VERY slick roads and parking lots out there this morning.  I literally skated across one. The Town of Weaverville sent out a Code Red Alert a little while ago about “treacherous roads”.  They urge residents to stay off the roads.  I second that advice.

It’s true, there’s a frost warning tonight.

From the National Weather Service:

Frost advisory in effect from 3 am to 9 am EDT Tuesday
The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg has issued a frost advisory which is in effect from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. EDT Tuesday. Areas of frost will develop over the North Carolina mountains tonight. A few locations will likely fall to around freezing, especially over the interior valleys of the southwest mountains. However, freezing temperatures are not expected to be widespread enough to warrant a freeze warning. The eastern and southern slopes of the mountains are not expected to see as much frost as winds will stay up much of the night and there may be a little high cloud cover.

Precautionary/Preparedness actions
A frost advisory means that frost is possible. Sensitive outdoor plants may be killed if left uncovered.

Some advice from Reems Creek Nursery:

There is a FROST WARNING tonight, especially for the higher elevations.  You should keep your eye on the local weather and be prepared to protect any tender plants.  For VEGETABLES that would include tomatoes, peppers, squash, eggplant, cucumbers, melons, basil, dill, etc. (any heat loving veggie or herb).  Protect any ANNUAL FLOWERS you have planted, and bring houseplants inside.

We have floating row cover (Reemay) for sale at the nursery.  It is a lightweight spun fabric that is designed to provide frost protection for plants.  We also have lightweight, but sturdy, fiberglass rods that you can use to support the row cover.  Sheets, bedspreads, and cardboard boxes can also be used to protect your plants from frost.  Do not use plastic to cover your plants.  REMOVE your frost protection tomorrow in early morning.

I’m told Reems Creek Road is a sheet of ice this morning and downtown has icy spots to watch out for.  If you don’t have to be out on the roads this morning, don’t go.  If you do, please be careful. 

Since I can work from home I won’t be traversing the roads, so if you’ve been out and would like to report any other particularly icy areas this morning, please contact me, 768-8566 or myweaverville@gmail.com.

The Aiken Road bridge is finally going to be repaired, and road closures and detours will be in place beginning tomorrow (Friday, November 7) and continuing on weekends thru November 23 (weather permitting).  Here’s the info:

The North Carolina Department of Transportation will be closing both northbound lanes of US 19-23 (Future I-26 West) to repair the Aiken Road bridge, damaged earlier this year by an accident. The road will be closed on the weekends of November 7-10, 14-17, and 21-23. The road will close each Friday at 8 p.m. and will reopen each Monday at 11 a.m. except for the weekend of November 21-23.  On that weekend the road will reopen at midnight on Sunday. Southbound traffic will not be affected during this closure. Work will be contingent upon suitable weather.

Project updates will supposedly be available on the Road Conditions section of the NC Department of Transportation Division of Highways website,  though as of this moment they don’t have these construction dates and detour routes listed.

Here’s the detour route:

Driving North on US 19/23 (Future I-26 West) traffic will take exit number 21, travel to bottom of ramp and free flow thru signal, make a left turn onto SR 1882 (New Stock Road), continue on New Stock Road to SR 1727 (Monticello Road), free flow through this intersection and continue on Monticello Road to its intersection with US 25-70. There will be an active traffic signal at this intersection. Turn right on US 25-70, go across bridge over US 19/23 (Future I-26 West) and turn left to on ramp for US 19/23 (Future I-26 West) and resume traveling on US 19/23 (Future I-26 West) at exit 19. All traffic traveling on US 19/23 Business will not be allowed to access New Stock Road. This is necessary to allow all the traffic from US 19/23 (Future I-26 West) to free flow through this intersection.

Weaverville gets political this week:

The GOP and Barack Obama
On Saturday, the Buncombe County Republican Party will hold their Annual Chairman’s BBQ at Lake Louise. Saturday on Main Street will find the Barack Obama campaign voter registration table at the clock.

Presidential Pizza Election
Current vote totals in Blue Mountain’s Obama-McCain Pizza election (as of Friday, July 25, 1:45 p.m.)

• McCain – 4
• Obama – 10

New Websites
Recently added to the Links Directory:

• Buncombe County Republicans
• Buncombe County Democrats

Hurricane Season
The height of the political season is also the height of hurricane season. Coincidence?
If you want to keep up with what’s happening out in the tropics, the National Hurricane Center has maps of the activity going on in both the Atlantic and Pacific. www.nhc.noaa.gov

And Then There’s Bele Chere
Is it also any coincidence that Bele Chere occurs during hurricane season? If you’re going to the downtown Asheville festival this weekend, or think you want to go, Mountain Xpress has a great online guide with maps, music samples, a live web cam and more about the 30th Anniversary of the festival. Check it out at www.mountainx.com/belechere

No matter what you do this weekend, be safe and have a good one.

from the Governor’s office:

Gov. Mike Easley announced that state and local law enforcement officers will increase their presence during the Fourth of July holiday as part of the Booze It & Lose It: “Operation Firecracker” campaign. Checkpoints and stepped-up patrols will be conducted from Friday, June 27, through Sunday, July 6, across the state in an effort to remove impaired drivers from the roads.

“Law enforcement officers will be out in force, sending a strong message to motorists that drinking and driving will not be tolerated,” Easley said. “The Fourth of July holiday is one of the deadliest for highway travel and we want people to be safe by celebrating responsibly.”

