It hasn't been like last January's big storm in the St. Louis region, but Saturday's snow debut brought a little more snow than expected. Some areas that were expecting only a couple inches of snow received roughly three to five and north of the city, the totals have been closer to six.
Light snow arrived in the middle of the night but heavy, wet snow started falling around 6 am and continued for several hours. Road conditions were treacherous in many spots, with cars and tractor trailers sliding off roadways.
St. Louis County crews salted and prepped before the storm but they also had to make adjustments.
"We were expected one to two inches of snow, but we've obviously gotten more than that," said a spokesman with the St. Louis County Department of Transportation and Public Works. "Nature is nature, so you just have to respond to it."
State police in both Missouri and Illinois did their best responding to stranded motorists, but troopers had to be mindful themselves of the road conditions.
"We're out there in the same elements as the people that are stranded," said Dallas Thompson with the Missouri Highway Patrol. "The dangers are still there for us too, we're not immune to those dangers. We want to make sure we're not driving too fast for the road conditions ourselves and not able to get to these people to help them out."
Thompson reminded drivers, for this and future storms, if you have to travel, leave earlier than normal and take your time. Also, let someone know you're going out, so they know when you're supposed to arrive at your destination. If you do become stranded, do not leave your vehicle. Instead, call 911 or *55, which will connect you to the nearest Highway Patrol station.
While rain and temperatures in the 40's Saturday afternoon should help road conditions, temperatures are expected to be below freezing through Tuesday, and another round of light snow is expected Monday.