West Virginia’s mountain counties impacted by winter storms

WEST VIRGINIA (WCHS)— West Virginia received a taste of winter weather this week with the state’s eastern mountains being heavily impacted by snowy conditions.

While much of the snow that turned dangerously slick roads has melted away in the lowlands and elsewhere, some mountain counties remain under a winter storm warning.

Locations such as Harman and Snowshoe under a blizzard warning and others under a winter storm warning.

Northwest Pocahontas County and southeastern Randolph County could see total accumulations of 1-to-2 feet by Saturday night.

After a mild last winter, highway crews have 231,000 tons of salt on hand, about three times the amount of what is expected to be used.

When you consider the amount of snow that fell, roadways were in surprisingly good shape Friday, helped in part by warmer temperatures that preceded snowfall. That might be the case overnight into the weekend.

“The temperature on the roadways actually stayed up, so a lot what came down melted off,” West Virginia Secretary of Transportation Jimmy Wriston said Friday. “We’ve got plenty of resources out there, but everybody’s going to have a long night tonight. “

Poor visibility, windy conditions and more is snow on tap in multiple mountain counties, although it appears problems could melt away Sunday.

“Folks need to be safe. If you don’t need to go out tonight don’t,” Wriston advised. “If you do need to go out, be safe. Watch out for my truck drivers and my snowplows and give them room.”

While complicating weekend travel plans, the snowfall has helped ease lingering drought conditions.