According to WRAL, ABC 11 and many other local weather stations giving updates on North Carolina’s winter storm, we were told to expect four to seven inches of snow by Jan. 31. Some sources even said there may be up to ten inches of snow. A winter weather alert was issued for Wake County.

In the end there was some snow and ice but less than three inches in Wake County. It felt like the snow went everywhere but Wake County. Yes, it was very cold, but it wasn’t the trenches of snow we expected. The snow was not even thick enough to make snowmen due to the fluffiness of the snow.

Students were excited for virtual classes and the opportunity to sleep in. Many were upset because there wasn’t as much snow as they were expecting. It was dangerous enough to keep people off the roads but not enough to have an actual snow day. It also melted very quickly in the sunlight to create dangerous ice when it refroze at night.

Even though it was not the snow storm that was expected, many people believe the NC government worked really hard to keep everyone safe. NCDOT used 2.8 to 4 million gallons of salt brine to keep the state-maintained roads and bridges safe for travel. Many shelters were opened for people to easily escape the cold and get a warm meal. 

In the end, using words like ‘Winter Storm’ may make a weather forecast sound very dangerous. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be the type of weather students hope to play in or have a good snow day.