Ice snarls travel, causes multiple wrecks across San Antonio

Skies to clear Tuesday night, low in mid-20s forecast for Wednesday morning

SAN ANTONIO – A winter storm roared through San Antonio early Tuesday, producing icy conditions that brought travel across the city to a grinding halt.

Several highway connector ramps and streets were closed due to dangerous driving conditions. Officials urged residents not to travel unless it was absolutely necessary.  

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According to the City of San Antonio Emergency Operations Center, the following roads were closed as of 10:40 a.m. Tuesday: 

Highway Closures:

Loop 410, I-10 Interchange: I-10 East to Loop 410 direct connector ramps closed for treatment

Loop 1604, I-35 Interchange - City of Live Oak shut down all ramps

Loop 410, I-37 Interchange - Southbound I-37 to Eastbound Loop 410 and Northbound I-37 to Westbound Loop 410 (Accident)

Loop 410, US 281 Interchange - Westbound 410 to US 281 South direct connector closed

Wurzbach Pkwy at Wetmore Rd - Cloverleaf ramps closed

I-10 near Boerne Stage Rd - Westbound I-10 (Accident)

Street Closures:

Buena Vista at Frio

Commerce St. W at Frio 

Cupples Road at Roselawn 

Guadalupe St. at Frio 

Kirk Place at Niemeyer 

Thousand Oaks at Schertz Rd 

Judson at Stahl

Rittiman at Grantham

Nacogdoches at Titian

The San Antonio Police Department responded to 49 traffic accidents, while the San Antonio Fire Department responded to 11 vehicle crashes, two structure fires and two cold exposure calls. 

Air travel was also affected, as some flights at San Antonio International Airport were canceled or delayed. 

VIA bus routes were operating on a normal schedule, but officials said some delays were expected. 

A winter storm warning remains in effect until 6 p.m. Tuesday. 

Tuesday morning, afternoon

The long-anticipated sub-freezing air arrived and began to mix with precipitation overnight. Scattered showers of freezing rain and sleet have been moving through most of South Texas for much of the morning.

Expect areas of freezing rain and sleet to linger throughout the rest of the day, with the precipitation beginning to taper off by late afternoon.

Freezing rain looks like regular rain, but freezes when it comes in contact with something. Frozen rain is what creates a glaze of ice on surface objects. Sleet pellets are little grains of ice that  bouncing off surface objects.

Tuesday evening

The precipitation will begin diminishing throughout the afternoon and evening, but the potential for dangerous conditions will continue as temperatures will remain below the freezing mark on Tuesday and ice may remain on roads through Tuesday night.

Wednesday Morning

The low temperature is expected to be near 20 degrees and is not expected to rise above freezing until late morning Wednesday, which may not allow the ice to thaw in all areas.

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About the Authors:

Justin Horne is a meteorologist and reporter for KSAT 12 News. When severe weather rolls through, Justin will hop in the KSAT 12 Storm Chaser to safely bring you the latest weather conditions from across South Texas. On top of delivering an accurate forecast, Justin often reports on one of his favorite topics: Texas history.

Ben Spicer is a digital journalist who works the early morning shift for KSAT.