GENTRY — Rain, freezing rain, sleet and then snow closed schools and business and made travel difficult in the Gentry area.

Rain which started on Thursday soon turned to freezing rain and sleet, coating everything with ice, before changing over to snow on Friday and continuing until everything was blanketed with about six inches of frozen precipitation.

Schools and many businesses closed already on Friday due to the icy conditions. The wintry weather affected businesses and churches on Saturday and Sunday, as well. Freezing fog on Sunday morning and a refreeze of what melted late Saturday made roads hazardous. Gentry Schools remained closed on Monday and Tuesday because of the snow-covered and icy roads, especially along country bus routes.

Major power outages were anticipated with the winter storm, but because of coldertemperatures and much more snow than ice, the outages were minimal in the Gentry area.

Though many dreaded the snow and ice, children took advantage of the time off from school and the abundance of snow to get in some sledding and to build snowmen and other snow structures.

Warmer temperatures were in the forecast for today, with some sunshine, and rain showers were forecast for Thursday and Friday, making it likely that the last remnants of the ice and snow will melt away.

News, Pages 1 on 02/03/2010