Winter storm Izzy caused closings

Cady Davis, News-Topic, Lenoir, N.C.
·2 min read

Jan. 18—LENOIR — Due to the severe winter weather storm that hit much of the Southeast this past weekend, Caldwell County offices and schools were closed on Tuesday, Jan. 18th.

Monday, Jan. 17th was MLK Day, and county offices and schools were closed to celebrate the federal holiday. However, massive amounts of snow and ice led to the decision being made to close all Caldwell County offices, convenience sites, and schools on Tuesday. Because of the closing, the Health Department did not conduct COVID-19 testing.

On Saturday, Jan. 15th, in preparation for the storm, Chairman Randy Church of the Caldwell County Commissioners declared a State of Emergency for Caldwell County beginning on that day at 10 p.m. The State of Emergency remains in effect until officials recommend it to be terminated.

Both the Caldwell and Watauga campuses of Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute were closed on Tuesday, Jan. 18th for both day and evening classes. Both campuses are closed for classes today, Wednesday, Jan. 19th. A decision on evening classes will be made by 4 p.m.

Wednesday, Jan. 19th, is a Remote Learning Day for students. There is no in-person school, and students have received offline and/or online assignments from teachers in case of inclement weather

Any decision to close campus or delay opening will be shared on the college's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, as well as on the college's weather announcement webpage at www.cccti.edu/Weather.

City Hall and Recreational Facilities delayed opening until 10 a.m. on Tuesday.

According to the National Weather Service, areas of black ice caused treacherous road conditions on Tuesday morning and into the evening. Plenty of sunshine in most areas allowed the roads to warm up and driving conditions to improve for a time Monday afternoon. However, in most areas where snow was on the ground, roads remained wet from snowmelt. With temperatures ranging from the teens to mid 20s across the area Tuesday morning, black ice and frozen slush formed on numerous roads.

The National Weather Service predicted that the Caldwell County area received anywhere from eight to 12 inches of snowfall during winter storm Izzy.