Blog: Snowstorm causes major power outages across central NC

"We have another cold front headed through our area this evening, and it's going to bring another blast of cold air," she said. "All of the slush on the roads now is going to be frozen overnight, so the morning commute will be treacherous again tomorrow."

Highs Thursday afternoon will barely creep above freezing, and overnight lows will dip into the mid-20s. Friday highs will once again be in the mid-and upper-30s.

DOT Secretary Tony Tata said brine operations before the storm did help crews start to clear the state's roads early Thursday.

"We've got 80,000 miles of roadway that we maintain and clear, so at the end of the day, they're working hard," Tata said. "They are going to clear interstates and primary roads."

Tata said some crews from area's that did not receive much wintry precipitation will be moving north to help clear more roads.

In total, about 100 arrivals and departures were canceled Thursday morning as snow and rain moved through the area.

Travelers are urged to check the status of their flights before driving to the airport.

"Increase your following distance, slow down and pay attention. One small area that is covered with snow or ice can lead to a wreck," he said.

"It was probably about 1:30 a.m. and it was like a crack, whap and a pop. You could actually feel the ground almost tremble," he said.

A university spokesperson said the university is waiting on Duke Energy crews to restore power to campus. Parts of the campus do have power, but students were relocated from Eagle Landing, Richmond, New Resident Hall II and Ruffin.

The advisory for Cumberland, Hoke, Sampson another other counties had been scheduled to run out at noon Thursday. Much of the southern part of the area saw mostly rain as the winter storm pushed through the area.

"You have to take those small victories, and we're starting to see numbers go down, especially in Wake County," he said. "As more crews arrive to the area from other parts of the state, that will exponentially help us get the lights back on. I think we'll start to see major improvement in the next few hours."

As of 10:30 a.m., about 80,000 Duke Energy customers in Wake County were without power. About 36,000 customers are without power in Durham County.

"Don't be surprised if you see a sprinkle today, but the bulk of this system is now off the coast and moving to the northeast," she said.

Temperatures will be at or near freezing throughout the day.

Crews have worked throughout the night to keep the airfield open, clear airport roadways and treat parking lots and sidewalks.

Passengers are strongly encouraged to check flight status before heading to the airport. If scheduled to fly, please plan to arrive early for check-in and security screening.

Brooks said people should continue to report outages so that crews can have a full picture of what the situation looks like.

"Most importantly, do not go near any downed power lines," he said. "Give our crews space to work, and we'll start to see the numbers go down."

As of 9:45 a.m., about 87,000 Duke Energy customers remain without power in Wake County.

Officials were waiting on utility crews to arrive.

The canopy of a gas station in Henderson collapsed early Thursday morning due to the weight of about 8 inches of snow. No injuries were reported in the incident, officials said.

A large tree fell onto a section of Duke View Apartments on Morreene Road in Durham as well. No injuries were reported.

Power outage numbers have leveled off in the Triangle and even dropped in some places, but hundreds of thousands remain in the dark. About 90,000 Duke Energy customers are without power in Wake County, and another 35,000 in Durham County are waiting for service to be restored.

"Don't be surprised if you see a sprinkle or flurry through early afternoon, and we still have our winter storm warning through noon Thursday in the bulk of the area," she said.

Power outage numbers have dropped slightly in Wake County, falling to about 90,000 Duke Energy customer in the dark at about 8:15.

Statewide, more than 210,000 customers are without power.

Although snow is coming to an end, downed trees and tree limbs will continue to be an issue thanks to the wet, heavy snow.

"We'll start to dry out across the area this morning, but don't be surprised to see some mist and drizzle," WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner said. "Power outages is the number one impact of this storm, and the roads are still going to be dangerous in northern areas."

"It's coming to an end pretty quickly from west to east," she said. "The back edge of the snow began pulling into western Wake County just before 7 a.m., and it will continue to push east through the 8 a.m. hour."

"We've had additional salt coming in recently. In Wake County, they got an additional 800 tons this week," he said. "We feel confident we have enough to get through this storm and the rest of the week."

