Round 2

Second winter storm blankets Burke

Credit: Jennifer Frew | The News Herald

Weston Nico Harrison, 6-month-old canine companion to Michelle and Rusty of Morganton, hits the slopes in Martha's Park on Saturday.

By: Cheryl m. Shuffler | Morganton News Herald
Published: January 30, 2010

MORGANTON --

As predicted, a winter storm dumped 5 to 8 inches of snow on Burke County on Friday and Saturday.
As of early afternoon Saturday, police and emergency officials reported no significant traffic problems or weather-related incidents and most residents had power.
Crystal Causby and her family enjoyed a quiet morning at home Saturday in Connelly Springs. Causby said they received about 7.5 inches of snow at their house.
"I got groceries earlier, so we were ready for it," she said.
Because the snow came on a weekend, she and her family didn't have to be anywhere.
Causby said, "We'll get out after lunch and walk up to my mom and dad's and check on some neighbors. We'll scrape some driveways and just help each other out."
The Causbys also plan to ride four-wheelers and make several batches of snow cream.
"My son loves it," Causby said.
She subscribes to the notion that you have to wait until the second snow of the season to make snow cream.
"My mom made some last time (during the December snow storm), but I wouldn't eat it," Causby said.
Larry Clark lives in the Fish Hatchery Road area off N.C. 181. He and his wife were snowed in Saturday with their 6-year-old granddaughter.
"She hasn't wanted to go outside yet," Clark said of his granddaughter Saturday morning, "but I'm ready to go make a snowman with her when she is."
Until about a week ago Clark and his neighbors still had snow hanging around from the December storm. He said they received less this time, estimating 6 to 7 inches at his house.
Clark remembers a major blizzard in the early 1990s but little winter weather since.
"Since then we haven't really seen much snow," he said. "Like most people I like to see it fall and then be gone in two or three days."
The Rev. C. Sydnor Thompson III, pastor at First United Methodist Church on North King Street in Morganton, is originally from Charlotte.
He, too, likes to see snow.
"There's still a part of me that gets excited about snow," he said.
He and other pastors in the area have tough decisions to make about holding Sunday services.
Thompson said staff members worked Saturday to clear the church's parking lot and walkways.
A decision about Sunday's services wasn't made until after press time.
"We have many elderly folks in our congregation, and we want to make sure we protect everyone."
He was hopeful they would have at least one service but didn't want churchgoers taking unnecessary chances.
"We don't want anyone to feel an obligation, and they should make their own decisions based on their own safety," Thompson said.
Dispatchers with Morganton Department of Public Safety, Burke County Emergency Services and the N.C. State Highway Patrol reported a quiet day on the roadways Saturday.
Scott Lookadoo, director of Public Works for Morganton, had crews out on city streets around the clock.
He, too, reported little activity on the streets.
"Traffic seems slow," he said. "Road conditions are hazardous. Move with caution if necessary."
City trucks worked to clear primary streets and salt and sand slick spots. Lookadoo reminded residents it makes their work easier if people don't park on the streets.
City crews focused on downtown so businesses and restaurants could open on Saturday, Lookadoo said.
EMS reported a power pole on fire off Propst Road and some power outages in the Oak Hill area.
Duke Energy's Web site reported 637 power outages in Burke County around 10:30 a.m. Saturday. Four hours later only 29 Duke customers were reporting outages in the county.
As for the forecast for the rest of the weekend, Pat Tanner, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service at the Greenville/Spartanburg Airport, said Burke County would continue to get freezing rain and drizzle Saturday.
He predicted a low of 17 and a high of 36 today.
"We hit it pretty good up in North Carolina," Tanner said of forecasting this snowstorm.
Though it's five days away, the weather service is predicting a 30 percent chance of more snow Thursday night and Friday.

Round 2

Second winter storm blankets Burke

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