Crippling ice, heavy rainfall headed for Plains

OKLAHOMA CITY — A winter storm that brought heavy snow and rainfall to northern California was bearing down on the southern Plains on Thursday, and forecasters said crippling ice accumulations and heavy rain could cause widespread power outages and flooding this weekend.

The National Weather Service issued an ice storm warning for northwestern Oklahoma beginning this morning as well as a winter storm watch for much of the rest of Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri along with parts of Illinois and Texas.

Forecasters said the potential for a significant ice storm is increasing and the region could see up to 1 inch of ice. Storms are also expected Saturday and Sunday.

“We could see some fairly significant ice accumulations, enough ice accumulations to cause a lot of problems with trees and power lines and power interruptions,” said Kevin Brown, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Norman, Okla.

In northeastern Oklahoma, where the forecast calls for up to an inch of accumulated ice, residents Thursday were snatching up flashlights, batteries and alternative energy sources in anticipation of power disruptions.

“They’re grabbing generators, and I’m sold out,” said Raymond Bopp, assistant manager of the Woodward Ace Hardware store in Woodward, Okla., about 140 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.

The last time the area experienced a significant ice storm was in 2001, when electrical power was interrupted for three or four days, Bopp said.

“They’ve been buying a lot of flashlights,” Bopp said.

Propane containers, kerosene and lamp oil also were s el l i ng well as t he s t orm neared.

In Kansas, up to 1 inch of ice was expected to fall in “multiple rounds” of freezing rain between Friday and early Monday in parts of the state, including Wichita, Kansas’ largest city.

I n Mi s s o u r i , f o r e c a s t - ers were calling for up to three-quarters of an inch of freezing rain over the weekend, potentially more in the southwestern part of the state.