McCrory: Stay off icy roads

“We are very fortunate so far that many drivers heeded our warnings and got off the roads early, but we are nowhere near out of the woods yet," McCrory said in a statement. “The prediction totals are increasing for many areas and that could very well continue to change as the storm progresses so please stay off the roads if you possibly can until conditions improve.”

Interstate 40 East at Hammond Road in Raleigh was briefly closed at about 9:30 p.m. Monday due to a vehicle wreck caused by icy conditions. Officials did not immediately say if there were any injuries.

The North Carolina State Highway Patrol handled more than 1,000 accidents statewide since midnight Monday, the statement said.

Vehicle wrecks were reported across the Triangle since snow started falling Monday evening, but officials have not confirmed that the accidents were weather related.

WRAL reporters in the Triangle reported roads covered in sheets of ice.

“You can’t tell where the road is for the most part except for the curbs on either side,” WRAL reporter Adam Owens said. “It’s white over, the roads in downtown Durham.”

Roads were just as slippery in Fayetteville.

“Even though Fayetteville hasn’t received what we’ve seen in Raleigh, the roads are still slick,” WRAL reporter Candace Sweat said while reporting from a two vehicle accident at Bragg Boulevard and Carroll Street. “One minute it's freezing rain and another minute it’s just rain. (Freezing rain) looks like rain and it sounds like rain, but when you step outside you see some freezing spots.”

Raleigh police handled 49 vehicle wreck calls from 5-9 p.m. Monday, compared to 23 the previous Monday, the department said. Most of Monday's collisions were on major roads, including Glenwood Avenue, East Six Forks Road, New Bern Avenue and Interstate 440. No injuries have been reported in those wrecks.

Prior to the storm, the state Department of Transportation pretreated roads across the state with more than 1.3 million gallons of salt brine. Crews will use salt, sand and plows to treat slippery roads.

“We have teams of troopers and other law enforcement partners mobilized across the state checking abandoned vehicles to help ensure no one is stranded,” state Public Safety Secretary Frank L. Perry said in a statement. “Additionally, National Guard troops are on standby and prepared to respond as needed.” 

in Cumberland County, 13 trucks were spreading salt and sand Monday night, and will do the same at about 4 a.m. Tuesday, officials said. Workers in pickup trucks were also checking bridges for slippery conditions.

No injuries were reported after a a two vehicle accident at Bragg Boulevard and Carroll Street in Fayetteville.

Crews in Hillsborough start plowing when the roads are covered in two inches of snow, but with the storm bringing mixed precipitation, officials were waiting to see how things pan out.

“This one is playing it by ear all the way,” town Public Works Director Ken Hines said. “Because of the icing situation, there’s no telling what will happen and what will have to be done.”