By By JONATHAN CLAYBORNE
Staff Write
Thickly clustered snowflakes began falling over Washington Friday night, and the city was blanketed in 4 or more inches of crystallized white powder by Saturday morning.
A decidedly unofficial measurement yielded around 3 inches of accumulation off CBH Lodge Road at 12:40 Saturday morning.
At least another inch had been added to that total by 7:45 a.m.
It appeared that most of the city’s main roads were passable as of 8 a.m., though a number of side streets were still slick and slightly treacherous.
The crunch of snowplows could be heard all over town as crews worked to clear the way for the few motorists who ventured out.
The N.C. Highway Patrol said there were numerous vehicle accidents in Beaufort County by late morning, though no serious injuries were reported.
“Just mainly where people were traveling too fast, hit ice and went into the ditch,” said Trooper Brian Allen.
Beaufort County’s emergency-management office had received no word of power outages or other major problems at mid-morning, related Curtis Avery, assistant emergency manager and fire marshal.
Avery praised the N.C. Department of Transportation, saying state workers expected to have most of the county’s major thoroughfares cleared by noon Saturday.
“DOT is doing a fine job,” he said.
As to the condition of roads, he added, “A few ice spots, but not really bad.”
Still, Avery cautioned residents to stay at home because the snow was expected to refreeze Saturday night, bringing dangers of black ice and slick slush despite partial melting before day’s end.
The Belhaven Police Department said no storm-related problems had surfaced by mid-morning.
A few Washington eating or shopping spots were open early Saturday morning, including The Mecca Grill on Market Street, which appeared to be doing strong business.
“It started out kind of slow, but we got really busy about 9:30,” said Danielle Hunnings, who co-owns the grill with her husband, Michael.
Hunnings said her husband had been cooking for approximately 20 people at a time.
“So, it’s been crazy, but we’re enjoying it,” she commented.
Down on the waterfront, Jerry and Sue Creech of Second Street took their usual morning constitutional, albeit a little later than normal.
The couple usually walk downtown between 5 and 5:30 a.m.
“This morning we enjoyed eating our pancakes and watching it snow,” Jerry Creech said while standing off the nearly deserted Stewart Parkway.
“Physically, it’s very refreshing, particularly this morning,” he said of his exercise routine.