This past weekend's winter storm dropped three inches of snow, half an inch of sleet and a layer of frozen rain an eighth of an inch thick. The mix of wintry elements congealed into a white, opaque ice, leaving many roads dangerous and much of North Carolina in a temporary paralysis.
Though North Carolina's winters are generally weak compared to those of northern and mountain states, when winter storms hit the Tarheel State, they hit hard--putting classes, meetings and appointments on hold.
Authorities have a number of theories for the state's vulnerability to winter weather.
North Carolina's geography plays a key role in its winter weather battles, said Jeff Orrock, the warning coordinator for the National Weather Service in Raleigh. During the winter, warm, moist air from the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico collides with cold fronts from the North. These meteorological conditions make North Carolina especially vulnerable to freezing rain and sleet, which form ice on the ground, he said.
"It's not really snow that causes the big problems," he noted. "Ice is a big problem, and there's not a whole lot you can do about it.... Everybody is really at the mercy of the weather until the weather improves."
Orrock added that the relative infrequency of winter emergencies makes them more dangerous when they do occur.
"Up north, they get snow in the order of feet," he said. "It's a way of life for them. We get maybe a couple of winter events a year and that's it. We're not dealing with it day after day. People here aren't accustomed to it."
North Carolina's preparations for winter storms also beg the question of practicality. Some policymakers argue it is not cost-effective to dedicate more resources to coping with snow and ice.
"In the South, you don't typically book yourself for having frequent storms," said Sharon Laisure, assistant city manager of Durham. "I think it's fiscally proven not to do that.... I don't think we're ever truly caught off guard."
Response to the weekend storm was carried out by the state Division of Emergency Management and the Department of Transportation.
The North Carolina DOT bears a higher burden than most other state DOTs. A law passed by the state legislature during the Great Depression set the precedent that NCDOT maintain highways, interstates and secondary roads, or the roads that link to highways, explained Steve Varnedoe, chief engineer of operations for NCDOT. Most state DOTs maintain only highways and interstates, while secondary roads are kept up by county or local authorities. Only about six states besides North Carolina, including Virginia and South Carolina, follow this practice.
"Our first priority... is the highway system," Varnedoe said. "As soon as the storm progresses, we plow the other routes. The type of event [last weekend]... made it difficult to get back to the secondary road system.... When temperatures are sustained at 18 or 20 degrees and precipitation continues, it's certainly a very challenging situation."
NCDOT owns over 2,000 pieces of equipment to deal with the snow. When the DOT needs more snowplows or similar machinery, it relies on contractors rather than purchasing its own additional equipment, a measure that helps to control costs.
"At one point you are wasting money to have tremendous amounts of supply on hand for events that don't happen that frequently," said Ryan Boyles, an associate climatologist for the State Climate Office in Raleigh. "If we could predict a harsh winter, then city planners could better prepare for it, but the science isn't there yet. Planners have to rely on long-term trends and weather patterns."
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