From NCEP's extended forecast discussion this afternoon: "...THREAT OF HEAVY SNOW APPALACHIANS INTO THE NORTHEAST AND NEW
ENGLAND...SNOW...00Z NOGAPS OFFERING WORST SCENARIO OF HVY SNOW ENTIRE
APPLCHN CORDILLERA INTO NORTHEAST AND MUCH OF NEW ENG WITH
COLDER THERMAL FIELD." Ok and this is from NCEP's prognostic map discussion going out 48 hours: "COLD/DRY AIR ALOFT WL ALLOW SNOWS TO FALL
ACRS THE SRN APLCHNS OF THE CAROLINAS AND NRN GA TUE AM." They've been talking about this possibility since mid week last week and if you've been a regular viewer of the Asheville Weather Report, you saw the rain or snow in the forecast for Tuesday beginning last week. But, and this is a big but, there are still a lot of uncertainties with this forecast. A lot. I believe in being safe than sorry so I present you with the worst case scenario, a scenario endorsed by NCEP and the NWSFO out of Greenville/Spartanburg: "WE COULD SEE SIG SNOWFALL
...WITH THIS MILLER TYPE A STORM...ESP ACROSS MTNS". And since it's so late in the season and with temperatures around freezing, this will be a heavy, wet snow if it materializes. Trees and power lines could be downed. So what's the dillio? Well, everything will be alright for tonight and tomorrow. Then the fun begins tomorrow night. Precipitation will spread in from the south and the air will be so dry that the precip won't initially reach the ground. But as more and more precipitation elements move in, the air will saturate and cool and we'll start mixing the rain with snow. After midnight, as more colder air moves in, we change the rain/snow mix to all snow and it'll be piling up. Significant snowfall accumulations are possible if this situation were to occur. Snow continues during the day on Tuesday, it'll be windy, and very cold with temps staying in the mid 30s! Now that's if the low track is inland or closer to the coast. A low track farther off the coast into the Atlantic will mean little or no precipitation and if it were to precipitate, it would be in the form of rain. At this time, I'm going with the colder, snowier scenario but, this forecast is subject to change. Tune in later this evening for an updated forecast and during the day tomorrow as we get closer to this potential March winter storm! Almost looks eeirily familiar to another March storm we had. Monday, March 19 7:30PM
"PARTIAL THICKNESSES AND MODEL SOUNDINGS GENERALLY SUPPORT ALL SNOW OVER THE NC MTNS."
That from the afternoon discussion from the Greenville/Spartanburg NWS where they had a blast up call with virtually every forecast office within 100 miles. So you know at this point that all of Western North Carolina is under a winter storm watch. Looking at up to 10 inches of snow here in Asheville, 1 to 2 feet of snow above 4000 feet, ya know the normal high elevation places like Mitchell, Pisgah, Grandfather, Sugar to name a few. They'll be measuring the snow in feet. But wait, wait, let's not be hasty here! Let me set the scene.
I want you to put out of your mind the fact that we reached 53 degrees for a high today. You may say, we got so warm today that we just won't get cold enough for snow. Folks, that doesn't tell the whole story. It could have gotten 5 degrees warmer and I'd still be saying this. The air is very dry! Dewpoints are in the 10s this evening. Once that precipitation reaches us, it'll fall in that dry air, evaporational cooling will take place and temps will crash. As of 7pm, heavy rain in Atlanta and it's 42 degrees. They reached 54 today. See with heavy rain, you're going to get the temp to plummet even further than just a light shower coming in with dry air. So for that reason, we will be cold enough for the snow.
"THERE SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT DYNAMIC COOLING OCCURRING IN ADVANCE OF THE UPPER LOW TO LEAD TO SOME LOCALLY HEAVY SNOWFALL IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF ERN TN...WRN NC...AND NWRN SC MAINLY ABOVE 2500 FEET. ISOLATED AMTS ON SOME OF THE HIGHER MTN LOCATIONS COULD APPROACH 6-8 INCHES BUT OVERALL MOST AREAS WILL PROBABLY SEE 4-6 INCHES."
