This news item expired on Saturday, December 15, 2018 so the information below could be outdated or incorrect.
Buncombe County wants you to be prepared and safe as the potential for a large amount of snow moves toward Western North Carolina. Ahead of the storm, there are ways you can prepare for the possibility of power outages, road closures, and more.
In case of a sustained power outage, Buncombe County Emergency Management Services recommends having three days' worth of food and supplies on-hand. Also, make sure to have backup oxygen tanks and medicine for you and your pets. And please check in on any elderly neighbors that might need help preparing or if there are sustained power outages.
For information on what you should have in a preparedness kit, check out ReadyNC’s suggestions here.
Below is a list of links to keep handy in case of inclement weather:
Buncombe County is not responsible for salting or plowing roads. However, the NCDOT, City of Asheville, and other municipalities are prepared for the worst-case forecasts. You can read about the NCDOT’s effort in this Citizen Times article (paywall), and see below for the City of Asheville’s preparation.
From the City of Asheville:
Starting Friday morning, Public Works will pre-treat all priority 1 roads and many priority 2 streets. In addition, Public Works will pre-treat all sidewalks that the City of Asheville is responsible for and will remove snow from them as the storm moves in. This includes special efforts around the U.S. Cellular Center, which is hosting the Warren Haynes Christmas Jam Friday-Saturday.
Streets crews anticipate working around the clock as the storm moves in.
Here is a link to the City’s snow removal priority map.
Public Works has 32 trucks to deploy, including snow plows and salt/bring spreaders. The City has 40,000 tons of salt in supply.
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