A plow clears snow off of the runway at West Virginia International Yeager Airport in Charleston, W.Va., on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (West Virginia International Yeager Airport | Courtesy photo)
A winter storm blanketed West Virginia in snow and ice between Sunday evening and Monday, leaving thousands in the state without power as schools and businesses closed and road crews worked to keep streets as clear as possible.
Jeremy Michael, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Charleston, said the “significant” storm — which was still ongoing Monday afternoon — brought “a wide range of impacts” across the state, from snow, freezing rain, ice and sleet.
In Southern and Central West Virginia, Michael said regions saw roughly 3-7 inches of snow. In the northern regions of the state, however, snowfall was heavier, growing to about 7-11 inches early Monday afternoon.
“Those totals could go up a little bit as it’s still snowing in places,” Michael said. “With the next round of snow and dropping temperatures, we expect conditions to get pretty icy, especially into [Monday] evening.”
Along with the ice, Michael said there’s a chance of about 1-3 more inches of snow to fall across the state as the storm persisted on Monday evening.
Power outages and restoration efforts
According to Appalachian Power, at its peak the storm knocked out power to 100,500 customers in its territory and left “treacherous road conditions, downed power lines and fallen trees.”
Falling trees damaged at least two houses and brought down power lines Monday morning in the Elkview area of Kanawha County, according to reporting from WCHS-TV.
As of around 3 p.m., more than 82,000 Appalachian Power customers — about 40,000 in West Virginia and 43,000 in Virginia — were still without electricity, according to the company’s outage map.
The company expects to restore service to 90% of customers in both states by 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 9.
“Customers can go to AppalachianPower.com and take a look at the outage map. They’ll be able to see what the estimated restoration time will be for their area,” Spokeswoman Debby Pannell said. “We will continue to restore customers throughout that period. So what we’re giving you really is when we anticipate having our last customers [in an area] restored.”
Priority for restoration is given first to hospitals and nursing homes and then to large customer groups before single outages, she said.
“We have about 5,000 workers just dedicated to this storm restoration,” Pannell said. “It is definitely all hands on deck — that includes internal support, field workers. We have assistance coming in, we actually started bringing them in [Sunday] before it even hit. But we have assistance coming in from our sister companies, AEP Ohio and Indiana Michigan [Power Company], along with contractors from Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina.”
She said people without power can help restoration efforts by turning off their high electric users such as heaters and water heaters until about 15 minutes after their power has been restored.
“One thing that happens when the weather is so cold the way it is now, cold temperatures can cause line overload problems when we’re trying to restore to restore a large number of customers, and in a lot of cases, we have to restore outages and smaller groups letting the electric load settle before bringing on more customers,” she said.
“That will help us distribute that load better,” she said.
Pannell cautioned people not to go near downed power lines even if they appear not to be energized.
“Sometimes people assume, because they’re on the ground they’re not live, and that’s not correct,” she said. “Please stay away from the power lines until we can get out there and make the repairs.”
Roadway response bolstered by state of emergency
Gov. Jim Justice on Sunday evening declared a state of emergency in all 55 counties ahead of the storm. In a news release, he asked residents to be prepared for the impact the storm may bring.
“Our top priority is safety, and we’re doing everything we can to stay ahead of the storm,” he said. “State agencies are on high alert, and we’ll continue to monitor the situation closely. I ask all West Virginians to stay alert, follow any instructions from emergency officials, and take necessary precautions. The next few days may bring challenges, so let’s all take care of each other.”
A spokesperson for Justice did not respond to an email asking if the office was aware of any storm-related deaths.
The governor’s emergency declaration allowed state transportation workers to better prepare for the winter storm, according to a release from the Department of Transportation.
Through the declaration, the agency was able to pre-position personnel, vehicles and equipment to respond to impacts from the storm, including snow, ice, rain and wind.
“We got a lot of pre-treating done in a lot of areas so that has helped us a bunch,” said Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston in the release. “Our crews have really done a great job all night. We’ve had incidents and had challenges; we always do, but that’s the human element out on the roadways.”
Workers responsible for removing snow and controlling icy conditions conducted “dry runs” in November to prepare and train for inevitable storms, Wriston said. They went over different roads, looking for elements like ditches, culverts and more so they would know where they are when they’re covered in snow.
“It’s necessary to have a good plan, it’s necessary to execute a good plan and talk to each other. SRIC (snow removal and ice control) is not a productivity activity, it’s a deliberate activity that has to be done slowly, methodically and safely,” Wriston said.
Overall, Wriston urged drivers to remain cautious throughout Monday and to be patient with those working to make the roads passable as snow continues to fall and freezing temperatures remain. He urged those who did not have to travel to stay home whenever possible.
“If you don’t have to go out in stuff like this, just don’t,” Wriston said. “Stay at home if you can, but if you have to go, go slow and give these drivers a lot of room. There’s no reason to go fast in this kind of stuff because going fast can cost you a lot of time.”
