Main roads have been brined and officials from various Bladen County agencies have met in preparation for the possibility of freezing rain through Tuesday afternoon. Now, it’s time to sit and wait to see if the winter storm that’s expected to affect much of North Carolina has much impact in Bladen County.
Bladen County Emergency Services Director Bradley Kinlaw met Monday afternoon with about 30 officials from law enforcement, N.C. Department of Transportation, Bladen County Schools and Emergency Services to discuss plans and review forecasts from the National Weather Service.
Under the current National Weather Service forecast, Bladen County is expected to miss much of the storm with the exception of the Tobemory area near the Bladen County/Cumberland County line. Much of Bladen County may receive a glazing of ice on roadways overnight, which could make driving conditions hazardous, especially on bridges. Ice accumulations aren’t expected to be much more than one-tenth of an inch in most areas. The northwest part of Bladen County may see up to one-quarter inch of ice accumulation.
The possibility of icy roads has resulted in the postponement of the opening round of the Four County Conference high school basketball tournaments involving boys and girls teams from East Bladen and West Bladen. First-round games have been rescheduled for Wednesday with the semifinals scheduled Thursday and championship games Friday.
Bladen County Schools has cancelled all after-school programs for Monday.
At the state level, Gov. Pat McCrory has issued a State of Emergency declaration ahead of the storm that’s expected to bring snow, sleet and freezing rain to much of North Carolina. NCDOT crews have spread more than 1.3 million gallons of salt brine across the state’s roadways.
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