The first snow of the season&bsp;began falling in Polk County early on Friday morning before turning to rain a couple hours later and then back to snow again by the afternoon. Snow accumulated across the region throughout the afternoon and remains in the forecast&bsp;into Saturday. Snow and ice was reported on area roads, and resulted in accidents and delays in some areas, including I-26.&bsp; The strong winter storm was also causing power outages in some areas. Duke Power reported 363 customers without power in Polk County as of Friday night. In Spartanburg County, 1,726 customers were without power.The following update to the winter storm warning was issued by the National Weather Service late Friday afternoon.
A WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST SATURDAY.
SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT… POSSIBLY MIXED WITH SOME SLEET AT TIMES. THE HEAVIEST SNOW… UP TO AS MUCH AS 2 INCHES PER HOUR… WILL OCCUR FROM LATE AFTERNOON INTO THE EVENING HOURS. THE SNOWFALL WILL STEADILY TAPER OFF TOWARD THE TENNESSEE BORDER THROUGH THE DAY ON SATURDAY.
STORM TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 8 TO 12 INCHES ACROSS MOST OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS AND SOUTHERN FOOTHILLS OF NORTH CAROLINA. SNOW AND SLEET ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES… WITH HIGHER TOTALS ABOVE 3500 FEET… WILL BE MORE LIKELY IN SOUTHERN MOUNTAIN LOCATIONS FROM THE SMOKIES SOUTHWARD TOWARD THE GEORGIA BORDER… AND IN THE EXTREME NORTHERN UPSTATE MOUNTAINS IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
THE HEAVY WET SNOW WILL ACCUMULATE ON TREES AND POWER LINES. IN ADDITION… BREEZY NORTHEAST WINDS WILL COMBINE WITH THE WEIGHT OF THE SNOW TO PRODUCE TREE DAMAGE AND POWER OUTAGES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW ARE FORECAST THAT WILL MAKE TRAVEL DANGEROUS. ONLY TRAVEL IN AN EMERGENCY. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL… KEEP AN EXTRA FLASHLIGHT… FOOD… AND WATER IN YOUR VEHICLE IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY.
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