Hey Olive Branch! We're still here and we're still monitoring community conditions.
City Hall and other non-emergency City Buildings remain closed for Thursday, January 29th. Emergency Services will be in service. City Park and its amenities, Olive Branch Senior Center, and the Olive Branch Airport runways and lobbies will also be closed.
At this time, the City of Olive Branch continues to not be experiencing any issues with utility infrastructure. Our City managed Gas & Water Lines are fully functional. Northcentral and Entergy are also reporting no outages within the City.
In the event of utility outages or low water/gas pressure, please contact your utility company:
Garbage Collection
Waste Connection will not be in service Thursday, January 29th to service garbage or recycling routes. We are working closely with Waste Connections on their recovery plans for missed service from last week into this week. If you can, please keep garbage bagged and in your cart(s) as much as possible. More details will follow in the days ahead.
Weather Conditions & Household Need-to-Knows
Warmer temperatures will continue today (January 29th). Warmer Temps means more thawing ice and as excited as we are, this again can have serious impacts!
All residents should monitor ice buildup and be mindful of potential structural failure. Slanted roofs may have solid sheets of ice, that may move as they melt.
Residents should also check on pipes. If you have a frozen pipe, safely thaw it by turning on the affected faucet and applying gentle heat (such as a hair dryer or warm towels) starting near the faucet and working toward the frozen area. Never use open flames or boiling water. Once water is flowing, check for leaks.
Residents who’ve sustained damage from this severe winter weather event should do the following:
• File an insurance claim.
• Take photos of the damage to the home.
• Report damage to their county/MEMA via the self-report tool.
Please stay off of frozen ponds, lakes, and creeks. The ice is not thick enough to support weight.
If you must get out, please clear off your hood, windshield, and roof before driving. Flying chunks of ice can damage your windshield and others.
Road Conditions
Many roadways and highways remain extremely hazardous at this time. If you do not have to go out, stay home! The sunlight continues to help with clearing roadways, but as temperatures dip back below freezing, black ice is anticipated tonight and into tomorrow morning.
Mississippi Department of Transportation has closed both lanes on Hwy 78 eastbound starting at Craft Road exit all the way to Red Banks, MS exit wil be SHUT DOWN, NO GIVEN TIME TO REOPEN. This closure is to treat roadways and assist trucks and vehicles that have been stuck due to icy conditions.
Our area first responders are encouraging folks to please continue to stay off roadways if they can. Many of you may need to report to work and your usual commute will be impacted today due to interstate closures. Roadways are going to be slick. Clear off all ice off of your hood, windshield, and roof before operating your vehicle. Non-essential individuals are asked to stay home. If you must get out, go slow, give yourself time to stop, and be mindful of emergency crews and public works crews.
Our City Public Works and Fleet Services departments have worked around the clock since Winter Storm Fern's arrival. The sunshine greatly helped our efforts in clearing key roadways. However, our City has over 350 linear miles of roadways that we must continue to address. We will continue to work on emergency service routes inside the City limits addressing main roadways and bridges before we begin working on side streets.
If you need to monitor road conditions, you can check out the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) 's free traffic resources to monitor live road conditions at https://www.mdottraffic.com/landing.aspx .
Warming Centers
Warming Centers in Olive Branch, Southaven, and Hernando remain open for those in need.
Olive Branch: 9549 Pigeon Roost Road, Olive Branch, MS 38654 on the campus of Olive Branch Elementary.
Ash's Irish Pub 9200 Goodman Road Suite 300
Southaven: 312 Hwy 51 N Southaven, MS
Hernando: The Gale Center 601 Elm Street, Hernando, MS
State Updates:
Governor Tate Reeves shared this update Wednesday, January 28. Ice is still being reported in 23 counties
The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) has deployed nearly 600 maintenance employees, and dozens of salt trucks and snowplows from southern Mississippi to the northern part of the state. MDOT has over 120 snowplows deployed in north Mississippi and the Delta, and is working to clear over 15,000 lane miles and 3,000 bridges. MDOT has shifted most of its focus to clearing the two major impacted interstates, I-55 and I-22. MDOT deployed motor graders and snowplows, dumping salt after ice breaking attempts. Crews faced challenges clearing ice off the roads. These challenges were a result of stopped traffic due to slowdowns from vehicles on the interstate. Because of these slowdowns, MDOT and the Mississippi Department of Public Safety made the decision to close I-55 for northbound traffic from Batesville to Senatobia, and all lanes of I-22 from the Tennessee state line to Red Banks, in both directions. Additional closures may be announced by MDOT and DPS.
Throughout Thursday, MDOT crews will continue to focus on opening all lanes of I-55 and I-22. Drivers are encouraged to remain off any open interstate in northern Mississippi unless it is an emergency. This will allow MDOT crews to work uninterrupted.
Gratitude
Thank you to our public works, police, fire, and emergency crews who are working through these conditions, and thank you to residents for continuing to look out for one another during this storm. Our City is blessed in many ways, but mainly for the kindness we have for one another.
Follow updates on the http://www.obms.us/winterstorm2026 page for the latest city updates or connect with us on social media. Stay safe, Olive Branch.