FITCHBURG, MASS. (WHDH) - Crews pre-treated roads overnight with salt and sand in preparation for a slick morning commute but freezing rain, sleet, and ice accumulation is creating treacherous driving conditions across the Bay State.
Sleet and freezing rain began falling Sunday night and is expected to continue into Tuesday. There were several reports of spin-outs by midmorning.
“Everything is ice,” motorist Marisol Dittami told 7NEWS. “The roads are not very good.”
Most of Western and Central Massachusetts is under an ice storm warning, leaving residents reminiscent of the 2008 ice storm.
Back in 2008, ice-coated trees and power lines, bringing down branches across New England and knocking out power to more than a million people for weeks.
Then-President George W. Bush declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
Conditions aren’t projected to be as bad on Monday, but people are dealing with power outages and slick driving conditions.
As of 5:30 p.m., more than 1,500 people were without power, according to MEMA’s outage map.
“Freezing rain has become more widespread and as temperatures fluctuate, road surfaces may become slicker than they appear,” officials in Worcester warned. “Use good judgment and proceed slowly during midday and afternoon commute.”
MassDOT spokeswoman Jacquelyn Goddard says 752 pieces of equipment have been deployed to keep highways and roadways clear.
State police are enforcing a 40-mph speed restriction on Interstate 90 between Exit 3 and the New York border.
Messy Mix continues midday. Greatest buildup of ice across western/central New England. Map shows current power outages..mainly along east slopes of Berkshires. #7news pic.twitter.com/ZL1eNKcJWx
— Jeremy Reiner (@jreineron7) December 30, 2019
Freezing rain has become more widespread and as temperatures fluctuate, road surfaces may become more slick than they appear. @WorcesterDPW continues to monitor the weather and is retreating roads. Use good judgement and proceed slowly during midday and afternoon commute.
— City of Worcester (@TweetWorcester) December 30, 2019
I-90 speed reduction still in place: 40 mph between Exit 3 (Westfield)-NY border. @massdot has total of 752 pieces of equipment deployed in ice/snow ops pic.twitter.com/0R8a2vui9Z
— Jacquelyn Goddard (@JacqueGoddard) December 30, 2019
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