Good afternoon, everyone.

Thank you for joining us on this cold afternoon.

Winter weather is once again here in North Carolina.

As Director Ray will outline, eastern North Carolina will see the greatest effects in some counties up to eight inches of snow.

Tonight and tomorrow morning we are concerned with unsafe roadway conditions, especially in those areas that receive the wintry precipitation.

For those who live along the coast or in areas that receive snow or sleet, please avoid driving unless it is absolutely necessary to travel.

When precipitation falls tonight, there will be possible accumulation due to cold ground temperatures.

If you have to drive, monitor weather conditions before traveling.

Drivers should avoid slippery road conditions.

Elsewhere in the state, people are experiencing dangerously bitter cold temperatures.

Many communities have opened warming stations for those who need safe refuge from cold temperatures.

You can find information on resources in your community by visiting your local government or emergency management agency's website and social media accounts.

This morning, in addition to Director Ray, I'm also joined by the Adjutant General of the North Carolina National Guard, Major General Todd Hunt, Secretary of Public Safety Eddie Buffalo, Commander of the State Highway Patrol Colonel Freddie Johnson, and DOT Chief Operating Officer Chris Peoples.

At this point, I'll turn it over to Emergency Management Director Will Ray to provide some updates on the weather forecast.

Thank you, Governor.

Good afternoon, everyone.

As we move into tonight, portions of central and eastern North Carolina may experience winter precipitation in the form of sleet and snow, and the entire state, as the Governor said, will experience bitterly cold conditions.

A winter storm warning is in effect starting today at 5 p.m. for the entire North Carolina coastline and inland counties in far eastern North Carolina.

The current forecast places the greatest snowfall totals across the Outer Banks and northeastern coastal counties, Carteret, Southern Craven, Pamlico, Terrell, and Hyde counties, where 6 to 8 inches of snowfall is possible.

A winter weather advisory is also in effect for counties in eastern North Carolina and into much of central North Carolina beginning at 4 p.m. today, where 1 to 3 inches of snowfall is possible, particularly in our eastern counties.

A cold weather advisory remains in effect for the entire state tonight through midday tomorrow.

Windchill values as low as 14 below zero will be possible across the mountains, and single digits down to zero degrees are possible across the state tonight into tomorrow.

In both Ashe and Watauga counties, an extreme cold warning remains in effect tonight and into tomorrow, where windchill values as low as 15 below zero are possible.

We've been monitoring the weather system and possible impacts late last week and through this weekend, and while we could continue to see some changes in forecast track and impacts, we activated portions of the State Emergency Response Team to ensure that we are postured to support our local communities and our state partners.

The State Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh and our Regional Coordination Center East activated this morning, and we have proactively deployed components of the North Carolina National Guard into the eastern part of the state to support any local emergency services and public safety needs.

These include multiple all-hazards response teams with 4x4 capability staged for deployment, as well as two hotspot teams to support the Department of Transportation with road clearance, same as we do in the west.

State and local emergency management personnel will remain in close coordination to ensure all resources are available and ready to respond for needs that may arise.

There are currently 25 local emergency operations centers that are either at monitoring or open to manage the potential winter weather situation.

Seventeen school systems and the Cherokee tribal schools are closed today, with six delayed starts being reported due to the cold temperatures this morning.

An additional seven school systems have implemented their remote learning protocols, and eight school systems in eastern North Carolina are releasing early today.

In areas that receive sleet and snowfall, accumulation is likely due to the cold ground temperatures and we should expect slick roadway conditions.

If you do not need to be on the road, please stay home for your safety and for the safety of our first responders and DOT personnel that may be out.

If you have questions about roadway conditions, as always, please visit drivenc.gov.

North Carolina continues to experience some of the coldest temperatures in quite some time, and I would like to remind all North Carolinians of a few key points this week.

First, is that extremely cold temperatures, like what we are experiencing, can be very dangerous.

Please make sure that you and your family are prepared, and as we move through the week, please make sure you're dressing in layers, covering exposed skin, limiting time outdoors, specifically taking care of pets and other animals, and conserving energy where you can.

You can find more about how to ensure that your family is ready for cold temperatures and winter weather by visiting readync.gov.

Second, is that ice may also form on ponds, creeks, and rivers with temperatures like we're experiencing.

In North Carolina, the ice is never safe for anyone or pets to walk on.

While it is a rare sight here, please enjoy it from the safety of the shore.

Finally, for those in western North Carolina continuing to recover from the devastation of Tropical Storm Helene, if you need resources, assistance with housing, or help navigating the recovery process, please call the North Carolina Disaster Case Management Program at 1-844-746-2361 or visit ncdps.gov/helene.

The North Carolina Disaster Case Management Program was established to guide survivors through the recovery process, to assist with making a recovery plan to fit those individual needs, and to find resources to assist each survivor.

As a reminder, you do not have to apply for FEMA assistance to receive assistance through this state program.

Thank you, Governor.

I also want to thank the DOT crews who have been preparing for this storm and have begun pre-treating roads focusing on eastern North Carolina.

During winter weather, just like any severe weather situation in our state, the number one priority for all of us is to keep people safe.

