With this week’s colder weather coinciding with Winter Awareness Week, Dec. 1-7, Gov. Roy Cooper is encouraging residents to plan and prepare ahead.
“Winter weather is already impacting North Carolina with lower than average temperatures across the state and we want people to be prepared for the possibility of extreme cold, snow, ice and other hazardous weather,” Cooper said Monday in a release. “North Carolinians should be prepared and have an emergency plan, update your emergency preparedness kits and stay informed by paying attention to trusted and official sources of information regarding weather forecasts and alerts.”
Sponsor Spotlight
Cooper’s office emphasized that residents monitor winter weather conditions and forecasts by listening to local media and paying close attention to winter weather watches, warnings and advisories.
Erik Heden, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s office in Newport, said in an email to media that Winter Preparedness Week is a way to reinforce what one should do to prepare each winter season.
“It only takes one storm to make an impact in our community,” he said. “We want to remind you that nor’easters and coastal storms can be as impactful as hurricanes.”
Forecasters Tuesday were calling for cold, dry conditions will remain through Wednesday, with near record lows possible early Wednesday morning. A dry, strong front moves through the region Thursday with arctic high pressure building back over the area Friday into the weekend.
New terms to communicate ‘cold’
Heden said that the National Weather Service has consolidated and changed the names for wind chill watches, warnings and advisories.
Sponsor Spotlight
Effective Oct. 1, wind chill watches and warnings were consolidated into extreme cold watches and warnings. Wind chill advisory was replaced with cold weather advisory.
Heden said the new cold-weather messaging products are to allow forecasters to “communicate ‘cold’ with or without wind; wind chill will not go away though emphasis will be placed ‘cold is cold’ for public safety.”
Weather Service officials said earlier this year that the changes are to improve winter hazards messaging.
“These changes seek to clarify that cold can be dangerous with or without wind, addressing a common misconception that extreme cold is only tied to colder temperatures when there is wind. Dangerously cold weather can accompany or follow wintry precipitation, and the cold messaging can be overshadowed by the wintry precipitation.”
Winter may be warm, dry
Winter doesn’t officially begin until Dec. 21, but National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasters anticipate that the coming season will have drier-than-average conditions from the Four Corners region of the Southwest to the Southeast, Gulf Coast and lower mid-Atlantic states.
The winter outlook for the state from the North Carolina State Climate Office is consistent with NOAA’s.
“It’s setting up to be a consequential winter for North Carolina, with the fate of a newly emerging drought, along with a potentially record-breaking ‘snow drought,’ hanging in the balance,” Assistant State Climatologist Corey Davis writes.
“We’re expecting overall warmer and drier conditions in North Carolina this winter. Recent trends also support that warm outlook: over the past 20 years, 17 of those winters have been warmer than the historical average, including five of our top ten warmest winters on record,” he adds.
“Ultimately, January may be the decisive month this winter. If we briefly shift to a wetter pattern at our climatological coldest time of year, that could potentially bring an end to both our meteorological drought and the stubborn snow drought. But if January stays dry, then we could see drought stick around to start the spring, particularly if spring-like temperatures start early again next year.”
Planning ahead
To prepare for winter weather, Cooper’s office provided the following list from state emergency management officials urging residents to:
- Always keep at least a three-day supply of nonperishable food and a supply of medication in your home.
- Keep fresh batteries on hand for weather radios and flashlights.
- Dress warmly. Wear multiple layers of thin clothing instead of a single layer of thick clothing.
- Properly vent kerosene heaters and ensure any electric generators are operated outside and away from open windows or doors to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. Never burn charcoal indoors.
- Use a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather radio or a weather alert app on your phone to monitor changing weather conditions.
- Keep alternative heating sources and fire extinguishers on hand. Be sure your family knows how to use them.
- Store an emergency kit in your vehicle. Include scraper, jumper cables, tow chain, sand/salt, blankets, flashlight, first-aid kit and road map.
- Make an emergency supplies kit for your pet and include medical records, first-aid kit, enough canned/dry food and water for three to seven days and pet travel bag or carrier.
- Do not leave pets outside for long periods of time.
- Ensure your pet has a well-fitting collar.
- Bring pets inside when temperatures drop below freezing.
- Move livestock and other animals to a sheltered location with food and water.
- If you must travel during bad weather, emergency officials remind motorists to leave plenty of room between you and other vehicles and, if driving on snow- or ice-covered roadways, reduce your speed. If conditions worsen, pull off the highway and remain in your vehicle. Do not set out on foot unless you can see a building close by where you can take shelter.
For more information on how to prepare for winter storms and other hazards that affect North Carolina, visit www.readync.gov.
