Freezing drizzle likely to hit between 4-6 p.m.

Light freezing rain is expected to reach the Springfield area between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. today, according to the National Weather Service in Springfield.

"We're already below freezing now and we're seeing radar echoes of light freezing drizzle on radar moving into southwest Missouri," said Gene Hatch, NWS meteorologist. "It's reaching Branson now."

Hatch said the Springfield area can expect up to a tenth of an inch of ice to accumulate on surfaces — perhaps twice that much in the Branson area.

"If you're on the road, just take it slow," Hatch cautioned. "It should continue through midnight, then taper off, west to east, between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m."

The temperature overnight should drop to the mid-teens. Any light rain that falls will quickly freeze on surfaces. Any elevated surfaces, like bridges and overpasses, will freeze much sooner, Hatch said.

"If you are getting off work now (around 3:15 p.m.) you should be OK," he added. "Once you're on the roads this evening, just take it easy. Just make it home — you don't have to make it home fast."