Be aware of the weather conditions and drive carefully

Published 10:05 pm Thursday, December 7, 2017

Snow!

That’s right, Southwest Mississippi was expected to see snowfall, with some places receiving up to two inches, Thursday night and this morning.

By the time you read this, snow may already be on the ground. Or the weather man may have missed the mark and instead of snow you see rain and sleet.

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Either way, Lincoln Countians need to heed a few winter weather driving tips we likely have forgotten — if we ever knew them.

Driving on snowy or icy roads is more treacherous than Southerners think. It’s not our fault; we don’t get enough practice to be good at it. Some roadways, especially bridges and overpasses, might be slick, which means we all need to drive with caution.

Below are a few tips if you venture out today and encounter slick roads.

• Accelerate and decelerate slowly. This is common sense but every time it snows someone ends up driving a vehicle into a parked car or sliding into a ditch.

• Know your brakes. Apply firm steady pressure and try to avoid locking up your brakes.

• Be careful going up and down hills. Speeding up a hill when traction is limited can be dangerous. At some point, those tires may grab and send the vehicle speeding out of control. Coming down hills on slick roads is a disaster waiting to happen.

• Stay home. This may be the best advice if the snow accumulates as much as expected. If you don’t have to be on the roads, don’t be.

• If you do venture out and find snow, send those photos to us at donna.campbell@dailyleader.com. We might just publish them in Saturday’s edition.