That from NCEP's heavy snowfall discussion this afternoon. I'd like to point out the sufficent dynamic cooling. If you've seen any upper air maps, thickness maps, you'll see how unusual this storm situation is shaping up to be. They have critical thickness values that would be low enough for snow going all the way into the Northern Gulf of Mexico! No it's not going to snow down there but that'll tell you how dynamic this storm system is. The upper low will bring it's own cold air with it. There'll be plenty of cold air aloft for snow and as the snowfalls, the temperatures will drop. Oh but there is forecast to be loads of lifting with this system and as you saw, it should be ahead of the upper low. So we could be in a situation where the whole event is snow. Like later tonight, we could see heavy, wet snow falling with temperatures well above freezing then of course those temps plummet. And when I say plummet, we aren't going into the single digits and teens. Not even the 20s. We're going to be around freezing for this event at our lowest.
"STRONG DIFFLUENCE AHEAD OF THE UPPER LOW WILL CONTRIBUTE TO POTENT UVVS AND THIS COMBINED WITH CONTINUED STRONG EASTERLY INFLOW WILL BRING SOME IMPRESSIVE SNOW AMTS PARTICULARLY TO WRN NC WHERE ACCUMULATIONS COULD APPROACH 8-12 INCHES ON THE HIGHEST PEAKS THERE."
Also from NCEP's heavy snowfall discussion. This will be a miller type A storm as the surface low moves from the northeast Gulf northeastward to South Georgia with a secondary low forming off the Georgia coast. The easterly flow will overwhelm the mountains with an abundance of moisture and will keep the cool air entrenched. I would like to point out this. This will be snow, no mixing, no freezing rain, very low potential for sleet. But if you go east, places like Morganton, Hickory, Statesville, warm air aloft from that flow off the Atlantic could mix the snow with sleet there tomorrow. All snow Asheville.
My snowfall prediction, 5-10 inches for Asheville through tomorrow night. Tricky thing is, do we stay all snow into Wednesday or do we change to rain tomorrow night? We'll have to see on that, tune back here periodically, I'll update the forecast around midnight or so for my best guess at this storm. I must say, it's amazing the awareness people are having due to this impending snowstorm. It's been the buzz all over the city all day today. Oh and one more thing. Winds will be up to 30 mph, we'll be in near blizzard like conditions at times tomorrow and if we get any kind of convection with the snow, then add a few more inches to my snowfall prediction. I'll update later tonight!
Monday, March 19 10:30PM
It was snowing as close as Macon County in the Southern Mountains. Snow also reported this evening in Northern Alabama and parts of southern Middle Tennessee. They even had sleet around the Atlanta area earlier in the evening. It's coming! The snow is coming. Looks like some time after 3am will be the beginning of the precip ban that's moving from the south on radar. We'll have an initial period of mixed precip once our air gets saturated then it's all snow. Interesting to see that the temperatures actually cool down during the day on the model outputs. Forecast is still A OK! One problem, one huge problem! I don't have any strawberry twizzlers. That's my storm tracking food. If you happen to come across strawberry twizzlers, send them my way ;) For the rest of the forecast for those of you who care, we'll clear it out on Wednesday. Took out the snow mention for Wednesday morning, thinking it'll be too warm and will just be rain. Partly cloudy through next weekend. Didn't update the precipitation forecasts because not all the models were in and I wouldn't be awake when they would be. So I didn't bother. They have gone up though on precip amounts. If you're a snow lover, you're salivating at that I'm sure. The National Weather Service will probably issue a winter storm warning around 5am. I'll be awake around 6am to update this forecast. Hope you'll be up in the morning, have a good night. Tuesday, March 20 6:30AM Spring arrives at 8:31 am today. By 8:31 am, we could be in near blizzard conditions. Not only is there a winter storm warning, there's a high wind warning in effect for winds sustained to be up near 45 mph! Keep in mind the threshold for a blizzard warning is 35 mph so as you see, as I've been saying all along, near blizzard conditions. But...but...you look outside and you're not seeing hardly any snow. Maybe