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Winter weather slams area

Posted on February 4, 2010 by Staff

Kirk Ross and Beth Mechum
Staff Writers

It was awfully pretty, what with the big moon and all.

But the major winter storm that dropped eight inches of snow on Carrboro and Chapel Hill will more likely be remembered for causing a near-complete shut down of travel and commerce and days of closed schools, icy roads and widespread inconvenience.

The snow, followed in quick succession by several hours of ice pellets and a day and half of cold rain, was one of the largest winter storms of the past several years. Cooler temperatures, however, kept it from causing the same kind of widespread power outages as the devastating ice storm of 2003.

The storm kept most businesses closed through the weekend, with both Chapel Hill and Carrboro all but shut down on Saturday.

After two days off, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools resumed on Wednesday with a delayed schedule, with school officials saying parking lots and buildings had been cleared of major snow and ice. The two snow days will be made up on Monday, Feb. 22 and Monday, April 5, both originally teacher workdays.

“For folks who have concerns about spring break, April 5 is Easter Monday — it is technically not part of spring break,” said Stephanie Knott, CHCCS assistant superintendent for community relations. Spring break is scheduled for March 29-April 2.

“Spring break is untouched, and we’ve got to hope that we don’t get any more bad weather to keep that true,” said Knott, adding that several districts in the state have already had to eat into their spring break to make up for inclement weather. Should more winter weather come through the area, the next student makeup day would be Memorial Day.

To get ready for the storm, crews from Chapel Hill and Carrboro public works departments joined with Department of Transportation crews in laying down brine.

George Seiz, Carrboro’s public works director, said the brine mixture helps prevent the snow from binding with road surfaces, making removal easier.

Both towns have adopted a strategy of keeping main roads as clear as possible through the storm to keep them passable for emergency vehicles and any public transit that is still operating.

After clearing out the main arteries, crews focus on secondary roads. Many of those throughout southern Orange County did not see substantial clearing until Tuesday.

Seiz said warmer weather also made a contribution to the work.

“Mother Nature played a key role with mild temperatures, and started melting off the snow pretty well,” Seiz said.

Crews from both towns worked 12-hour shifts to keep efforts moving around the clock.

Richard Terrell, Chapel Hill’s operations manager for public works, said as of Wednesday there were no serious trouble spots, though crews were still spreading sand and pushing slush away in some areas.

“We worked around the clock, including last night,” he said on Wednesday. “As of 3:30 today, we went back to our normal schedule.”

Asked how the crews held up, Terrell said there was some expected wear and tear, and days of working 12-hour shifts took their toll. “I can tell you they were happy to get back to their regular schedule today,” he said.

Chapel Hill Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt said town crews did a good job of getting the town back in shape, especially getting bus routes ready. The town operated with a limited schedule over the weekend, but did run its Tar Heel Express routes to UNC’s basketball contest against Virginia at the Smith Center.

Kleinschmidt said he has not heard much in the way of complaints about the cleanup and road clearing.

“The only concern people have raised has been about sidewalks,” he said. Clearing the walks is often more difficult. And while early on it was hard on pedestrians, most sidewalks are in better shape as of Wednesday, the mayor said.

Carrboro sidewalks were a key focus after the downtown thoroughfares were cleared.

Cliff Collins, owner of Cliff’s Meat Market, said he appreciated the effort in getting the central business-district sidewalks cleared.

“They were out there working really hard, and I really want to thank them for that,” he said Tuesday evening.

With cold temperatures and a sprinkling of ice pellets creating a crust on top of the snowfall, the storm proved to be a godsend for anyone with an interest in sledding.

Southern Community Park and Carrboro High School were hot spots for sledding, where anything from tarps to cardboard to actual sleds were pressed into service.

Despite heavy enthusiasm and slick conditions, UNC Hospitals only reported one sledding-related injury. In all, about a half-dozen weather-related injuries were treated at the Emergency Department, most due to falls.

As the roads cleared, trash and recycling crews returned to work. Commercial trash haulers also returned to the streets to pick up a growing backlog of trash at area apartment complexes.

Now town officials and a wary populace are keeping an eye on this weekend’s weather. It may have been a balmy 50 degrees on Wednesday, but colder weather is heading this way. Precipitation is in the forecast; depending on temperatures, that could mean ice pellets, rain or snow.

“We’re watching it,” Terrell said. “You have to. In this area, you just never know.”

Updates on service schedules and weather warnings will be posted to The Citizen’s MILL blog at carrborocitizen.com/mill

Kate Griesmann contributed to this report.

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