NC weather updates: Black ice expected Sunday morning as temperatures dip below freezing

Meteorologists expect more black ice to develop on roads by Sunday morning, as temperatures remain in the teens and 20s.

The National Weather Service warned drivers Saturday afternoon to be especially cautious on bridges, secondary roads and untreated surfaces through Sunday morning.

Temperatures began to drop below freezing around 6 p.m. Saturday and in Raleigh could reach as low as 16 degrees.

The cold temperatures came less than 24 hours after flurries, followed by several inches of snow, fell around central North Carolina Friday evening and Saturday morning, with the heaviest snow moving through Raleigh just after midnight, the National Weather Service reported.

Slippery road conditions already wreaked havoc on the area.

Friday night a plane traveling from Washington, D.C., slid off the taxiway at Raleigh-Durham International Airport into mud and had to be pulled out Saturday. No injuries were reported.

And in Knightdale on Friday, a woman being taken by ambulance to an area hospital died when the vehicle slipped on ice and overturned off Interstate 87.

Temperatures are not expected to reach above freezing until mid-morning Sunday.

The News & Observer is tracking the snowfall’s impact on roads, highways, public transit and air travel. Check back for updates.

Melting expected, but more black ice may form, NWS warns

Updated 8:50 a.m.: In a warning early Sunday morning, the NWS said areas of black ice were expected to melt by mid-morning.

But the service said drivers across central North Carolina should exercise caution due to potentially hazardous road conditions.

And even after the black ice melts, more may form on roadways Sunday night, the NWS said.

RDU’s main runway reopens after plane is towed

Updated 3:15 p.m.: The main runway at Raleigh-Durham International Airport reopened Saturday afternoon after a plane that landed safely but rolled into mud while taxiing on Friday was towed away, the airport announced on Twitter.

Delta Flight 5501 from Washington, D.C., landed safely and rolled off runway 5L/23R, an RDU spokesperson told The News & Observer Friday night.

A total of 19 passengers were onboard, the spokesperson said, and no injuries were reported. All passengers were safely transported to Terminal 2, the spokesperson added.

The airport was closed to incoming air traffic for a little more than an hour while crews removed snow from alternate runway 5R/23L, the spokesperson said.

As of 10:10 p.m., alternate runway 5R/23L had been reopened to air traffic, allowing flights to land and take off, the airport said in an update on Twitter.

The main runway, 5L/23R remained closed while officials worked on removing the aircraft, which was stuck in a grassy area adjacent to the runway.

The aircraft was finally towed to a remote parking area on Saturday, and the runway reopened at around 2:40 p.m. after clearing inspection, officials said on Twitter.

The incident resulted in 10 incoming flights being diverted to other airports, and four being delayed, according to the airport’s website.

Up to 4 inches of snow in parts of the Triangle

Updated 12:20 p.m.: The highest amount of snow to hit the Triangle overnight fell in Emit, in northern Johnston County, which recorded a total of 4 inches, according to preliminary snowfall totals from the National Weather Service.

Nearby towns of Pine Level, Clayton and Selma all received 3.5 inches, according to the NWS.

The final snowfall total on Saturday morning at the weather service’s office in Raleigh was 3.1 inches.

Elsewhere in Wake County, Garner received a total of 3.6 inches while Fuquay-Varina and Wake Forest both received 3 inches and Cary received 2.8 inches.

A total of 2.3 inches was reported at Raleigh-Durham International Airport, while Bethesda in southeastern Durham County received 3.8 inches.

In Orange County, Carrboro received 2.3 inches, Hillsborough received 2.1 inches and Chapel Hill recorded 1.3 inches.

Chapel Hill Transit suspends service

Updated 11:20 a.m.: After originally planning to start bus service at noon, Chapel Hill Transit said it was suspending service for the rest of Saturday.

“Many of our roadways are still covered in snow and not scheduled to be plowed until later this afternoon,” the bus service said in a post on Twitter. “This decision was made in the interest of the safety of our team members and customers.”

Staff are monitoring road conditions, the town said on its website, and will provide an update for Sunday’s service by 8 p.m.

Breaking records

Updated at 11:03 a.m. The National Weather Service reported that last night’s snow fall broke records around the state specific to the date of Jan. 21.

Raleigh’s previous record was 1.2 inches and Charlotte’s was 0.5 inches both set in 1961 and Greensboro’s was 0.4 inches set in 1983. Yesterday’s totals topped out at 1.5 inches in Raleigh, 1.9 inches in Charlotte and 1 inch in Greensboro. More snow fell after midnight, so more records are likely to fall.

Weather spotters around the state reported snowfall totals Saturday anywhere from 7 inches in Nixonton to 0.4 inches in Valdese, according to the National Weather Service.

Much of Raleigh saw just over 3 inches of snow. Fayetteville saw 4.5 inches of snow in the Bonnie Doone neighborhood. In the Charlotte area, 2.5 inches of snow fell just east of the Catawba River.

