The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department has a new fan — or at least a supporter of its program to tweet changes in road conditions online via Twitter, the 140-character messaging network, used primarily in a social manner.
My brother, Pat, who had heard that Arkansas had flooding problems before he left his home in the Dallas area on Christmas Eve, signed in to his rarely used Twitter account. He clicked on “follow” with the AHTD to have the latest in Arkansas road conditions sent to him on his Blackberry smartphone as he drove up to my parents’ house south of Little Rock.
Pat said it made a big difference in his ability to finish the trip. By the time he reached Benton, he knew that the area on Interstate 30 at the Saline County-Pulaski County line, which had been closed most of the day, had re-opened.
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It’s been a great Christmas for our family.
It started with a wonderful candlelight service on Christmas Eve at First Presbyterian Church in North Little Rock. We thank all of the members for their graciousness in sharing their special service with us. It was their first service back in their sanctuary after nearly two years, thanks to a generous donation from a contractor who donated and installed a new HVAC system.
On Christmas, Nancy and I went to my folks’ house, where we spent part of the day with them and my brother, Pat, who lives in Carrollton, Texas. He arrived safely after a tough drive, running from the threat of snow in the Dallas area and through a series of closed roads because of flooding here in Arkansas.
My younger brother, Andy, who is a Memphis paramedic-firefighter, is scheduled to come down Saturday.
On Christmas night, we spoke by phone with our children, who live in Texas.
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It’s so easy for us to recall the hundreds of times we splash through a puddle or slight rivulet of water as we drive through the streets to or from work.
Sometimes we should be slowing down to consider IF we should be driving through high water along the route. It doesn’t take but a few seconds for a stream to grow into a surging river — one that can overcome our vehicle and put us in harm’s way.
We’ve had a fatality in North Little Rock overnight. Let’s not add to the horror experienced by that family.
Be careful out there. It takes only seconds to be swept into danger.
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