NC State’s campus remained closed Monday after receiving an inch of snowfall mixed with freezing rain and sleet on Saturday.
Because of frigid temperatures over the weekend reaching down into the single digits, many roads and sidewalks on campus and in surrounding communities were icy and difficult to travel. Over 700 vehicle accidents occurred over the weekend in North Carolina from the snowfall. In addition, 25,000 power outages were reported in the state according to Gov. Roy Cooper, who declared a state of emergency for the entire state last Friday. NC State Energy Systems reported no on-campus power outages with few large-scale maintenance measures despite the wintery ordeal.
Many students remained on campus over the weekend through the snowfall. With residence halls open Tuesday, many students were able to return to campus before the winter weather. Tyra Barnes, a senior majoring in art studies, was one of many to also attend work despite the snow and ice.
“I fell twice coming from the Wolf Village parking lot to my apartment building,” Barnes said. “Other than that, it wasn’t too bad. It was the parking lots that they could’ve done better with. I worked every day during the snow.”
Select mandatory employees remained on campus as well, including residence hall employees, campus police and a team of emergency Student Health medics.
Even though the university normally follows the UNC System adverse weather policy, university leadership is allowed to interpret it widely. According to Chief of Staff Justine Hollingshead, the decision to suspend non-mandatory university operations such as lectures, labs and presentations Monday was based on external factors such as icy road conditions, the governor’s declaration of a state of emergency and expected below-freezing temperatures.
Many additional students were unable to return to campus due to dangerous road conditions and large amounts of accumulated snow.
“I was back home in Durham because I had just moved in,” said Brian-Anthony Garrison, a graduate student studying technical communication. “I had planned to come back a day earlier, but it was icy so we couldn’t get on the road. It kind of screwed up my plans. We got enough ice on the ground to prevent people from driving too much, not a lot of inches.”
Of the students in Raleigh over the weekend, several reported that they were on the roads within a day after the snowfall.
“I was in my apartment when it snowed,” said Bailey Franklin, a senior studying communication. “I was stuck in for a day, but I was out the next day — I probably shouldn’t have been, but I was anxious to get out of the house. My power didn’t go out.”
Danita Gibbs, a senior studying communication and a colleague of Franklin’s, was unable to leave her apartment for much longer than many other students with the frozen roads.
“I was also in my apartment in Raleigh,” Gibbs said. “I’m on a little hill, so getting down the hill was a little stressful at times. Other than that, it was good. I didn’t leave until three days later. Our parking lot was a little icy for a couple of days.”
People across North Carolina rushed to grocery stores before the snowfall to obtain last minute necessities and non-perishable goods.
“On Friday, everyone was in this rush to get to the grocery store and to get supplies to load up for the storm,” Garrison said. “I was sort of skeptical about it; half of the day on Friday went by, and we hadn’t seen any precipitation. I was thinking, ‘You know, maybe this is all one big ploy.’”
Whether students were able to make the trip back to campus before or after the snowfall, it appears that student injuries have remained low over the weekend. Nearly all on campus sidewalks and roadways have been cleared entirely of snow and ice.
The Kay Yow statue outside of Reynolds Coliseum stands covered with a snowman head on Saturday afternoon. The lingering snow and ice from Saturday cancelled school on Monday.
