Ladue, Frontenac Hit With The First Snowstorm Of The Season

Update at 10:00 a.m. Charlie Brennan of KMOX Radio is waging a one-person war with MoDOT, the St. Louis Street Department and IDOT, highly critical of the lack of advance preparation for the first snow storm of the year.

With thousands stalled in their automobiles on the highways and byways, he was playing to many sympathetic ears. He said pre-conditioning of the roads overnight would have prevented the black ice buildup which was leading to countless accidents.

Westbound I64/40 was so icy, the highway was shut down for two hours while cars were unable to climb up the hill in Ladue. By 10 a.m. Highway 40 was a glorified parking lot, jammed with countless cars and drivers.

Manchester and Brentwood roads were in equally as poor conditions with traffic going nowhere.

The local traffic officials are buried under a sea of criticism for their handling of the first storm of the year.

Earlier, The National Weather Service had issued a Winter Weather Alert for the entire St. Louis region. Snow is expected to be one to three inches in depth. For those traveling out of town, check before you go. Snow is heavier north of St. Louis and Chicago is expected to get four to eight inches.

Winds will be 20 mph and more out of the west northwest. A blast of winter will continue until at least 6 p.m. tonight.

Snow is beginning to taper off by sunrise but there is plenty of black ice on the roads, bridges and over passes.

Roads are slick, through road crews have been salting roadways all night long. Interstate 64/40 is closed westbound at Timberlake due to a multiple car pileup, reported by KSDK-TV. Drivers are walking around the accident location.

KSDK has a complete list of current closings.

Ladue Schools are open today. Know before you go. If you are planning your morning workout, the Center of Clayton opened on schedule.

Patch readers are encouraged to report snow removal issues in their neighborhoods and to upload photos in the Gallery at the top of this page.