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The snow moved out of our area on Sunday morning, leaving behind a thick blanket on roads across the state.
WRAL meteorologist Chris Michaels said sunshine on Sunday could assist in some melting, but with bitterly cold temperatures in the forecast and accumulation totals greater than 4 inches throughout much of our area, much of the snow will stick to the roads into Monday and beyond.
Here’s a look at the latest snow totals.
Triangle road conditions are treacherous
In the Triangle and across our area at 6:30 a.m., snow was still covering most major roads. WRAL News crews in the WRAL Storm Tracker saw cars sliding both on interstates and side roads in Wake County on Sunday morning.
As of 6:30 a.m., Interstate 40 in Raleigh was not plowed yet.
Sgt. Marcus Bethea with the State Highway Patrol spoke to WRAL News at 7 a.m., saying crashes that State Highway Patrol responded to have increased from 750 to 995 statewide overnight.
“This has become a very busy event,” Bethea said. “We are please urging people, please stay off the roads.”
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office posted at 6 a.m. that “I-85 and I-40 are still covered in snow with one lane that is starting to open up on each of them.” Some major roads in Orange County, including Churton Street, Highway 70, and Highway 54 have been plowed.
“All secondary roads are completely covered,” the sheriff’s office wrote. “Even if a plow has gone down the road, it is still covered and very slippery. On and off ramps to the interstate are the same.”
The city of Durham also posted a reminder late Saturday, writing, “Road conditions are getting worse as snow continues to cover many streets. Our crews are working overnight to plow primary roads, bridges, busy intersections, and steep hills. Please keep a safe distance from plow trucks and never follow too closely. Use extreme caution if you must travel.”
You can check out traffic cameras on WRAL.com.
NCDOT asks drivers to stay home
Not everyone has the option to stay home, but the state Department of Transportation urged drivers on Facebook Saturday night to do so if at all possible.
“Y’all… We’re not trying to be like that, but…STAY HOME,” the NCDOT posted, reporting 750 crashes as of Saturday night. “That’s a lot of drivers not listening to the message the first time.”
Staying home also allows road crews to clear the roads faster, although snow could linger on our roads for days to come, especially as temperature stay below average for early February.
Before you hit the road
Remember these safety tips.
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