The states of North and South Carolina and Virginia had faced the fury of Hurricane Florence recently. It struck in September and was a monster Category 4 storm with 140 mph winds. They are now struggling to come to terms with another Natural Disaster in the form of a snowstorm. It has taken three lives and all of them were storm-related as confirmed by the office of Governor Roy Cooper. One of these was a person who was on his way to a shelter and succumbed to a heart-related condition. The second was a woman. She was terminally ill and on life support but a power cut resulted in the stoppage of the oxygen device.

The third was a motorist who died when a tree uprooted and crushed his vehicle.

Sky News reports the authorities took action to warn residents about possible dangers from the snowstorm because when snow accumulates on rooftops, that can cause injuries. There were warnings for those living in the North Carolina city of Charlotte where a 48-story tower had large chunks of ice falling from it.

Flights canceled due to the snowstorm

The snowstorm has affected movement by roads. Many of them are slippery due to the accumulation of snow and are difficult to navigate. This, in turn, has led to the cancellation of flights due to the similar condition of runways. North Carolina's Charlotte Douglas Airport is one of the busiest in the country and it has canceled around one in four flights.

Nancy Vaughan, mayor of Greensboro, said that emergency services had to attend many cases of stranded drivers on snowy and icy roads. There were reports of power cuts that added to the misery of the people because electricity is an inseparable part of their lives.

However, an official of the National Weather Service assured that “the worst of the storm has passed.”

Life is in disorder

BBC reports the snowstorm has forced the authorities to declare a state of emergency in North Carolina which had nearly 18.5 inches of snow over the weekend. Many flights stood cancelled while the South witnessed a combination of snow, sleet and freezing rain.

While interacting with the media, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said, "a year's worth of snowfall fell in some places in a day."

The snowstorm has disturbed normal life with state police attending to crashes in Virginia and North Carolina. Black ice formation on roads could create problems for motorists, NWS officials notified. Gov Cooper added that the roads could "turn into ice rinks" even as the storm passes. He urged residents to be alert and check on, especially, senior citizens. In April, heavy snowstorm with rains brought the central US to its knees. People have to adjust their lifestyle to cater to these vagaries of nature.
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