Charbonneau said road crews are continuing to pull double duty as they push snow off the roads and clear downed trees and tree limbs.

"When we can get out and push the heavy snow, it's easier for our crews to work with that than it is when we have sheets of ice," he said. "It's going to take time, though, so we're asking people to stay off the roads if they can."

"We've seen a sharp drop in snowfall amounts once you get south of Wake County and that U.S. Highway 64 corridor," she said.

Officials with the Durham County Sheriff's Office said snow totals in the county range from 4 inches in the south to about 7 inches in the north.

"We are getting plenty of calls about trees being down, and we're responding to those now," Wake County Assistant Maintenance Engineer Jason Dunigan said. "We're trying to clear the roads for power companies so they can get out and do what they do."

Dunigan said the brine that crews spread Wednesday afternoon and evening did help.

"We are pushing snow off the interstate and primary roads now, and it's coming off pretty good. The roads are coming along, it's just going to take time," he said.

Crews are treating taxiways and runways.

"We're probably going to see this light snow stay with us through about 7 or 8 a.m. across the bulk of the region," she said. "The back edge is moving through the Triad now. We could see a bit of additional accumulation, but it won't be anything major. I don't think we'll see a change back over to rain after this in the Triangle."

"We're asking people to stay clear of the DOT trucks and allow them to do their jobs," he said. "Around Wake County is a particular trouble spot. Some areas are seeing slushy snow, and the northern parts of the Triangle are much more treacherous."

Jeff Brooks, a spokesman for Duke Energy, said crews are out across the state working to restore power.

"We've been restoring power throughout the night, but with Wake and Durham counties being the hardest hit, we have to go out and assess the damage and then assign crews," Brooks said. "It's a methodical process, but it's efficient."

"We'll start to see the biggest part of our precipitation come to an end by about 7 or 8 a.m., and then we could be dealing with light drizzle on and off throughout the day," she said.

Clouds will stay put as the precipitation moves out, and daytime highs will hover just above freezing.

"We've seen the snow change to sleet, freezing rain or even rain in spots, and it's all falling on top of heavy, wet snow," she said. "That is why we're seeing so many power outages, because ice is falling on top of this heavy snow."

Heaviest snowfall totals are in the northern parts of the Triangle. Areas around Roxboro have seen about 6 inches. Parts of northern Wake County to the northeast have seen 4 to 5 inches.

A winter storm warning is in effect for the bulk of the area until noon Thursday, and the freezing precipitation could change back over to snow as it begins to move out.

"We still have a ways to go with the intense precipitation," he said.

White flakes began falling across central North Carolina just before 8 p.m. Wednesday as a storm forecast to drop possibly as much as 10 inches of snow slowly moved into the state.

Snow was reported in Spring Lake and northern Cumberland County as well as in Wake, Lee, Orange, Wayne, and Chatham counties.

Several counties, including Wake, Johnston, Harnett, Lee, Chatham, Orange, Durham, Franklin, Nash and Granville, are under a winter storm warning through noon Thursday.

Scotland, Hoke, Cumberland, Sampson and Wayne counties are under a winter weather advisory for the same period.

"By tomorrow morning, our northern counties could see up to 6 to 10 inches of snow, and areas around Fayetteville could see anywhere from 2 to 4," WRAL Chief Meteorologist Greg Fishel said.

Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency to allow the state to use all of its resources to respond to the weather.

North Carolina Department of Transportation Secretary Tony Tata said crews will be out in force ahead of the system as road conditions are expected to remain treacherous.

"We urge everyone to stay off the road if possible as this next round of weather hits us so that our crews can work safely and efficiently," Tata said.

Officials said DOT crews will have plenty of supplies to help treat roads before, during and after the snowstorm.

The system is expected to move out Thursday morning, but temperatures will struggle to get above freezing during the day, and flurries or light freezing precipitation could linger through the early afternoon.

Temperatures will remain below normal on Friday and over the weekend, with highs in the upper 30s, but a warmup is expected early next week.