood stage there is 14 feet.
"All it's going to do is keep rising," said Black Rock Police Chief Daniel Hill of the river that forms the eastern boundary of the Lawrence County town. "It's not too bad, but in a day or two if this snow keeps melting like this, it'll go up some more."
The rising waters encroached on a city park east of downtown but was not covering any roadways, he said.
Street crews across the state worked Friday to clear ice, snow and slush off city roads and urged motorists to use caution at night when roads refroze.
"We got hammered," Steve Tippett, superintendent of the Jonesboro Street Department, said of Wednesday's storm. "We got battered that first night and just stayed in a repetitive pattern and kept pushing the snow off the main streets."
Jonesboro received up to 10 inches of snow, the National Weather Service in Memphis reported.
He said crews began clearing on secondary roads in Jonesboro on Friday and planned to continue plowing streets in residential subdivisions today.
Interstate travel improved Friday, said Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department spokesman Danny Straessle. There were still icy spots on Interstate 40 near Hazen causing traffic backups between the Cache River crossing and Carlisle.
Workers spent Friday repairing "craters" caused by freezing water at the Interstate 55 and 40 interchange in West Memphis, Straessle said.
"They were significant craters," he said. "Trucks actually stopped in the road and waited to change lanes because they were so big."
He said crews planned to continue repairs today. Workers have closed all but one lane at the busy exchange, and traffic was expected to back up today, he said.
Traffic flowed smoothly Friday on Interstate 55 in Arkansas, said Lisa Clark, an employee of the Flash Market Truck Stop in Blytheville.
"It's clear as a bell," she said of the trucks and cars driving on the nearby interstate. "It's a lot different than Thursday."
She said truck traffic was slowed then because of numerous wrecks. She said a customer told her that the customer had counted 47 tractor-trailer rigs jackknifed on the interstate while driving 120 miles to Blytheville on Thursday.
"I don't like it," Clark said of the winter weather. "But I'm excited about the warm weather coming."
Forecasters said temperatures should reach the mid- to upper 50s in the state today and stay well above freezing for a while. Rain is expected for most of the state Sunday, but temperatures will continue climbing and reach the 60s by Tuesday and Wednesday, Dalton said.
"That will help melt off any remaining snow," he said.
State Desk on 03/07/2015