Last year, 60 North Carolina motorists were involved in fatal traffic crashes during the Independence Day holiday week. Twenty-one of those fatalities were alcohol-related. Alcohol-related crashes also accounted for 411 injuries in the state during the same week in 2007.

Officers charged more than 2,100 North Carolina motorists with driving while impaired during the 2007 Booze It & Lose It:” Operation Firecracker” campaign. More than 6,173 stepped-up patrols and checkpoints were held.

For more information regarding Booze It & Lose It campaigns or for citation totals, visit the Governor’s Highway Safety Program web site.

In other words, don’t drink and drive.

Bears in the Neighborhoods
I’ve heard about a number of bear sightings in the area lately, so here’s a good reminder from the WNC Nature Center:

What do I do if I see a bear in my back yard?
Nothing – do not panic. Bears are not aggressive by nature and most are fearful of man, but if a bear has been accustomed to being around humans, they may appear to be more aggressive. Shout, make loud noises, face the bear, do not run from it, and walk slowly away from the bear. Running could trigger the bear to run after you, much like our pet dogs do when playing with us.

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Still looking for a gift for Dad for this Sunday?

• Curtis Wright Outfitters has their fly fishing combos on sale for Father’s Day.
• MVP Barbers & Style Shop is offering 25% off on American Crew Products thru June 20.
• If he’s into gardening, Reems Creek Valley Nursery & Landscaping has all kinds of Buy One, Get One Free specials. Check out their What’s New page for details.

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New Volunteer Opportunities
Art in Autumn is looking for volunteers to help with the September 20 festival and the Brian Center has a long list of volunteer opportunities. Check out the Volunteer page for information.

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New Websites
Here’s some recent additions to the Links Directory:

• Weaverville Wildlife Habitat
• North Buncombe Kiwanis Club
• Brian Fox
• Arts for Life (newly redesigned)
• Dina DeSantis
• Health Department Reports
• The Fields at Blackberry Cove

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June Contest is Open
ONE person will win $50 worth of gift certificates this month:

• $20 to Blue Mountain Pizza
• $20 to Maggie B’s Wine & Specialty Shop
• $10 to Preservation Hall

Enter online at www.myweaverville.com/contests

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Finally, Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads out there. Hope everyone has a happy and safe weekend.

This morning I posted an alert from the National Weather Service about a frost advisory for our area. That has now been canceled and replaced with a Freeze Warning.

The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg has issued a freeze warning, which is in effect from 1 a.m. to 9 a.m. EDT Wednesday for the mountains of North Carolina. The frost advisory is no longer in effect.

The center of a cold air mass will settle over the southern Appalachian region tonight. The combination of mostly clear skies, light winds, and dry air will allow low temperatures to fall to around freezing across the mountains of the North Carolina. A freeze warning means sub-freezing temperatures are imminent or highly likely. These conditions will kill crops and other sensitive vegetation.

From the National Weather Service:

The National Weather Service in Greenville-Spartanburg has issued a frost advisory for Buncombe County, which is in effect from 1 am to 9 am EDT Wednesday.

The center of a cold air mass will settle over the southern Appalachian region tonight. The combination of mostly clear sky cover, light winds, and dry air will allow low temperatures to fall near record lows. Temperatures are forecast to range from 33 to 35 within the valleys and near freezing across the higher elevations of the North Carolina mountains. These temperatures will promote the formation of frost across the mountains and possibly a light freeze above 3500 feet.

A frost advisory means that frost is possible. Sensitive outdoor plants may be killed if left uncovered.

UPDATE: The frost advisory has been replaced with a Freeze warning. Details here…

The North Carolina Division of Forest Resources has announced the statewide ban on open burning issued on February 14 is lifted as of noon today (March 1).

I hear the Winter Storm Warning, which was supposed to last until 7 p.m. tonight, has been cancelled.  I’m sure it’s because I actually made sure I was prepared for really bad weather and a power outage:  full tank of gas for the generator, batteries for the radio, a load of firewood sitting next to the fireplace and, most important, all the fixings for a batch of chili to eat while sitting in front of said fireplace.  It’s like when I wash my car to ensure it’ll rain. 

They’re still saying you shouldn’t hit the roads unless you really have to, so be safe if you’re heading out. 

A lot of the time these can be hit or miss, but this one sounds like it could be pretty bad. One forecast has our chance of precipitation at 100%!

From the National Weather Service:

A winter storm warning remains in effect from 7 p.m. this evening to 7 p.m. EST Thursday.

A band of moderate to heavy snow and sleet is forecast to move north over the mountains and foothills late this evening into the early morning hours of Thursday. This band will likely result in a quick accumulation of one to two inches of snow and sleet across eastern slopes of the mountains and adjacent foothills. A rapid transition to sleet and freezing rain will then follow during the early morning hours Thursday. An additional inch or two of snow is possible…mainly at higher elevations in and near the mountains. Freezing rain will then fall for much of the morning before temperatures warm to a few degrees above freezing. Where temperatures stay below freezing the longest…up to a quarter inch of ice accumulation is possible.

The timing of the wintry precipitation will likely lead to significant travel problems across the warned area Thursday morning. Ice accumulations around a quarter of an inch may result in some trees and power lines to fall…blocking roads and leading to scattered power outages.

A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow… Sleet… And ice are expected or occurring. Strong winds are also possible. This will make travel very hazardous or impossible.

A couple links, in case they’re needed:

School Closings
Road Conditions (click on Asheville on the map for more information about road conditions in the area)