Weekend storms result in 30 wrecks in Morgan County

By Wes Tomlinson 

For the Enquirer  

Authorities reported about 30 wrecks on Interstate 65 because of icy roads and responded to at least five calls for motorist assistance on Highway 67, Highway 31 and Highway 36 in Morgan County.  

There were not, however, any reports of damage from the March snow event that blanketed parts of north Alabama with up to 3 inches of snow early Saturday. 

Morgan County Sheriff’s spokesman Mike Swafford said nine of those wrecks were reported along Interstate 65 in the area between Hartselle and the Interstate 565 interchange. He said there were also three incidents of fallen trees on roadways: on East Upper River Road at Bluff City Road in Somerville, on U.S. Highway 31 at Champion Dodge in Decatur and on Parker Road at Celia Drive in Hartselle. 

Hilary Granbois, an emergency management specialist with the Morgan County Emergency Management Agency, said they had no reports of any major storm damage overnight and did not receive any reports of power outages impacting the county. 

“When I spoke with 911 earlier this morning, their calls were just about ice on the bridges,” Granbois said. 

Around midnight Friday, 1-3 inches of snow began to fall on Morgan County and surrounding areas, according to the National Weather Service in Huntsville. 

Forecaster Matt Anderson said he received reports of 2 inches of snow in Decatur, Hartselle, Priceville and Falkville. 

With a high of 50 degrees in Decatur that dropped to a low of 23, Anderson said this is the coldest March for Decatur since 1996, according to NWS records.