Charlotte crews want you to be patient as they respond to winter storm damage
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Charlotte crews expect some wait times while clearing roads during winter storm.
- Call 911 for trees blocking roadways; report downed lines to Duke Energy.
- Residents should stay home this weekend to clear roads for response crews.
City of Charlotte crews expect a high volume of requests to clear roadways as a winter storm strikes the area this weekend.
A mix of sleet, freezing rain and snow is expected to pass through the Carolinas between Saturday and Monday, likely coating streets in more than an inch of wintry precipitation. The forecast triggered a state of emergency declaration from North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein.
Preparations are already underway at the Charlotte Department of Transportation. The city is responsible for local streets while the North Carolina Department of Transportation handles highways, interstates and some other state-maintained roads.
Crews began pretreating roads Thursday morning with salt brine and will work around the clock starting Saturday, said Alfred Oyoyo, the deputy street superintendent at CDOT. The city has 5,000 tons of salt on hand and 32 plows ready to respond, Oyoyo said.
“Based on what we have and the type of weather we experience here, we have more than enough to respond,” Oyoyo said at a press conference Thursday.
Officials cautioned residents to brace for wait times as crews address calls from across the city.
Crews will treat major and minor thoroughfares first, which are the roads with the most lanes and carry the highest volume of traffic. Neighborhoods will “eventually” be treated, too, as resources allow, Oyoyo said.
Some places will experience wait times for debris and downed tree removal, according to Laurie Reid, the city arborist whose landscape management division clears roads during storms. Crews could take several hours to arrive depending on the scale of widespread damage reports.
Landscape management prioritizes police station and hospital routes first. Neighborhood streets are a lower priority, but her team will get to everything “as soon as possible,” she said.
Charlotte will continue its cleaning efforts into next week, Reid said.
City Councilwoman Kimberly Owens, who represents District 6 in south Charlotte, encouraged residents to prepare over the next two days to keep roads clear for response crews during the storm.
“Let’s stay out of their way, and let’s be smart about how we respond to this,” Owens said. “Get your bread, get your French toast, do whatever you gotta do. Get it all together, but try to not be the problem.”
How do I report a fallen tree in Charlotte?
Residents should call 911 if a tree falls in a roadway because “that is an emergency,” Reid said. Her team will dispatch a crew to evaluate the situation.
Downed power lines should be reported to Duke Energy. Landscape Management will not clean up trees until utility lines at the scene are fixed.
Trees that fall on sidewalks or other non-roadway city property are not considered an emergency and should be reported to 311, the city’s help line. Crews will remove the debris during normal operation times, likely next week after the storm passes, Reid said.
The city does not clear fallen trees from private property. Property owners could contact professional arborists from private companies for assistance, Reid said.
Residents should not inspect fallen trees themselves or attempt to cut them, Reid said.
“It might be your first instinct to go inspect it and see what’s happening, but you don’t know if there’s any utility lines involved, so it’s really important to leave those trees alone and call somebody to deal with it,” Reid said. “It’s really important to allow this cleanup to happen by professionals that are out there.”
This story was originally published January 22, 2026 at 3:26 PM.
