Springfield preparing for winter weather before it hits

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - If you walked outside today, you would've been hit by cold air and blustering winds.

There's no major winter weather in the forecast other than the freezing temperatures but it's never too late to start preparing.

"We're fully stocked on like things like driveway salt, sidewalk, salt," said Jason Christiansen. "Also, we have the tube sand as well."

Christiansen is the hardware supervisor at Nixa Hardware and Seed Company.

"We do have enough stuff that you could create, you can put together a kit," Christiansen said.

He says they keep supplies on hand year-round so people can prepare for winter emergencies before they happen.

"We definitely get a big push on pallets for pallet stoves," Christiansen said. "Faucet covers are probably the biggest, one of the biggest things people come for early on to make sure that their faucets don't freeze and break from outside."

He says customers should be thinking ahead, like right now, well before the first snowstorm.

"Just always be prepared," Christiansen said. "Don't wait till the last minute to stock up."

Dustin Keyes with Springfield Public Works tells me they have been preparing for winter for months.

"Starting in about July, that's when we start getting ready for the snow," Keyes said.

On top of maintenance for the salt trucks, public works also has 10,000 tons of salt on hand.

"Oh, we're good on salt," Keyes said. "We're up to capacity and that's one thing we take seriously is we like to keep a real good eye on the weather and make sure we're putting out the right amounts so we're not just out there wasting it."

Keyes says the city trained a lot of new people to plow the streets when the time comes.

"Just be prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws at us," Keyes said.