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The historic December 4th-5th 2002 ice storm


BullCityWx

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It's been 10 years, what are some of your memories? Here's a couple of random memories that I have:

I remember driving down Franklin Blvd in Gastonia and every single stop light being out due to power loss. I also can remember Wal-Mart having a generator and being, literally, the only game in town for about 24 hours.

I also remember one section of the road was down to 1 lane in each direction because the two lanes closest to the trees that lined the road were full of debris.

I still say it was scarier and worse on my community than Hurricane Hugo was.

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It's been 10 years, what are some of your memories? Here's a couple of random memories that I have:

I remember driving down Franklin Blvd in Gastonia and every single stop light being out due to power loss. I also can remember Wal-Mart having a generator and being, literally, the only game in town for about 24 hours.

I also remember one section of the road was down to 1 lane in each direction because the two lanes closest to the trees that lined the road were full of debris.

I still say it was scarier and worse on my community than Hurricane Hugo was.

I remember two things. During the middle of the storm my brother and I went to go pick up a friend who lived in Gastonia (we lived in Kings Mountain) and as we walked up his apartment stairs you could hear transformers blowing up. We walked out to his deck and it looked like a scene out of a movie; you just saw flashes of light off in the distance as transformers were just blowing, then his power shortly went out. We were very lucky to make it home.

After we got home and the storm winded down we went out side to go drink some beer and slide around the street. We lived right beside a street with a really big incline, during winter storms you always had to go about 60 to make it up (speed limit was 35) well we would just watch as cars would try to make it up but slide back down then we would let them know how you had to do it. Well one lady keep trying and trying but was too scared. She had a huge SUV with 4 wheel drive (not of much use in ice) and was from Alabama. I ended up driving it over the hill for her. Fun times.

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Spent 6 straight days without power. My entire county lost power 100%. I had a generator and remember riding 12 miles into Asheboro the following day and the only place to get gas was a service station over near Randolph Hospital. Stood in line for 3 hours waiting to fill up Gas cans. Worst tree damage I've ever seen. You could stand outside and hear tree after tree crashing in the woods.

http://www.hpe.com/news/x531239261/One-for-the-books

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7 days without power! My wife now freaks any time there is mention of freezing rain. I try to tell her that the ice storm in 2002 was once in a lifetime event (I hope). I remember it absolutely pouring rain and the temperature kept dropping. I bellieve it got down to the low teens with rain! It looked and sounded like a war zone that night with trees falling and transformers blowing lighting up the night sky with greenish hue. I didn't realize how bad it was going to be until I was in the middle of it. Even if I knew, I had no where else to go. I also agree with my wife that the worst part was not knowing when the power was going to come back on. We talked about that recently while watching the footage from Hurricane Sandy.

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7 days without power! My wife now freaks any time there is mention of freezing rain. I try to tell her that the ice storm in 2002 was once in a lifetime event (I hope).

I agree. I mentioned in here the other day that I thought it was probably a once in 50-100 year event...maybe more, but I didn't want to exaggerate :lol:

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I was only at GSP for 2 weeks when this storm hit. I'll never forget it and I wondered where in the hell did I just move to? Nutty busy at the office with the forecast, different warnings, etc and the media interest became more intense as we neared the event. It was fairly well progged by the models for being such an outlier event and the forecast/warnings verified very well (unfortunately).

It was the first time I was without power for an extended period and I'm from Iowa! It was the storm that my step-dad lost his job (trucker) near CLT slipping off an exit ramp and he'd been driving since the late 50s. At the time, I had the opportunity to choose between GSP and CHS. I remember wishing I had taken CHS.

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UGH!!

I can't believe it has been 10 years. Here's a couple of things I remember about that storm.

1) Robert was all ove this thing. He nailed it big time and way out (around 5 days out if I remember right).

2) Hickory was really on it as well. We were on the old board at the time and did not have the regional sub forums. There was a prominent met who frequented the board from the MA or NE at time. I forget his moniker but he was in the middle of the discussions on this storm and got into it with Hickory basically telling him he was crazy and that there was no way this would be ice.....WAY TOO WARM. Hickory schooled him.....lol.

3) We got 3/4" of ice, lost power before daybreak......long 5 days without power.

4) Not so excited about Ice Storms anymore....I really need to get a generator.

Good memories.....one of my favorites....just do not care to repeat it.

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UGH!!

I can't believe it has been 10 years. Here's a couple of things I remember about that storm.

1) Robert was all ove this thing. He nailed it big time and way out (around 5 days out if I remember right).

2) Hickory was really on it as well. We were on the old board at the time and did not have the regional sub forums. There was a prominent met who frequented the board from the MA or NE at time. I forget his moniker but he was in the middle of the discussions on this storm and got into it with Hickory basically telling him he was crazy and that there was no way this would be ice.....WAY TOO WARM. Hickory schooled him.....lol.

3) We got 3/4" of ice, lost power before daybreak......long 5 days without power.

4) Not so excited about Ice Storms anymore....I really need to get a generator.

