City of Asheville initiates response to winter storm warning

Posted on — Jeff Fobes
Asheville city seal

The following is a message from the City of Asheville:

ASHEVILLE — City departments are implementing plans set in place days ago to respond to the snow storm entering the region.

Public works crews began checking and treating roads yesterday and that process is ongoing in response to the Winter Storm Warning issued by the National Weather Service and the State of Emergency declared by Gov. Pat McCrory. The Winter Storm Warning is in effect from 7 p.m. Thursday through 7 a.m. Sunday, with as much as 10 inches of accumulation forecast for the Asheville area.

Public works crews will continue to provide 24-hour service. “Our Public Works trucks pull double duty during snow events. We outfit our regular trucks with snow removal plows,” said Public Works Director Greg Shuler.

The City has 25 vehicles prepped for snow removal. Currently, trucks are pretreating main corridors with a liquid salt brine. Trucks will apply solid salt and sand and plow streets once the winter storm moves in and progresses. Citizens can learn about any street designation through the City’s Snowmapper site. Priority is given to streets that serve as main thoroughfares for emergency response.

All public safety services, including police, fire and emergency response, will operate on normal schedule – 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Water Utility services will continue on a 24-hour production schedule. Customers can call the customer service line at 828-251-1122 to report water-related emergencies, leaks, breaks and no water calls.

The City urges citizens to remove their cars from streets to facilitate efficient snow plowing. As an alternative, the City offers drivers the free use of City parking garages and lots Friday through Sunday. Also, residents are discouraged from unnecessary travel.

In anticipation of deteriorating road conditions, Asheville Redefines Transit (ART) bus service will close earlier than usual tonight. The last bus will leave the ART station at 10 p.m. On Friday, ART bus service will be suspended until noon. The City will provide regular ART routes updates early Friday on the City of Asheville website, and on the City’s social media channels, facebook.com/cityofasheville and www.twitter.com/cityofasheville. It is anticipated that ART will run limited bus routes during the winter storm. Routes may be modified, depending on which streets have been cleared. Riders should expect delays and are advised to visit ART’s next bus and or dial 828-253-5691 and press #5 for updated arrival times. Visit www.ashevilletransit.com or call 253-5691 for updated transit information.

In the event of an emergency, citizens are urged to call 9-1-1.

Residents are asked to call 828-251-1122 to report downed trees.

If you believe a water meter is frozen, contact the Water Department at 828-251-1122. Pipes and plumbing on the house side of the meter are considered private, and are the customer’s responsibility.

City facility closings will be announced and posted to the City’s website by 8 a.m., if snow warrants.

Asheville area shelters are operating under a CODE PURPLE. Persons experiencing homelessness will have the opportunity to come inside and warm up during the day, even if a shelter would typically be closed. Extra floor, cot, and bed space will be available at overnight shelters to ensure that no one has to stay outside. Shelters are encouraging emergency workers and police to urge people outside at night to come inside.

Downed power lines are dangerous and should be reported to 911. Power outages can be reported to Duke Energy Progress by calling the toll-free, automated outage reporting system at 1-800-419-6356. Spanish speaking customers should call 1-866-4APAGON (427-2466) for outage reporting assistance. For those with access to the internet, outages can be reported by clicking https://www.progress-energy.com/app/OutageEntry/default.aspx.  For information regarding the outage restoration process, visit http://www.duke-energy.com/north-carolina/outages/restoration.asp.

Citizens are advised to keep informed by monitoring local media for updated information. Also find frequent updates on the City of Asheville website.

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About Jeff Fobes
As a long-time proponent of media for social change, my early activities included coordinating the creation of a small community FM radio station to serve a poor section of St. Louis, Mo. In the 1980s I served as the editor of the "futurist" newsletter of the U.S. Association for the Club of Rome, a professional/academic group with a global focus and a mandate to act locally. During that time, I was impressed by a journalism experiment in Mississippi, in which a newspaper reporter spent a year in a small town covering how global activities impacted local events (e.g., literacy programs in Asia drove up the price of pulpwood; soybean demand in China impacted local soybean prices). Taking a cue from the Mississippi journalism experiment, I offered to help the local Green Party in western North Carolina start its own newspaper, which published under the name Green Line. Eventually the local party turned Green Line over to me, giving Asheville-area readers an independent, locally focused news source that was driven by global concerns. Over the years the monthly grew, until it morphed into the weekly Mountain Xpress in 1994. I've been its publisher since the beginning. Mountain Xpress' mission is to promote grassroots democracy (of any political persuasion) by serving the area's most active, thoughtful readers. Consider Xpress as an experiment to see if such a media operation can promote a healthy, democratic and wise community. In addition to print, today's rapidly evolving Web technosphere offers a grand opportunity to see how an interactive global information network impacts a local community when the network includes a locally focused media outlet whose aim is promote thoughtful citizen activism. Follow me @fobes
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One thought on “City of Asheville initiates response to winter storm warning”

  1. Yep

    whole new crop of potholes now that will languish for another 25 years … pitiful.

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