THE SKY IS FALLING!! (or maybe its just snow)

[revwardoc]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6847593

Ice turns North Carolina commute into chaos

3,000 pupils stranded at schools overnight

Gerry Broome / AP Icy roads like this one forced some drivers in the Raleigh, N.C., area to stay put Wednesday while others needed hours to make their commutes. RALEIGH, N.C. - A surprise 1-inch snow that turned to ice on frigid roads crippled North Carolina?s capital, trapping motorists in epic traffic jams and stranding some 3,000 pupils overnight at schools. The governor urged people to stay home Thursday while crews clean things up. Highways were clogged with desperate drivers whose commutes Wednesday stretched to as long as eight hours. Law officers tallied about 1,000 accidents in the Raleigh-Durham area, but there were no reports of fatalities. ?You?d move a little bit, then you sat ... then you moved a little bit, then you sat,? said salesman Brian Baldelli, who took seven hours to go nine miles on one highway. Gov. Mike Easley declared a state of emergency, allowing him to open two state government buildings in downtown Raleigh as shelters. Department of Transportation crews ?have been out all night scraping the roads and spreading salt, but their work is not yet complete,? Easley said early Thursday. ?If people can stay home, especially this morning, I am encouraging them to do so.? School buses suspended Some 3,000 students spent the night at Wake County schools after bus operations were suspended and parents were unable to come get them. With Thursday classes canceled, school officials planned to have the stranded youngsters bused home during the morning. Such a mess from a mild snowfall stunned even the forecasters. ?In the 24 years I?ve lived here, I have never encountered the traffic situation I saw today,? WRAL-TV chief meteorologist Greg Fishel said. He apologized on the air for what the station?s ?embarrassing? forecast ? a few flurries. National Weather Service forecaster Brandon Locklear said very dry snow packed onto roads that were frigid after two days of below-freezing temperatures. ?You had some melting from the compression of people driving on the roads, followed rapidly by refreezing,? he said. Road crews were forced to try applying melting agents to jammed roads. Sleeping at grocery store Lisa Sun of Raleigh resigned herself to spending the night inside a 24-hour grocery store when police closed an ice-covered bridge, cutting her off from her home. She had already spent four hours covering a distance that usually takes half an hour and saw ?a slew of accidents.? Almost two dozen people at the grocery early Thursday, watching TV or sprawling on air mattresses. ?They have food and a restroom,? Sun said. ?We?re pretty happy.? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Man! What are they going to do when it REALLY snows?!

[QM3steve]

It was comical to see this on the news. Cars, busses everywhere but on the road. Neat how something goes in slow motion when you start to slide.

[Andy]

Well Dan the governor of N.C. declared a state of emergency due to one inch. In our part of the state Saturday night into Sunday the low is supposed to be minus 9 and we're expecting one foot of the lovely white stuff. Yah think that governor would have a mental break down if he lived here?

Dealing with snow, just one of things we do better than our Southern Brothers.

Stay healthy,
Andy

[b3196]

you're right Andy, and to keep warm we usually burn down a barn or two
Bob K

[Timothy R. Kuhr]

Keep the barn awhile Bob,
The temps are only gonna be in the "teens" this weekend. Probably.

[QM3steve]

Is this something you're sending to the northeast? It was -20 without wind this morning at 5:00am. Were supposed to get 14-18" of snow today with 15-20mph winds.

[SparrowHawk62]

Originally posted by QM3steve Is this something you're sending to the northeast? It was -20 without wind this morning at 5:00am. Were supposed to get 14-18" of snow today with 15-20mph winds.

Other than the temp. (-4) we in the lower part of New York State are braceing for a light dusting of 9 to 15 inches of snow.
With one inch of snow 'we' don't even worry about it. That's just a heavy frost.
Gotta love it, snow blower is set and ready to go some time on Sunday when it's all over.

[QM3steve]

A light dusting is right. Or a few flurries depending on who's inaccurate forcast you see. The last accurate forcast I saw was the three feet we got on Christmas day two years ago. Three feet in about 9 hrs.

The plow is on and were getting your dusting. We've got about 1" right now. You do gotta love it. It's one of the few places one can see the beauty of four seasons.

[1CAVCCO15MED]

The rain is pouring and the wind is howling. I guess we are having a rain blizzard. "Watch them mud drifts in the road, Fonzer!"

[Jerry D]

This reminds me of Little Rock Ark in 1983 around Christmas time .I was driving home to Missouri to visit the family and Arkansas didn't have any Snow Plows working or something (Bill Clinton was Gov. go figure!) my little Ford Escort spun out 3 times on the black ice before I hit the Missouri Border then as soon as I crossed the Border Clear Roads all the way home (same or more snow and Ice had fallen) I guess Christopher Bond then Gov of Missouri spent a little more on Snow Plows then Ole' Bill Clinton (LOL) BTW later the State of Missouri sent down to Ark a few Snowplows to clear Ark Highways for Interstate travel. Memories of LRAFB
Also me and a friend from Tenn would drive through Little Rock every time it Snowed to check out how many cars were in the ditch From Jacksonville,AR (home of LRAFB) to McCain Mall usually their would be over 20 cars minimum in the Ditch.We had another Airman from Elba Al who had never seen snow stationed at LRAFB was fun watching him drive the 6pack Dodge Truck on the Flight Line