JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has ordered the state Department of Transportation to help 44 counties clear their roads following this week's winter storm.
The storm dumped as much as 20 inches of snow in some parts of the state on Tuesday and Wednesday and freezing rain in other areas. A spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Transportation had said before Nixon's order that plowing the state's highways has cost about $5.5 million so far.
Nixon described his county road-plowing directive as an unprecedented action.
MoDOT makes clearing the roads a priority in a storm and would not cut back on plowing even if it went over its $42 million budget. The department would likely make cuts to other maintenance costs in the spring or summer.