Cancellations, closures and delays
The snowy and icy conditions left by the winter storm meant the suspension of several services and meetings throughout the state on Monday.
United States Postal Service customers in the Central Plains and Mid-Atlantic regions — including West Virginia — were being advised Monday that the snow, freezing rain and icy conditions may affect mail processing, transportation and delivery and to allow extra time for final delivery of their mail and packages.
According to the state Department of Education, no school districts in West Virginia were open for in-person classes on Monday because of the storm. Fifty of the state’s counties closed schools completely while five — Clay, Lincoln, Mason, Mingo and Pocahontas — held classes virtually.
As of 4 p.m. Monday, at least 19 counties had canceled classes for Tuesday as well. For the most recent list of school closures or delays, visit https://wveis.k12.wv.us/closings/.
Wednesday’s scheduled meeting for the state Board of Education was also cancelled, according to social media posts from the Department of Education.
State legislative offices were closed Monday due to the weather and scheduled interim meetings for the state Legislature were also canceled that day. The meetings were meant to run from Monday to Tuesday and lead up to the opening of the 2025 legislative session on Wednesday.
While several meetings scheduled for Tuesday have been canceled, as of 2 p.m. Monday no announcement had been made regarding the status for the second day of interims.
In Charleston, Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin postponed her State of the City Address, as well as a city council meeting. The address and meeting will now take place at 6 p.m. on Thursday, according to a news release.
In travel news, several flights were cancelled or delayed Sunday into Monday morning at West Virginia International Yeager Airport in Charleston, according to Flight Aware, an online flight tracker. According to the site, there were seven cancelled flights and five delayed flights at Yeager on Sunday. Monday saw six flights cancelled and five others delayed as of 2:30 p.m., according to the website.
Paige Withrow, the chief marketing officer for Yeager, said that the airport’s snow team was working “around the clock” from Sunday into Monday testing runway conditions and clearing snow as much as possible. They also worked to keep Airport Road — the main access point to the airport from Charleston — clear and safe.
“Winter weather can present challenges for airports, and our crews are continuously monitoring conditions and responding as needed,” Withrow said in an email. “We encourage passengers with upcoming travel plans to check with their airline for the latest updates on their flights before heading to the airport, as schedules may be impacted by weather conditions at both departure and arrival destinations.”
The Kanawha Valley Regional Transportation Authority also suspended bus service on Monday.
Cold temperatures to linger for the rest of the week
Michael, with the National Weather Service, said while the worst of the storm system is set to pass through Monday evening, cold temperatures will likely persist throughout the remainder of the week.
“We have a pretty prolonged period of below freezing temperatures ahead of us,” Michael said. “Here in Charleston and the Metro Valley, it’s not looking until potentially this weekend [that] we’re getting into the middle 30s. As you go further north, it may stay below freezing into the weekend and next week.”
Pannell, with the power company, said that while the number of outages that have occurred during this storm was typical for an ice storm, the lingering cold temperatures expected for the rest of the week are not.
“A lot of times you have a bounce back where it’ll get warm, the ice will melt off, that type of thing, but it looks like it’s going to stay very cold,” she said. “So that also makes for some challenges for us.”
Michael said people will likely see single-digit or even subzero temperatures overnight in some areas. And windchill, he continued, will make the cold weather even more extreme.
“The main point we’re looking at is really the deteriorating conditions into the evening,” Michael said. “With such prolonged cold, a lot of it comes to the aspect of safety. Frostbite can happen in minutes … check on vulnerable populations, especially with people out of power. Be careful.”
Safety tips for people without power
The state Department of Health on Monday urged residents to take steps to be safe and warm while awaiting power restoration.
“Safety and preparedness are critical when facing extreme winter conditions,” Cabinet Secretary Sherri Young said in a news release. “We urge everyone to take these precautions seriously and help look out for those in our community who may need assistance during this difficult time.”
Residents without electricity should stay in one or two rooms of their house and close off unneeded areas to conserve heat, the department said. Use blankets and layered clothing to stay warm. Closing doors and windows, even if storm windows or plastic are already in place, will help prevent drafts. Putting towels or blankets under doors and around windows can help minimize heat loss.
Be careful to have proper ventilation while using a fireplace or woodstove. Gas stoves, charcoal grills and portable heaters should not be used inside because they can cause dangerous carbon monoxide poisoning. Generators should not be run indoors or in adjacent garages as they can also cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
Anyone with symptoms of frostbite, including numbness, tingling or pale skin in exposed areas, or hypothermia, including confusion, slurred speech and extreme shivering, should seek medical attention.
The department also asked people to look after elderly or sick neighbors, particularly those who live alone, as they may be more vulnerable during outages.
“For those who are able, offer assistance with food, heat, or transportation to a warming center. Ensure they have blankets, warm clothing, and access to emergency supplies,” the department said.
Residents who need information about warming centers in their counties can call the non-emergency dispatch in their area. Contact information for those is available online here. Additional information about resources is available by calling 211 or visiting https://wv211.org/
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