you're saying that I missed the forecast or somethin? Have you looked at a radar lately. And first of all, the snow began falling here in Asheville around 2:49am...I said it was start around 3am...not bad I guess. Yeah but radar shows the solid area of precipitation moving in from the south. Haywood, Macon, Transylvania, Henderson counties will likely get the heavier accumulations, the 5-10 inch range that I am still predicting. They'll get on the high end because they tend to do well so to speak in snow situations like this with a moisture fetch from the south. Upslope will help them get more snow. Yeah, 5-10 inches still is my forecast. Snow increasing through the day, could get rates at an inch per hour as well. Likelihood of hearing a rumble of thunder? Probably not but last model I checked last night had some of the critical instability values very close to us by this evening. I'll update the forecast where it says Tuesday and on. I won't fool with the tonight part till...tonight. I'll update you frequently. Oh and I would like to say. I'll make this eddict or whatever. It's 6:08 am, schools aren't closed in Asheville. I really hope they close schools up here because you don't want to have kids stranded at school or on the roads on a school bus as the storm increases. It looks tame now, it will not be that way the rest of the day. Don't be stupid, close the schools now. We've got a winter storm warning and a high wind warning. If it doesn't happen, blame me. It just wouldn't be a good situation if you're closing schools just as heavy snow is falling knowing all along that's what the forecast is. Schools are closed to our south. We're not missing this storm. And I'll keep you updated through the day. Tuesday, March 20 8:30AM It's spring! Look out the window...that's not spring, that's winter's last slap at Western North Carolina. What a whack! Before 7am, I was looking on radar and wondering, when is it going to start snowing. I looked out the window saw this mass of lower visibilities moving our way, one flake led to another and there you go with over an inch of snow on the ground. They've been having problems with downed trees and roofs being blown off structures in Northeast Georgia and the Upstate of South Carolina. Expect damage reports like that around our area as the day goes on. I told you it was coming, you didn't believe me. So over an inch now, just 4 more to go to get within my range. Pretty good aye and we still have a day of snow. Was looking at live cams across the area, snow on the ground in Greenville, SC. I was watching the Western Carolina cam, one minute it was just wet there and the next, snow covered with snow coming down. 5-10 inches of snow, my going forecast, looking very good. Rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour today. We've dropped around freezing as well so there will be slick spots on the roadways and especially watch the bridges and overpasses. Roads appear wet looking out my window but exercise caution. To reiterate, winter storm warning for today as well as a high wind warning. Trees and power lines will fall, there will be power outages in some areas. I hope you're prepared! Oh and one more thing. They finally canceled schools in Asheville, Buncombe areas. To the person making that decision, what were you thinking? Now you have to send all the kids that were in school back home. Don't you look at radar? Don't you look at forecasts! Urrrrrr, that just irks me. If it were up to me, every county in a winter storm warning would be closed. Every one of them. But of course I don't make those decisions so oh well. I'll update you later this morning when I get some updated snowfall amounts. Tuesday, March 20 3PM Just an update on snow totals. 5-10 inches my forecast, many areas have even exceeded that. Here's an update: Dry slot has lightened or ended the precipitation over us now. As of 11am, 2.5 inches of snow recorded at Asheville Airport. More snow fell between then and 2 so the amount is higher. An updated on that tonight. In fact, my next update will be an updated forecast for tonight through the next 10 days. The big winner today with snowfall 3-8 inches in Transylvania County with 1 foot snow drifts. Some of these amounts I'm seeing seem to low. Like an inch of snow in Henderson County. I know for a fact that that's way low for there. So I won't give you too much more info on snow totals till my forecast update. Upper low over Alabama, what a complex storm.
