NCDOT crews get Charlotte area roads ready for the weekend winter storm

CHARLOTTE — Gov. Roy Cooper declared a State of Emergency in North Carolina ahead of the winter storm on its way.

Crews in Charlotte have more than 2,000 miles of state highways, bridges and roads to treat.

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At the North Carolina Department of Transportation yard in northwest Charlotte, crews were active all day Friday. Channel 9 reporter Joe Bruno even had a hard time during the press conference they held Friday morning -- it was hard to hear because of the equipment and trucks coming and going, all getting ready for the snow and ice event.

NCDOT officials said brine operations will continue through late Friday night.

Crews will return Saturday at 9 a.m. and will work on 12-hour shifts.

For more information from North Carolina officials on tips to prepare for winter weather, click here.

A lot of industries are impacted by COVID-19 right now and NCDOT is no exception. The department is pulling in contractors and workers from other departments to help out.

As of Friday afternoon, NCDOT reported six workers were out due to COVID-19. But leaders said every year, they have something to work through, whether it is personnel or equipment issues

So if it takes a little more time to clear the roads this year, COVID may be to blame. The state is bringing in workers from other departments to be part of the 133 crews using 288 trucks to take care of more than 2,000 miles. They plan to use as much as 125,000 gallons of brine on Charlotte roads.

“Our response may not be as quick as what you’ve seen in the past,” said Jen Thompson, spokesperson for NCDOT. “But we are putting every effort out there and we are putting all available, healthy hands out there to clear the roads and to treat the roads, and we are not going to lessen our efforts until we clear every road.”

On the city side, emergency management says it is in good shape, but asks people to keep in mind where we live and how we handle the snow.

“I hear people say ‘we don’t get winter weather in Charlotte’ -- yes we do,” said Emergency Management Chief Robert Graham. “If it’s happened in the past, there is a 100% chance of it happening again.”

At the Walmart in west Charlotte, residents were taking the storm seriously. Jeanester Banks said people were taking everything off the shelves.

“They are coming to get the medicine like we are not ever going to open again,” she said.

Bobobo Mongo made a last minute run for cat litter and said he’s ready to lock himself inside for the weekend.

“Probably just stay inside and chill. Find something good to eat and watch a movie or something,” he said.

The NCDOT told Channel 9 it is focusing pretreatment efforts on interstates in Mecklenburg and Cabarrus counties, and on the Monroe Expressway in Union County. State forces are applying brine on other bare pavement routes, including four-lane divided primary roads, then moving to secondary roads. Brine, a solution of water and 23% salt, is used to pretreat roadways in dry conditions when the temperature is above 18 degrees and can be applied up to 48 hours before a storm.

Side roads

“I wait for the sun to be out for a little bit just to make sure, especially to get out of the neighborhood because the roads in small neighborhoods tend to be bad,” said Rodney Noriega, resident of Indian Trail.

Local streets are the responsibility of each municipality, county, or private owner.

Noriega plans to stay off the roads this holiday weekend unless driving is necessary.

“Drive slow because it is dangerous,” he emphasized.

[Bread and milk: Why do we buy those foods before a storm?]

Public works crews in the Town of Indian Trail will put salt down on major culverts, bridges, and town owned streets.

Staff will be on call to help first responders during the storm and crews will focus on clearing the streets.

“My biggest fear is people who don’t know what to do when people who lose control of their car, who maybe go too fast, or maybe don’t know how to take a corner or don’t know about black ice,” said Eric Griggs, who now lives in Indian Trail.

In the City of Monroe, the streets department is prepping secondary roadways for possible ice accumulation.

Workers will keep a close eye on high traffic areas and potential trouble spots. Crews will concentrate on those areas and will respond as needed.

(Watch the video below: Road crews work around the clock in Gaston County to get ahead of storm)

Road crews work around the clock in Gaston County to get ahead of storm

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