Snow covers Pine Bluff, but not as much as other locations

The first winter wonderland of 2025 in Pine Bluff arrived overnight as another wave of snow covered the city just before noon Friday.

Pine Bluff was among the last cities in Arkansas to see the predicted snow this week. Strong western winds created a transition zone that saw Redfield, Little Rock and other locations north receive snowfall Thursday evening but held Pine Bluff and southeast Arkansas to nothing more than a wintry mix, with mostly rainwater on the surface. That all changed before midnight Thursday when sleet could be heard hitting the frozen terrain, setting up a snow-covered Friday morning.

Grider Field in southern Pine Bluff reported only 0.62 inch of snow in a 12-hour period as of noon, although surrounding areas north and west of the city received much more. Little Rock was covered in about 8-10.5 inches of snow, England saw 8 inches and Sheridan 4 inches, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Justin Condry.

The transition zone was to blame for the slight output in Pine Bluff, Condry said. He added Pine Bluff might not see more than another flurry, rather than the 2-4 inches previously expected.

“It’s just the luck of the draw,” Condry said.

The NWS has forecast a 30% chance of snow for Friday afternoon with a high of 33. The mercury will drop to 19 with mostly cloudy skies. A winter storm warning is in effect until 6 p.m. Friday.

Skies will be sunny for each of the next three days with temperatures expected to peak at 42 by Sunday, according to the NWS. Lows will stay within the low-20s.

Most of southeast Arkansas still had power as of 1:36 p.m., according to data from Entergy. There were 919 outages reported in Jefferson County, with many indicated along Arkansas 54 southwest of Pine Bluff.

ROADWAYS

IDriveArkansas.com reported snow covering the main thoroughfares from Pine Bluff, including Sheridan Road, Martha Mitchell Expressway, U.S. 79 and 79 Business, and U.S. 425 around noon Friday. Interstate 530 from the Pulaski-Jefferson county line south was covered by slush, as were U.S. 79 in Cleveland and Dallas counties, U.S. 63 in Cleveland County, Arkansas 530, U.S. 425 in Lincoln County and U.S. 65 in Lincoln County.

The Pine Bluff Street Department has used its own equipment including trucks to lay salt on the ground and other equipment to push snow to the side, according to Mayor Vivian Flowers. New department director Tiger Dockett has employed three contractors to help with grating streets, Flowers said.

WARMING CENTER

The city of Pine Bluff extended its operating hours for the Opportunity House at 1305 E. Sixth Ave. to a 24-hour schedule until Monday, when the hours will return to 6:30 p.m.-7 a.m. daily through Jan. 17. The city said in a news release it aims to provide a safe and warm environment for residents in need with the extended hours.

“Residents seeking shelter or assistance are encouraged to take advantage of this critical service,” the city said. “The City of Pine Bluff remains committed to the safety and well-being of all members of our community, particularly during periods of severe weather.”

To volunteer at the Opportunity House or for more information, call (870) 685-3065 or email mproctor@cityofpinebluff-ar.gov. Volunteers for 8-hour shifts are needed, Flowers said.

WHITE HALL

It was all hands on deck early Friday morning as White Hall Road and Maintenance crews worked to clean city streets. The eight-man crew was joined by others like White Hall Mayor Noel Foster and Deputy Mayor Jeff May.

Foster said the additional personnel were “driving escort trucks and trying to protect employees operating the heavy equipment.” At one point, he was following a city-owned snowplow on Claud Road.

“It’s a job,” Foster said, adding it’s critical that streets remain open for police, fire and other emergency vehicles.

Thursday’s winter storm moved in during the afternoon and started falling as freezing rain and sleet, but that turned into a heavy snowfall during the evening hours, Foster said. As of early Friday afternoon, moderate snowfall continued, with accumulations of about 6 inches reported.

May said, at that time, there were no power outages within the city.

PLANNING AHEAD

Earlier this week, the city’s various departments kicked into high gear after determining that a storm was highly probable. Roadway equipment, including the city’s snowplows, were checked and prepped.

Foster said he decided to “plan ahead.”

The Arkansas Department of Transportation pretreated the highways that run through White Hall, such as U.S. 270 and Arkansas 256.

“We used sand and snow removal equipment” to deal with the rest, Foster said.

CLOSURES

School district and higher education campuses were closed Friday, but so far, the plan for all is to reopen Monday. The two missed school days this week will be made up at later dates in the Pine Bluff, Watson Chapel and White Hall districts.

Jefferson County and Pine Bluff city offices were closed Friday with the likelihood of reopening Monday.

Deborah Horn contributed to this article.