FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — To keep roads moving, water running, and electricity on, crews are asking you to plan ahead and prepare for the winter weather hitting Arkansas this week.
"The key is planning, preparation, and communication,” said ARDOT Public Information Officer Dave Parker.
Parker says crews are gathering equipment and could begin pretreating the roads as early as Tuesday night, Feb. 1. With the rain coming before the winter weather it will make it tough for crews to get ahead of the storm.
"It changes our game plan a bit,” Parker said. “In that, we will not be using the salt brine to prepare the roads."
ARDOT says they are worried the rain will wash the salt brine away so they'll use rock salt instead. ARDOT is also bringing out chainsaws, to remove any fallen trees from the roads because of the ice threat.
"That could mean power outages,” Parker said. “With ice on trees, trees fall in the wind. They fall on the powerlines."
If the power goes out at your home and you have a generator, you need to make sure it’s ready for use before the storm hits.
"You want to make sure the oils changed, the spark plugs are changed out, air filters,” said paschal service electrician David Wilson. "Don't wait till Wednesday, be prepared."
Wilson says to run your generator before you need to use it and if you have one you must manually start.
"The main power coming into the house must be turned off because you're powering it from that source," said Wilson.
Some Arkansans, like Dale Bernon, already prepping for the winter storms.
Bernon stopped by Home Depot to get salt to treat his driveway for his mother-in-law and says he went to the store early to avoid the late shoppers.
"I saw the weather report, actually, on your channel," Bernon said."Just to stay ahead of the curve."
While you might be worried about the outside of your house, you need to be worried about the inside as well because your pipes can freeze.
"First of all, use a hairdryer or rag soaked with hot water to thaw the lines. Do not use an open flame," said Tim Nyander, Utilities Director for the City of Fayetteville.
To prevent frozen pipes, Nyander encourages turning your thermostat to 66 degrees at minimum, drip your faucets, remove water hoses, leave your cabinets open.
If you have a burst water pipe, shut off the water supply valve at the location.
RELATED: Your pipes froze - What to do next
DOWNLOAD THE 5NEWS APP
DOWNLOAD FOR IPHONE HERE | DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID HERE
HOW TO ADD THE 5NEWS APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KFSM in the Channel Store.
For Fire TV, search for "KFSM" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com.