Make sure that you have everything you need in advance of the winter weather.

Check on your loved ones and anyone you know who may be especially vulnerable.

As you just heard from Director Wray, we recommend the following actions as we navigate this winter weather event.

Pay close attention to your local weather forecast and be prepared for whatever is expected in your area.

Keep cell phones, mobile devices, spare batteries charged in case of power outages, and enable emergency alerts on your telephone so that you can hear from local emergency management agencies and the National Weather Service.

Keep cabinet doors open, located under sinks, and let your faucets drip to prevent the pipes from freezing.

In snowy and icy areas, please avoid traveling.

The roads are the most dangerous place to be in a winter storm like this.

If you have to be on the road, make sure that you have an emergency kit in your vehicle, including food, an ice scraper, jumper cables, a flashlight, extra clothing, blankets, water, and a first aid kit.

Thank you, and at this point, we're happy to take any questions you have.

Governor, I'm going to go on with our WTBD.

If you could take a look at previous storms, what have we learned from those previous storms that have been able to apply to the response today?

These folks are always on their front toes, so they anticipated this storm last week and began their preparations.

The Department of Transportation has been brining the roads to make it harder for the ice to stick to the roads.

Highway Patrol has all of their folks out making sure that they're tagging cars and getting them towed so that we're not worrying about these stray cars on the side of the road and do they have a person in them or not.

The National Guard has put advance troops in eastern North Carolina and Kinston so that if there are needs for them to go out and rescue folks, they're on the ground ready to do it.

So one unfortunate reality of living in North Carolina is we have a lot of bad weather, and when we have that weather, it gives us the experience to know what we need to do in anticipation of a storm.

These things happened last week when we had the other winter weather event, and to my knowledge, no one died on the roads because of the storm.

And can you speak to what's being forecast to the eastern part of the state?

Normally, it would be the other way around.

We expect folks on the west to get more snow.

Now it's different this time around.

Yeah, Director Ray can follow up, but the line is between Route 1 and 95, and as you get east of 95, we're anticipating more snow, and as you get west of Route 1, less snow.

It is counterintuitive from what we traditionally have when it comes to winter weather.

These guys work hard.

I know you talked a little bit about it, but what would be your main key points for viewers to know with this snow that we've been deprived of?

The main thing is we want folks to stay home.

If you can stay home, stay home.

Put on an extra sweater, maybe turn your temperature so it's not quite as hot as you might want it to be.

We want to try to reduce the load demand on the grid for power, but stay home.

Make sure you have all the supplies you need, the food, water, and if you have to get on the road, just drive safely.

Know that there could be ice at any place.

What would be your message to school districts?

Some have already canceled school for tomorrow.

Others are already on a two-hour delay.

What guidance would you have to other districts who have yet to make a decision?

I don't have guidance.

I'll see if Director Ray has.

Essentially, each community needs to decide what's best for itself.

But Director Ray?

I think as the Governor said, I think each school system is going to evaluate what their needs are.

Obviously, last week we saw a number of school systems that had lingering impacts from some of that snow and ice well after other school districts around it had been able to open.

I think as the Governor said, obviously DOT's focus has been on state and federal roadways.

Some of the secondary routes we know can often be a challenge, especially with the cold temperatures.

We know that some of the winter precipitation that we get may remain on those roadways for some period of time.

Again, we know many of the school systems are right now evaluating what's going to be best for both the students and bus drivers and school faculty and staff to make sure that folks are safe.

Aside from the roadway conditions, we also can assume that perhaps the power grid might be a concern as well.

Do you have a message to residents who may be trying to pump up their thermostats with these cold temperatures?

Whenever there are really cold temperatures like this, everybody wants more power.

Sometimes that can create issues.

If you can conserve your consumption of power, it's always a good thing to do in a winter storm.

If you don't need to wash your clothes or run the dishwasher, just wait.

Wait until this cold winter weather has passed.

So both Duke Energy as well as our co-ops and then some of our utility partners in states around us are regular part of our state emergency response team.

They are actually at the emergency operations center on Raleigh with our team today.

They have a significant number of crews located native to North Carolina to be able, like they did last week, I think move crews from east to west or west to east, kind of wherever the need is.

I think right now the concern of cold temperatures, again, the forecast is telling us it's largely going to be snow.

There is the potential for some wintry mix.

I think our concern really begins to elevate when we have significant ice accumulation potential as well as significant gusty winds.

And so I think as the governor said, I think one of the really easy measures that folks can do is some of those home conservation measures.

Evaluate what you need to do, what your power consumption needs to be when, and make sure that you're following both directions of your local public safety officials, but also we know that all of the utilities will be sending out messaging on kind of on voluntary measures that could potentially be taken.

Director Ray talked about just shedding light and not forgetting about our Western North Carolina victims still recovering from Helene.

Governor, do you plan on meeting with President Trump in Western North Carolina on Friday?

We just learned that the president was coming to North Carolina.

I think that's very good news for the people of Western North Carolina that this issue is front of mind of the new administration.

And I don't know what my schedule is on Friday, but hope to be able to see him.

Thank you all very much.