RECORD SNOWFALL FOR FIRST DAY OF SPRING We blew away the record snowfall for the date here in Asheville. Today was the snowiest first day of spring on record. 5.2 inches of snow, shattered the previous record for snow on this date which was set in 1965 with 1.7 inches. For the snow season that runs from July 1, 2000-June 30, 2001, we've now recorded 14.4 inches, that's more than twice the amount at this same time last year. This is a storm we're going to remember for a long time. Yeah, sure it wasn't as dramatic as the blizzard of 93, a threshold we'll probably hold for for snowstorms to come. Until we can top that, then it's just not enough, that seems to be the attitude. But it's March 20, we just shattered a snowfall record for the date. This has been an epic storm. I don't use that term for weather a lot but this truly has been epic. This storm has worked out quite nicely, even more so than predictions. 5-10 inches my predicition, geez that seems low looking at the snowfall totals around the area. 20 inches possible for areas north of Asheville for a storm total. I mentioned this morning that this would be a big snowstorm for areas south like Transylvania, Macon, Henderson counties, etc., well just as I thought the heaviest snow totals have come from that part of the area. Snow drifts to 3 feet in Transylvania County. The precipitation isn't over. That dry slot has sort of flattened out and precip is filling in to our south and east. That'll continue to funnel into the French Broad Valley tonight and we will continue to see some rain, some snow, and some mix. 3 to 6 inches of snow, not out of the question. The weather service is going for it, and I've jumped on that band wagon. That would bring storm totals 9 to 15 inches in our area. We'll be getting Atlantic moisture from here on in. Earlier it was Gulf moisture. Seems like the heaviest precip though will be to our east, we get shadowed a bit by the mountains to our east. Few snow/rain showers in the morning tomorrow before we just remain cloudy and windy. A wind advisory continues for tonight and there will be blowing and drifting of snow. Be careful after dark. Much warmer for Thursday, that's when we'll next see the sun. Wednesday, March 21 12AM What a storm. Headlined by that 24 inch snow in Cedar Mountain which is in Transylvania County. Up to 11 inches of snow here in Buncombe County! We accumulated a lot here early this evening as the rain changed to heavy, wet, snow and those flakes were pretty big. So tonight we're left with lingering snow showers, most numerous to our east. They should move on off to the northeast after 4am. An upper low over Eastern Alabama and Western Georgia is beginning to move to the east and will help energize a surface low off the Atlantic coast and folks in the Northeast will have to worry about it in the next couple of days. Today, it was our storm. Forecasts worked out excellent. This is a storm that we'll remember for things working out. If you saw exactly a week ago, I presented you with the possibility of rain or snow for Monday or Tuesday. Had timing issues, didn't know when exactly we would get it but back then, it was a pretty good likelihood. So I stuck with the forecast, through the weekend and the rest is history. So you didn't get as much snow in your area as elsewhere, this was one of those neighborhood snowfalls. Some places would get more than others. Overall, this was quite the storm, especially so late in the season. Even had some thundersnow this evening. On a personal note, this was the third time I've been in a thundersnow situation, twice on the first day of spring! Something about me and thundersnow on the first day of spring. I remembered that 3 inch snow we got on March 20, 1996 in Atlanta, and I'll most definetely remember the 6 to 12 inches we got here today. This is one of the heaviest snows I've ever seen and I'll likely see more in my lifetime. I look out the window to melting snow here on campus, but I'm not disappointed. I'm not! The forecast worked out in my opinion, this wasn't a bust by any means. I said 1 to 2 feet in the higher elevations, the 2 feet sufficed as I told you about in Cedar Mountain. 5 to 10 inches was my range and the cities in Western North Carolina got that, or exceeded it. Kudos to all who forecasted this one right, we all deserve a vacation. This one didn't sneak up on anyone (except Asheville City and Buncombe County School superintendents), for the most part we were prepared. Winter's last slap knocked us out, but we'll bounce back tomorrow. And speaking of tomorrow a warmer day with temps in the low 40s but it'll be cloudy and windy. By the way the winter storm warning and wind advisory will continue through the overnight and that wind advisory may continue through tomorrow. Even warmer for Thursday with lots more sunshine and lots of melting. Temperatures stay below normal the next 10 days with not much in the way of rainfall. Perhaps a shower Friday night into Saturday morning and a scattered shower for Sunday but overall, dry, cool weather to round out the end of March. This has been a lot of fun. The challenge in forecasting here is half the fun. Just a reminder, I'll keep the snowfall amounts scrolled on the bottom of the forecast reports and when this storm pulls away, expect a special section on the Blizzard of 2001. No one else has called it that, I'll be the first. I'm a trend setter ya know ;) "At 6 o'clock it was the right decision and at 7:20 it
was the wrong decision"
That is how Buncombe County School Superintendent
Cliff Dodson explained the thought process that
resulted in county and city students heading for
school and then immediately returning home in the
teeth of a powerful and dangerous March snowstorm.
