NCDOT crews were busy today clearing roads and de-icing ferries

By IRENE NOLAN

The North Carolina Department of Transportation had crews working today in all 14 counties in its Division One, include Dare and Hyde, that got varying degrees of ice, sleet, and snow on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Temperatures below freezing all of yesterday and last night caused black ice to form on many highways that had been cleared.

Temperatures of about 39 today on Hatteras and Ocracoke caused much of the ice and snow to start melting. Only patches of ice and snow are still hanging around in more protected areas.

The big thaw should continue tomorrow when temperatures will be near 50. Then it will continue over the weekend when temperatures are expected to climb into the 50s and up to 60 – with rain possible on Sunday and early in the week.

DOT’s Division One has approximately 111 trucks and 27 motor graders working on the snow removal effort across the region. Of these, approximately 20 trucks are from NCDOT county maintenance offices in the Triad and western Piedmont that arrived earlier this week to assist with clearing roads. Approximately 900 tons of salt had been used as of this morning.

And roadways weren’t all DOT crews were working on today.

Ferry Division crews were busy de-icing ferries, ramps, and approaches to the docks.

“We’ve broken the ice (literally and figuratively)!” DOT reported on its Facebook page this morning.

Crews ran the first ferry from Hatteras to Ocracoke at 11:30 a.m. and it is now back on the regular schedule for the route.

In Ocracoke village, crews were working on the ferry decks, ramps, and roads to get the Pamlico Sound ferries between Ocracoke and Cedar Island and Swan Quarter back up and running.

The Ferry Division reported ice up to 3 inches thick on some ferry decks.

DOT hopes the sound ferries will begin running in the morning.

Real-time updates on ferry schedules are available on the North Carolina Ferry System’s Facebook page, and on its Twitter account (@NCDOT_Ferry).

FRIDAY CLOSINGS AND DELAYS

Dare County offices on Hatteras Island will open on a regular schedule at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 31. Dare County offices and facilities north of Oregon Inlet will open at 10 a.m.

All courts scheduled for Dare County on Friday are cancelled.

Dare County Transportation has cancelled all scheduled service for Friday.

Dare County Public Works will resume garbage collection on Monday, Feb. 3.

Dare County schools will open with a two-hour delay.

Hyde County offices and courts remain closed.

Ocracoke School will be closed tomorrow.

National Park Service facilities will open as scheduled at 8 a.m. on Friday. The National Park Service’s facilities North of Oregon Inlet — Bodie Island, Wright Brothers National Memorial, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Outer Banks Group headquarters support offices, will open on a two hour delay at 10 a.m.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW SLIDE SHOW