Good memories.....one of my favorites....just do not care to repeat it.

The infamous Larry Cosgrove incident. Didn't he claim it wasn't CAD?

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It led to my power going out, which led me to stay with my parents for a few days, which led me to stop at a Subway on the way from their house to my part-time job at the mall, which led me to see this girl for the first time. I didn't say a word to her, but a week later I just happened to see her again in the store while I was working, which led me to ask for her number, and now she is my wife and mother of my two kids.

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Good to see some Gas house peeps in here,I grew up off New Hope Rd.,anyway,I was in Greenville,SC now and at that time we were without power for 4 days,and the day of the event,u could hear tree after tree popping like gunshots in the woods,and u could smell pine scent in the air the transformers lighting up the sky.and if i remember correctly,it was pretty warm (60)s the day before.that was an awesome storm

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It led to my power going out, which led me to stay with my parents for a few days, which led me to stop at a Subway on the way from their house to my part-time job at the mall, which led me to see this girl for the first time. I didn't say a word to her, but a week later I just happened to see her again in the store while I was working, which led me to ask for her number, and now she is my wife and mother of my two kids.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner! That is an awesome story Brick! No wonder you follow the weather so closely these days. Thanks for sharing.

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My job had me over in Cary at that time. 3 - 4 days before the storm, Joe Bastardi issued a warning to clients that if you were in western and north central NC, you had better be on your knees praying for a sleet/snow mix in our areas as he was concerned about a risk of a crippling ice storm.

Bingo, he was right. In Cary, snow first fell just enough to whiten the ground right before sunset as a rapidly moving band of snow from the Western Piedmont moved into extremly dry dewpoints around 6 degrees dewpoint. By 800pm, the lower 2000' had mixed out and a full icing event from freezing rain was in progress. I was up several times all night checking observations and beating the heavy accumulation of ice off of expensive wax myrtles around the front of the house to keep them from splitting to the ground. (excuse to go outside and take observations :D )

When I left to go to work at 600am the next morning, heavy freezing rain was still in progress about to wind down with one of the heaviest ice accumulations I have ever witnessed. As I merged onto US1 from the Kildaire Farms area, a highway patrol trooper passed me who was coming in from off of US64. Having been driving in the heavy freezing rain down in the low to mid 20s, his vehicle was covered in sheets of ice with a 3 inch accumulation on his communication antennaes from driving in the heavy freezing rain.

Parts of Duke Forest in the Durham area were without power for 3 weeks until December 22.

The only Ice storm bigger than that was the historic December 2010 Christmas eve Ice storm along the Blue Ridge escarpment. That was far more than the 2002 event. Areas along the escarpment like Jonas Ridge and along the Blue Ridge Parkway down towards Mount Mitchell had tremendous damage to hardwood trees.

Under temps in the low 20s, ice storms can do tremendous damage with freezing rain accumulation in a matter of a few hours.

Here is the case study from NCSU/NWS RDU for the 2002 event along with interesting meteorgrams, Skew Ts and a Nomogram plot:

http://www4.ncsu.edu...cases/20021204/

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This was first storm i followed on the wwbb and it was amazing to have that be the first. The most memorable thing about it to me was the QPF. There was a legit 2-3 inches of QPF over a 30 hour period. To me that storm really was the catalyst for the NC/SC/GA weather clique.

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UGH!!

I can't believe it has been 10 years. Here's a couple of things I remember about that storm.

1) Robert was all ove this thing. He nailed it big time and way out (around 5 days out if I remember right).

2) Hickory was really on it as well. We were on the old board at the time and did not have the regional sub forums. There was a prominent met who frequented the board from the MA or NE at time. I forget his moniker but he was in the middle of the discussions on this storm and got into it with Hickory basically telling him he was crazy and that there was no way this would be ice.....WAY TOO WARM. Hickory schooled him.....lol.

3) We got 3/4" of ice, lost power before daybreak......long 5 days without power.

4) Not so excited about Ice Storms anymore....I really need to get a generator.

Good memories.....one of my favorites....just do not care to repeat it.

I think that one was the Dec 05 icestorm. Probably the only memorable snow or ice system outside the mtns b/n Feb 04 blizzard and the 09/10 winter. Cosgrove got schooled by the NC locals/mets. He then proceeded to wish an inch of ice on me lol.

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The infamous Larry Cosgrove incident. Didn't he claim it wasn't CAD?

Ahemm... Uh oh.... Yes!

I remember it well. The night before there was a big argument that it would be too warm at all levels for snow and that Cold Air Damming would not be an issue. Larry then said "I hope you all get 1" of Ice" and then stormed out never to be heard from again.

And lo and behold, it happened.

Since that time everyone has shuddered in fear should Larry ever wish and Ice Storm on your backyard!

That was back in the day when CADS were CADS and they seemed to come frequently with major impact.

Seriously, this memory is in jest to help us all go back and laugh (it can't be 10 years is it). Everyone's thought and insight is always appreciated as it is only by looking at all the options on the table to help figure out if we really are going to get Snow, Ice or 33 and Rain.

