Phillips County Braces as Governor Declares Statewide Emergency, $250K Allocated

Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued Executive Order 26-03 on Jan. 22, 2026, declaring a state of emergency for Arkansas ahead of a large winter storm expected about Jan. 23. The order, effective immediately, directed $250,000 from the Governor’s Disaster Response and Recovery Fund to the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management (ADEM) to defray program and administrative costs for state-level storm response. The declaration is written to speed delivery of essential supplies and support restoration work during and after the storm.

The order authorizes emergency response and commercial relief vehicles - including utility trucks, bucket trucks and fuel delivery convoys - to bypass Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) weigh stations while responding to the emergency. That temporary measure is aimed at accelerating movement of crews and materials into hard-hit areas. The executive order also temporarily exempts certain commercial carriers from standard federal motor-carrier rules for the duration of the emergency; it does not relieve other permit or weight restrictions. The declaration remains in force for the duration of the emergency, no longer than 30 days unless renewed.

For Phillips County and the Delta region, the statewide mobilization is intended to bolster local response capacity. Local governments, utilities and emergency managers were asked to coordinate with ADEM and state partners for warming centers, power restoration and supply delivery planning. Helena-West Helena emergency officials and county utility crews may see expedited access for out-of-area crews and fuel convoys, reducing wait times at weigh stations and smoothing logistics for restoring power and heating to homes, farms and businesses.

The funding is modest but targeted: $250,000 is authorized to cover program and administrative costs at the state level, helping to coordinate staging, communications and critical support functions that affect county-level operations. Faster movement of equipment and prioritized convoy routing can shorten outages for households dependent on electric heat and for critical facilities such as clinics and long-term care sites.

Because the exemptions from federal motor-carrier rules are limited to this emergency, commercial carriers and local officials must still comply with existing permit and weight limits that remain in force. Residents should expect increased activity on state and county roads as utility crews and fuel convoys deploy, and warming centers may be activated in coordination with local officials.

As the storm threat moves through the region, Phillips County officials will be working with ADEM to list warming center locations and to set restoration priorities. The emergency order gives state and local responders tools to move resources faster; in practical terms for readers, that means a higher likelihood of quicker repairs and prioritized supply deliveries in the days after the storm.