Buncombe County and Asheville City school districts
decided separately to conduct classes as usual even
though the National Weather Service at 5a.m. Tuesday
said there would be heavy snow measuring locally up to
4-8 inches by the afternoon.
Also, on Monday afternoon, the Weather Service had
predicted a major local snowstorm for Tuesday, calling
the probability of snow at nearly 100 percent.
Oter counties throughout Western North Carolina, soon
to be hit by snow, icy roads and high winds, announced
that their schools would be closed.
The combination of heavy snowfall, slick highways and
students headed for classes resultsed in buses sliding
off roads and a lot of parents getting very angry.
Lavonne Jackson, who started out to drive her daughter
Cody to Roberson High, decided to turn back and head
for home after experiencing the nasty road conditions.
"I thought surely the buses wouldn't run on roads like
that," Jackson said. "It places you in a really bad
predicament. I think they should have known, due to
the forecast as well as the other school closings, to
call (school) off. I think that's poor planning."
Clearly, the decisions by Buncombe and Asheville
officials to conduct classes in the face of
protracted, consistent warnings of an approaching
serious snowstorm were way off base.
Deciding that because no snow was evident at 6 a.m.
that no snow would be forthcoming--as predicted--was
akin to playing "chicken" on the highway with Mothern
Nature. Better leave the weather forecasting to the
National Weather Service, especially when the safety
of students, teachers, staff, parents and bus drivers
is at stake.
That said, trying to second guess the weather can be a
confounding darned-if-you-do and darned-if-you-don't
situation. Alice Hart, associate superintendent of
Asheville City Schools, said she had heard reports
that it would only snow lightly and maybe even just
rain, and that it was 39 degrees when buses started
up.
"You just make your best estimate about what's going
to happen," said Hart.
With all due respect, that's not good enough.
Both the county and the city school systems need to
re-examine their policies and procedures regarding
decisions to cancel or not cancel classes on bad
weather days.
They should consider meeting with concerned parents
and students to receive fresh input and ideas on what
makes the most sense in each situation. They should
also listen closely to and be guided by the advice of
expert, state-of-the-art forecasters.
It would be helpful and judicious to conduct a public
review of the decision making process that put
students in harm's way just Tuesday.
And, in every case, decisions in the best interest of
student safety should always be the paramount
consideration. From The Asheville Citizen Times, Page A1, Wednesday, March 21, 2001
Late storm caused many problems
Asheville - Tuesday’s return to winter weather caused problems for residents and travelers throughout Western North Carolina:
- Western counties reported almost 300 accidents; one wreck in Haywood County claimed the life of a motorist.
Carolina Power and Light reported 2,140 scattered power outages Tuesday evening with crews working overnight to restore power, according to Nancy Thompson of CP&L.
To the west, Fred Alexander, district manager of the Nantahala Area of Duke Power reported that between 3,000-4,000 customers in the six westernmost counties lost power. By Tuesday night, crews the lights on for all but about 150 homes of the 60,000 served.
- Weather forced Asheville garbage and recycling crews to cancel Tuesday rounds. Residents with their pick-ups scheduled for Tuesday or today will be picked up today.
The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners Tuesday afternoon meeting has been rescheduled for 4 p.m. March 27.
WNC digs out from spring snowstorm
By Sandy Wall, STAFF WRITER
WAYNESVILLE – Western North Carolina residents welcomed warmer weather on today and the prospect that the snow left by this week’s springtime storm would melt away by late Thursday.
Areas of Haywood County were among the hardest hit by Tuesday’s storm, with some areas seeing more than a foot of wet, heavy snow. Thousands of county residents lost power during the storm, and one motorist died in a single-vehicle, weather-related accident near Waynesville.
