Icy storm knocks out power to thousands in Charlotte area. Black ice a threat on roads.

Thousands in the Charlotte area and elsewhere in the Carolinas remained without power Saturday from the winter storm that started with snow Friday and rapidly transformed to sleet and freezing rain.

Charlotte stayed below freezing overnight, prompting warnings from the National Weather Service about black ice on roads. The temperature inched to the freezing mark of 32 degrees after sunrise.

Black ice is a thin, nearly invisible layer of ice on sidewalks, driveways and roads.

“Please use caution if you have to be out on the road, or delay travel until temperatures warm,” NWS meteorologists said in a bulletin. “Slow down and leave plenty of room in front of you.”

The warning area included Mecklenburg and surrounding counties, the mountains, N.C. foothills and Upstate South Carolina.

The storm knocked out power to 54,000 Duke Energy customers in the Carolinas, most due to trees falling on power lines, spokeswoman Logan Stewart said. Crews restored power to 37,000 customers overnight, she said.

In Mecklenburg County, at least 2,000 Duke Energy customers were without power at 10:30 a.m., a number that plummeted to 675 by 2:30 p.m., according to the company outage map. Duke Energy anticipated power being restored by 6 p.m.

By midday, 1,500 had no electricity statewide, down from 7,000 at 8 a.m. In South Carolina, only 190 residents had no power, down from nearly 5,000 Saturday morning.

A winter storm warning remained until noon for the mountains, with up to 3 more inches of snow possible, according to the NWS.

Charlotte gradually warmed to a high of 41 degrees on Saturday, while overnight weekend temperatures were predicted to remain well below freezing, at 20 degrees early Sunday and 25 early Monday, according to the NWS forecast at 3 p.m. Saturday.

“We should get some good melting” thanks to the sun on Saturday, NWS meteorologist Thomas Winesett told The Charlotte Observer at 8:45 a.m.

At 2:30 p.m. Saturday, at least 227 flights were canceled at Charlotte Douglas International Airport and 234 delayed, according to FlightAware, an online website providing real-time information. Friday, 730 flights were canceled and 161 delayed.

The airport has stayed open and operational during the storm, according to CLT.

Ice, snow totals from storm

Ice totals varied across the region, including one-tenth of an inch at the airport, .24 inches southeast of Gastonia, .21 inches in Concord and a quarter-inch in Indian Trail in Union County and near Rock Hill, South Carolina, Winesett said.

Snowfall was less than originally forecast, with only about a half-inch of snow and sleet reported in the region, he said. Weather models in recent days projected 1 to 2 inches for Charlotte. Friday’s snow quickly turned to sleet as night fell and later, freezing rain.

Governor thanks responders, road crews

Gov. Josh Stein on Saturday thanked first responders, N.C. Department of Transportation workers and others for their help in the storm.

At least 2,000 NCDOT employees salted roads and cleared trees from highways again on Saturday, Stein’s office said in a statement. By midday, crews had applied at least 36,000 tons of salt on roads statewide.

State Highway Patrol troopers have responded to over 1,500 storm-related wrecks and nearly 1,000 other calls for service, Stein’s office said.

Many secondary roads in the western and central parts of the state were still covered in snow and ice and could be dangerous for travel, emergency officials said.

Stay home if you don’t have to be on the roads, N.C. Emergency Management Director Will Ray urged residents. If you do have to head out, slow down and watch for black ice on roads and bridges, he said.

Friday storm timeline

A light sleet fell, and ice began forming in Ballantyne in south Charlotte around 2 p.m. Friday, while flurries appeared around 3 p.m. in York County and 3:30 p.m. in Mooresville near Lake Norman. The flurries soon transformed into full-blown snow that stuck to the ground.

At 4 p.m., a tenth of an inch of snow was recorded at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, NWS meteorologists said on X.

“With measurable snow, the record snow drought of 1,077 days (snow last observed on January 29, 2022) at CLT is officially over!” the forecasters said.

In Huntersville, a person pinned in a car in one of three wrecks within minutes of each other was hospitalized with serious injuries, firefighters said.

The person was hurt on Beatties Ford Road behind where a fire truck was parked after responding to another wreck just before 5:30 p.m.

After a third crash, firefighters closed the road when the two-car wreck brought down power lines.

WCCB footage showed a huge plume of smoke billowing from a car that had caught fire in one of the wrecks.

Parks, school closings

Gates to Mecklenburg County parks will open at noon Sunday, and nature centers and recreation centers will open at 1 p.m, according to a county announcement Saturday.

Stephens Creek Nature Center will remain closed because of a mechanical issue unrelated to the weather.

Charlotte homeless shelters are expanding capacity through Sunday, and CATS will provide free transportation to the shelters.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and the Gaston County school system switched to a fully remote learning day Friday, while the Union and Lincoln county school systems were closed. Schools in York, Chester, and Lancaster counties in Upstate South Carolina were either closed or virtual Friday.

UNC Charlotte reduced operations at noon, although the campus remained open.

All Mecklenburg County court sessions recessed at 12:30 p.m.

Charlotte Observer reporters Ames Alexander and Mary Ramsey contributed.

This story was originally published January 11, 2025 at 8:48 AM.

Joe Marusak

The Charlotte Observer

704-358-5067

Joe Marusak has been a reporter for The Charlotte Observer since 1989 covering the people, municipalities and major news events of the region, and was a news bureau editor for the paper. He currently reports on breaking news. Support my work with a digital subscription