Places like New Hanover County, Brunswick County, Columbus County and Pender counties saw a quarter of an inch of ice or less.

Salt truck treating roads overturns in Cary

Updated 9:10 a.m.: A salt truck treating roads near the intersection of Green Level and Beaver Dam roads in Cary flipped onto its side early Saturday due to an imbalance of salt, Cary spokesperson Deanna Hawkes told The News & Observer.

The truck was treating roads around 4 a.m. when the salt it was carrying shifted, causing the truck to overturn, Hawkes said. Road conditions were a factor as well, she added.

The driver was not injured, Hawkes said, and the intersection was reopened just before 8 a.m.

GoTriangle and GoDurham suspend bus service

Updated: 7:55 p.m. With weather conditions deteriorating, GoTriangle and GoDurham announced that they would suspend all bus service at 9 p.m. Friday and expect to resume service at 9 a.m. Saturday.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation has warned that road conditions will deteriorate across the Triangle and much of the eastern half of the state overnight.

Snow again falling across the Triangle

Updated 7 p.m.: Snow started to fall first early Friday evening along and east of U.S. Route 1 in Wake County and much of Raleigh, and it’s expected to continue until about 4 a.m. Saturday, totaling to about 8 hours of snowfall.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for Wake County, estimating 3 to 4 inches of snow there and in the counties to its south, east and northeast. The winter storm warning increased to span counties south and east of I-95. Earlier Friday, the winter storm was only forecast for counties east of I-95, according to ABC 11, The News & Observer’s newsgathering partner.

The weather service kept an earlier winter weather advisory in place for Durham and Orange counties, as well as several counties west of the Triangle, but major precipitation will be concentrated in the counties to the east.

Snow flurries started after 6 p.m. in these counties and are expected to stop at 2 a.m. Saturday.

Forecasters don’t expect heavier snow bands to reach the Durham and Chapel Hill areas, which remain under the lower-level advisory.

Authorities continue to warn about slippery conditions, which were reported on roads and highways early Friday morning, while temperatures were in the high 20s.

Ice was blamed for an ambulance crash in Wake County in which the patient died.

“We definitely expect the further east you are, the more likely you are to get higher snowfall totals,” said Nick Luchetti, a meteorologist with the NWS.

Woman dies after ambulance runs off I-87 near Knightdale

Updated 11 a.m.: An ambulance carrying a patient ran off Interstate 87 in Wake County early Friday morning, overturning as it slid down an embankment, according to the Carolinas Emergency Incident Notification Network.

The patient did not survive, the emergency service that alerts fire and rescue efforts stated. The crash occurred just before 3:45 a.m.

State troopers responded to the crash on I-87 near U.S. 64 Business just before 4 a.m., said Sgt. Christopher Knox, a spokesperson for the N.C. Highway Patrol.

The ambulance, operated by Metz Medical Transport, was traveling south on the highway when it traveled off the road to the right, striking a guardrail and hitting several small trees, Knox said.

Investigators believe that ice on the road at the time of the crash was “a contributing factor in the collision,” Knox said.

Both the driver and a paramedic tending to a woman in the back of the ambulance suffered non-life-threatening injuries and were transported to WakeMed, according to Knox.

The woman was also taken to WakeMed, where she was pronounced dead, Knox said. Her name is not being released until her family is notified, he added.

The cause of her death hasn’t yet been determined, Knox said, adding that no charges have been filed in connection to the crash at this time.

COVID testing, vaccination sites in Wake County closed

Updated 9 a.m.: All COVID-19 testing and vaccination sites operated by Wake County will be closed on Friday and Saturday due to the snow forecast and potential for dangerous road conditions, the county’s public health department announced Thursday evening.

Anyone with an appointment to get a COVID test or vaccine shot on Friday or Saturday will get an email letting them know they’ll be able to return to their scheduled site on Monday or Tuesday, and their original appointments will be honored, the county said.

Four testing sites operated by the state health department will also be closed Friday, the department’s testing vendor Mako Medical said Thursday.

Delayed start time for Chapel Hill Transit

Updated 8:20 a.m.: Chapel Hill is delaying opening all town facilities and beginning its bus service until 10 a.m., the town announced Friday morning.

Town facilities including those under the park’s department like the Homestead Aquatic Center will open at 10 a.m.

Chapel Hill Transit and EZ Rider will also resume operations at 10 a.m.

The A, F, G, HS, N and T routes, all of which are scheduled to end at 10 a.m., will run two special trips after service begins at that time instead.

Some routes, including the CCX, JFX and GoTriangle 420 route will not run on Friday.

For the latest information on bus routes and timings on Friday, commuters should check the Chapel Hill website.

Staff writers Martha Quillin and Richard Stradling contributed to this report.