Storm could dump 2 inches of snow on Charlotte, NWS says. Here’s the latest forecast.
Charlotte could see up to 2 inches of snow from the wintry weather system expected late Friday and early Saturday, plus sleet, ice and freezing rain, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Wednesday.
A 10th of an inch of ice is forecast to accumulate on tree branches and power lines, NWS meteorologist Chris Horne told The Charlotte Observer. A quarter-inch of ice typically causes outages, he said.
“They had a tenth of an inch a couple of days ago in Hickory, and no outages were reported,” Horne said.
More snow could fall west of Charlotte along Interstate 85, including Gastonia, Horne said, although how much was still too early to predict.
Up to 5 inches of snow could blanket parts of the mountains, according to the NWS office in Blacksburg, Virginia.
At 3 p.m. Wednesday, the NWS issued a winter storm watch effective Friday morning through Saturday morning for Mecklenburg and surrounding counties, the mountains, N.C. foothills and Upstate South Carolina.
“Snow and ice accumulations will make many roads treacherous and impassable,” according to the alert. “The weight of the snow and ice on tree limbs and power lines could produce scattered outages.”
Even a one-degree change in the forecast temperature from now until Friday “can make a big impact” on how much will fall, Horne said.
Also uncertain, he said: “How much sleet and freezing rain will mess with the snow.”
Still, the chance of snow, sleet and freezing rain rose to 90%, from 80% on Tuesday, according to the NWS Charlotte forecast at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
At least an inch of snow is expected in Charlotte, Horne said.
And that would mean Charlotte’s first measurable snow in three years.
Charlotte forecast
Charlotte has an 80% chance of snow after 2 p.m. Friday and a 100% chance of snow, sleet and freezing rain from 11 p.m. Friday until 2 a.m. Saturday, when only snow is expected to fall, the forecast showed.
At 7 a.m. Saturday, the chance of snow drops to 30%, and mostly sunny skies are predicted the rest of the morning, afternoon and evening and on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, according to the NWS.
Expect frigid temperatures the rest of this week, with highs in the low-40s and lows in the 20s and high teens, the forecast showed.
Charlotte’s last measurable snow
Charlotte last saw a measurable snow on Jan. 21, 2022, which followed another snow on Jan. 16 that year, NWS meteorologist Patrick Moore told the Observer last week.
A “measurable snow” for Charlotte means at least a tenth of an inch, he said. A Dec. 3 snow in Charlotte was not enough to break the drought, Moore said. Higher amounts fell that day to the north of Charlotte, including the Lake Norman area.
Reporting downed trees
Call 911 immediately to report a tree blocking a road, the city of Charlotte advised Wednesday.
For non-emergency tree issues, such as a tree that fell outside a road and onto the shoulder, sidewalk or public right-of-way, call 311, or, if calling from outside Mecklenburg County, 704-336-7600. Or use the CLT+ mobile app.
Dec. 29 Charlotte tornado confirmed
Tuesday night, an NWS survey team confirmed an EF-0 tornado packing 65-mph winds touched down south of Dixie River Road in Mecklenburg County at 9:22 a.m. Dec. 29, west of Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
The tornado snapped a couple of large branches before whizzing north across Rockwood Road and Walkers Ferry Road, where the twister snapped more large limbs and knocked a tree down.
The tornado dissipated north of Walkers Ferry Road after traveling a total of 1.55 miles, according to the NWS.
The tornado was among at least six EF-0 tornadoes confirmed in the Carolinas the morning of Dec. 29. The NWS reported no injuries or damage from the tornadoes.
EF-0 tornadoes are the weakest on the NWS Enhanced Fujita Scale that ranks tornadoes based on wind speed and damage.
This is a developing story.
This story was originally published January 8, 2025 at 10:56 AM.