But as temperatures rose today, life returned to normal. Roads became more passable, stores reopened and Haywood residents ventured outside to see what the storm had done to their communities.
"A lot of them are just now getting out," said Helen Payne, a cashier at Ray’s Grocery in Cruso, where customers were coming in for everything from milk and bread to oil and drinks.
An emergency shelter that county officials had opened at Riverbend Elementary School to house stranded motorists and other overnight was shut down today after hosting some 75 overnight guests.
"I talked to one lady who had been stranded on Interstate 40 surrounded by 18-wheelers for 7 1/2 hours," said Tony Beaman, Haywood’s director of social services.
Power company crews and contractors darted across the region trying to restore power to customers who had been left cold overnight.
Payne said she welcomed the snow, which made for postcard-pretty scenes throughout much of the mountains.
"I guess we need it, though, for the moisture," she said.
Meteorologists said the wet snow was good news for parched sections of Western North Carolina, which has struggled with a lack of rainfall since Summer 1998.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 14 WNC counties "primary disaster areas" because of a persistent drought, which has left the region some 30 inches of rainfall below normal over the last 2 1/2 years.
"This will definitely help the drought situation," said Sam McCown, a meteorologist at the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville. "It does help with the recharge of the soil."
McCown said a slow-melting snow allows the ground to absorb more moisture than an equivalent amount of rainfall because much of the rainwater runs off.
Because snowfall totals varied across the region and some areas saw snow mixed with rain, it was unclear exactly how much moisture had fallen across the mountains. But McCown said the snow coupled with recent rains made for a good start toward recovering from the drought.
Parents upset at delay in calling off school
By Clarke Morrison, STAFF WRITER
ASHEVILLE – Many parents were furious Tuesday morning after their children were caught in a raging snowstorm that sent buses sliding off roads across Buncombe County.
But administrators for Buncombe and Asheville City Schools said the decision to hold school was based on the best information they had at the time.
It was already snowing hard when Nancy Branch was driving her fifth-grade daughter to Black Mountain Elementary School. Soon after she dropped her off, the students were told to get ready to board the buses for the trip home.
"I’m not happy," Branch said. "At 6:30 it was snowing at my house, and the weather report plainly said we would be getting snow. Schools should have been called off.
"My daughter’s bus slid on (Highway) 70. I’d rather them go to school in June than on days like this. It’s better to be safe than have a busload of kids out on the road. It’s just not worth it. We’re talking about young children."
Lavonne Jackson said she couldn’t believe it when there was no announcement on the morning TV news that Buncombe schools would be closed for the day. She decided to drive her daughter Cody, a freshman at Roberson High, to school.
However, halfway there she decided to take her back home.
"I thought surely the buses wouldn’t run on roads like that," Jackson said. "It places you in a really bad predicament. I think they should have known, due to the forecast as well as the other school closings, to call (schools) off. I think that’s poor planning."
Even though surrounding counties announced schools would be closed Tuesday, Buncombe Superintendent Cliff Dodson and Asheville Superintendent Karen Campbell decided their systems would operate.
Dodson said that at 6 a.m., by which time a decision whether or not to run buses had to be made, no snow was falling here and the roads were clear. He also said that, according to weather reports he had heard, the forecast was calling for rain early in the day followed by occasional snow and flurries later in the afternoon.
"At 6 o’clock it was the right decision and at 7:20 it was the wrong decision," Dodson said. "Unfortunately that decision had to be made at 6. But around 7:15 it started coming down hard, and we made the decision about five minutes later to close.
"I think most parents realize it’s a very difficult call to make."
Alice Hart, associate superintendent of Asheville City Schools, said she also heard weather reports saying it probably wouldn’t snow much or might be just rain. When the buses started their runs the temperature was 39 degrees, she said.
"After we got them on the road the temperatures began to fall and we began to have snow, so we turned them back," she said. "You just make your best estimate about what’s going to happen."
But Steve Burris, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Greer, S.C., office, said the official forecast for Buncombe County released by the agency at 5 a.m. Tuesday called for heavy snow at times with accumulations of 4 to 8 inches by late afternoon. And on Monday afternoon the service issued a winter storm watch with the chance of snow near 100 percent for Tuesday.
