West Central Louisiana and all northern and central parts of the state were victimized by the massive arctic blast that swept from California to the East coast of the U.S. over the weekend.

Locally, light snow and ice caused a near complete shutdown of Vernon Parish.

Schools were closed Tuesday, January 16, and will be closed Wednesday, January 17. The weather has impacted each campus differently. Vernon Parish schools will re-evaluate the conditions for Thursday.

Basketball games scheduled for Tuesday night were either postponed or cancelled. School-related activities were also cancelled.

Main roads in Vernon Parish are passable with some ice on bridges reported. All travel is hazardous. Motorists are urged to be extra cautious. For a complete look at state road conditions go to 511la.org. There was a traffic fatality in Sabine Parish yesterday afternoon, and Vernon Parish Sheriff’s deputies and State Police worked an accident with an overturned vehicle on Highway 171 near Billy Goat Hill.

There is a hard freeze warning in effect until 10 a.m. this morning. The evening low last night was near 15 degrees. Sunny skies are predicted for today with a high temperature of 43. Evening lows the rest of the week will be in the low 20’s with rain possibly falling on Monday, January 22.

Waste Connections did not run trash pick-up Tuesday but will resume today and try to keep their schedule, just a few days behind.

The 30th Judicial District Court is again closed today. Leesville City Court will resume operations today. The Vernon Parish Police Jury will re-open today at 10 a.m.