(Brandon may be correct, it could have been the December 2005 Ice Storm. In any event, don't do ANYTHING to provoke Larry to wish Ice on your backyard)

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It led to my power going out, which led me to stay with my parents for a few days, which led me to stop at a Subway on the way from their house to my part-time job at the mall, which led me to see this girl for the first time. I didn't say a word to her, but a week later I just happened to see her again in the store while I was working, which led me to ask for her number, and now she is my wife and mother of my two kids.

That's a really cool story.

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I think that one was the Dec 05 icestorm. Probably the only memorable snow or ice system outside the mtns b/n Feb 04 blizzard and the 09/10 winter. Cosgrove got schooled by the NC locals/mets. He then proceeded to wish an inch of ice on me lol.

It led to my power going out, which led me to stay with my parents for a few days, which led me to stop at a Subway on the way from their house to my part-time job at the mall, which led me to see this girl for the first time. I didn't say a word to her, but a week later I just happened to see her again in the store while I was working, which led me to ask for her number, and now she is my wife and mother of my two kids.

Awesome story...

Yes, I remember it pouring down rain that night and thinking....it's just rain, there's nothing to see here. Didn't pay any attention to it the rest of the night. Then in the morning I woke up, and the stone deadening silence jumped out to me. No cars driving (typically alot in the morning on my street), nothing. I looked outside and of course it looked like Krypton. Only out of power for 3 days though. Slept in 3 layers of sweat shirts and pants; no heat and it was COLD at night.

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Awesome story...

Yes, I remember it pouring down rain that night and thinking....it's just rain, there's nothing to see here. Didn't pay any attention to it the rest of the night. Then in the morning I woke up, and the stone deadening silence jumped out to me. No cars driving (typically alot in the morning on my street), nothing. I looked outside and of course it looked like Krypton. Only out of power for 3 days though. Slept in 3 layers of sweat shirts and pants; no heat and it was COLD at night.

I was lucky that my parents lived out in the country and the power lines were underground. Somehow the main power station didn't go. I was the only one out of all of my friends that had power that week and many of them came to use our shower and cook food.

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My wife and I just bought the house that I am living in now. I believe it was a Wednesday (not sure). It started off as heavy snow around late morning and the temps fell to the low and mid 20's fairly quickly. Ended up with around 3" of snow before the changeover to sleet and freezing rain which continued all night with temps remaining in the mid and upper 20's. Everyone lost power for days. My parents lived about a mile away in a wooded area and their road was completely blocked by downed trees and powerlines. Had to gather up some of their things and walk with them back to my house in town. I have gas logs and a gas H2O heater (being on city water, we didn't have to worry about a well pump). With the gas logs as heat, we didn't have to endure the cold nights like most folks did. Also, being able to take a hot shower helped to take the edge off of not having TV or lights. I still have the oil lamps and I keep some oil for them just in case a repeat ever comes. As one of the posters mentioned earlier, it was really eerie driving through town the nights that followed and not being able to recognize anything because the only light was from the headlights on your car. Heck, there are still signs of that storm which remain today. My folks have some large broken limbs hanging in the taller trees which had gotten caught in the forks when they broke off and still haven't rotted. We keep wondering when they will finally fall. Maybe the ice storm that's coming later this month will finish them off...lol

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I think that one was the Dec 05 icestorm. Probably the only memorable snow or ice system outside the mtns b/n Feb 04 blizzard and the 09/10 winter. Cosgrove got schooled by the NC locals/mets. He then proceeded to wish an inch of ice on me lol.

Hickory you are right it I am thinking about the 2005 storm....no wonder it didn't seem like 10 years...lol.

Disregard my post; 3 years too early.

Good times regardless.

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A really bad ice storm makes you have a feel for what it must have been like in Canada when they got up to, and over 5 inches of accumulated zrain. Unbelievable. As bad as the ice storm in Atl. in 73 warped me, I can't imagine what 5 inches would do to your psyche. I hate ice storms with a passion now, but I know I need one from time to time to clear out the dead wood, and weak trees. But they are so frightening and destructive. Life threatening stuff...a really bad one. T

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Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a winner! That is an awesome story Brick! No wonder you follow the weather so closely these days. Thanks for sharing.

Packfan I was reading his thread thinking the same thing! No wonder he like the weather so much, or al least follows the weather.

Good job Brick.

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We had no power in downtown Durham for a week (and were lucky) where the carnage was so bad it made national news, so my boss invited everyone and their families to work for heat. The ice was so beautiful the next day in Cary that I snapped some photos before it could all melt.

The photos from our neighborhood were not so beautiful. :(

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We had no power in downtown Durham for a week (and were lucky) where the carnage was so bad it made national news, so my boss invited everyone and their families to work for heat. The ice was so beautiful the next day in Cary that I snapped some photos before it could all melt.

The photos from our neighborhood were not so beautiful. :(

It was both beautiful and destructive here. I took all these within a few hundred feet of my house. The last two are of my yard.

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