Dodson said that 27 school buses needed assistance because of the snow. Some were stuck or had slid into ditches, while others needed tire chains, he said. However, no one was injured. Bus drivers and other school employees "did the best they could under very difficult circumstances," he said.
"We are looking forward to spring," Dodson said.
Spring weather postponed in Western North Carolina
FROM STAFF REPORTS
The calendar said Tuesday was the first day of spring, but the roads sure didn’t.
Slush and snow snarled traffic throughout the mountains Tuesday, causing 260 wrecks in western counties, including one fatal crash in Haywood County, one serious one in McDowell County and a long wait for Interstate 40 travelers who were stopped in their tracks for almost four hours after at least three tractor-trailers jackknifed in Haywood County.
"I wish I’d checked the weather closer, or I would’ve turned this load down," said trucker Larissa Alexander of Charlotte, who was stuck in her cab for so long that she had time to watch "Liar, Liar" on her television, work crossword puzzles, catch up her travel log and call her boyfriend on her cellular phone. Twice.
"I’m still sitting here," she told him the second time she called.
"In the same spot?" he said.
"In the same spot."
"I told them I didn’t think I’d make to Louisville (Ky.) today," she said. "I am not killing myself out here."
Troopers were so swamped that Sgt. Norman Georing decided his daytime troopers in Buncombe County would have to stay and work the night shift too.
In Hendersonville, an out-of-control driver smashed into Palmetto Upholstery on Asheville Highway and then took off before officers could get there. Officers were still looking for the white, full size General Motors sedan.
Around the region:
_ In Henderson County, the eastbound lanes of Interstate 26 near the Polk County line were blocked for two hours after a series of wrecks on the slipper highway early Tuesday afternoon.
_ In Waynesville, stalled tractor-trailers caused traffic delays on U.S. 23-74, according to police.
_ In Jackson County, a tractor-trailer had part of U.S. 64 blocked for about an hour Tuesday.
_ In Macon County, roads in Highlands were treacherous with downed trees.
_ In Yancey County, law officers were working 14 accidents, but no injuries were reported.
12-14 inches in Highlands
12 inches Lake Toxaway and Rich Mountain (3 foot snow drifts in high elevations of Transylvania County)
10 inches Mount Mitchell
8 inches Canton
8 inches Cedar Mountain
7-8 inches Cashiers
6-7 inches Clyde
6 inches Pisgah Forest
5 inches Brevard
Tuesday, March 20 5PM
City Or County Snow Storm Total Mount Mitchell 29 Inches (Snow Depth 30", 6' Snow Drifts Cedar Mountain 24 Inches (Snow Drifts 3' In Higher Elevs. Transylvania County) Beech Mountain 24 Inches Highway 63 And Highway 209 Near Trust In Madison County 24 Inches Avery County 18-24 Inches (3-4' Snow Drifts) 4,000 Feet To The North Of Maggie Valley 17 Inches Highlands 13 Inches Rich Mountain 13 Inches Lake Toxaway 13 Inches Jonas Ridge 12-16 Inches Outside Of Waynesville 12 Inches Balsam 12 Inches Balsam Grove 12 Inches Rosman 12 Inches Penrose 12 Inches Clay County 12 Inches West Buncombe County 11 Inches Throughout Yancey County 10-12 Inches Waynesville 8-9 Inches Brevard 8 Inches Blowing Rock 8 Inches Mills River 8 Inches Burnsville 8 Inches Boone 8 Inches Cashiers 7-8 Inches Foscoe 7 Inches UNC-Asheville 6.5 Inches Asheville 6.1 Inches Hendersonville 5.5 Inches Steel Creek 4-6 Inches Near Sparta 4.75 Inches Throughout Henderson County 4 Inches Higher Elevations In Swain County 4 Inches Sparta 3-4 Inches Piney Creek 3.5 Inches Old Fort 3 Inches Newfound Gap 2 Inches Wilkes County < 1 Inch
Storm Stories
Editorial From The Asheville Citizen Times, Wednesday, March 21, 2001
