OKC Prepares For Winter Weather

The City of Oklahoma City and the fire department are ready to respond in case road conditions worsen into the night and weekend.

Firefighters say preparation is key, especially when every second counts.

When the heaters crank up, the calls start rolling in for help.

"A lot of times we'll see an increase in carbon monoxide detector calls this time of year and smells and odors of smoke inside the home," Oklahoma City District Fire Chief Chris Black said. "The first time they turn the heater on for the year it'll burn the dust, and the debris off of the burners which will sometimes trigger smoke alarms and also could increase CL levels and cause the carbon monoxide detectors to go off in homes."

Outside poses a different set of issues.

"Ice versus snow typically we see a lot more slips and falls, people just not being sure of their footing," Black said.

It starts freezing and sometimes before you have a chance to realize or even see it.

"A lot of times they won't see it," Black said. "The concrete, the pavement, the sidewalk it'll just look wet to the eye, but when they step on it it's actually a layer of ice."

To prepare, fire crews pack extra dry clothing and have chains ready to go for the monstrous tires on he engines, but they're not the only ones on standby, so are road crews.

They're monitoring our bridge deck temperatures," Oklahoma City spokeswoman Kristy Yager said. "They can see what the temperatures are. Once that starts icing up then they'll go out and start salting that."

They stay mostly on the snow routes and rely on calls about slick spots off the beaten salt path.

"We're going to watch and at midnight if it looks like it could ice over then we'll bring a full crew in then, and they would work until noon tomorrow," Yager said.