Freezing rain that moved into the area on Sunday evening led to closing or delayed opening of many businesses, school districts shifted to distance learning and many events were cancelled.

The ice caused havoc across much of the state, with accidents on highways and streets that became ice skating rinks.

Residents were urged to remain indoors and if necessary to get out, to use extra caution while driving.

The Okmulgee County Courthouse was closed on Monday, but emergency services were still busy working to keep major thoroughfares open.

By late Monday afternoon, a system bringing rain moved into the area, raising temperatures above freezing, and clearing most roadways.

Schools in Okmulgee County returned to in-person learning yesterday, with the exception of Beggs Public Schools, as the city deals with issues that have left many residents without water for several days. Last week during the extremely cold weather, several municipalities in the county suffered water line breaks, causing outages.

Some areas suffered from brief electrical outages due to icy conditions, with power restored to many in a short period of time.

Most of the leaks have been repaired by crews who have worked long hours in cold temperatures.

A reprieve is on the way this week as temperatures are expected to get near 60 degrees in the next few days.

Emergency services including local and state agencies, worked hand-in-hand to help motorists involved in crashes on area highways.

Okmulgee County Emergency Management Director Jeff Moore kept the community up-to-date on area conditions. Okmulgee County Emergency Management worked with OHP and ODOT Sunday evening when a 12-vehicle accident due to slick roads closed portions of Interstate 40 between mile marker 235-240, and Hwy. 75 which was also ice-covered.

“This past week has been a very busy week not only for us at Okmulgee County Emergency Management but for all emergency services, public works, ODOT, OTA, and county and city officials as well as our community. Okmulgee County has some of the finest communities in Oklahoma and this week has shown what we all can accomplish when we work together. As we continue to recover, let us also continue to prepare and work towards resolving the problems we have faced. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who has worked and continues to work on our utility outages and emergencies that arise,” Moore posted.

-Here is the weather forecast for the remainder of the week:

• Wednesday – A 20 percent chance of showers after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 49. West wind around 5 mph.

• Wednesday Night – A 20 percent chance of showers before midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 35. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm.

• Thursday – Mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. Calm wind becoming northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.

• Thursday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. East wind around 5 mph.

• Friday – A 40 percent chance of showers after noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. East wind 5 to 10 mph.

• Friday Night – Showers likely, mainly before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 39. East wind around 10 mph becoming north after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 70%.

• Saturday – A 20 percent chance of showers before noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 49. North wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

• Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 29. North wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

• Sunday – Mostly sunny, with a high near 51. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.

• Sunday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 30. North wind around 5 mph becoming southwest after midnight.

• Monday – Sunny, with a high near 60. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph.