The Christmas weekend of 2022 will long be remembered for wind chills well below zero and snow blanketing higher elevations.
Power and internet outages were widespread during a plunge of polar air that affected much of the nation. A vacationer in the Almond area reported power was out there for about three days. All outages were resolved by Monday morning, according to Duke Energy Carolinas.
One example of the frigid conditions was Cherohala Skyway, where one person’s vehicle reported -19 degrees on Christmas Eve; so cold, they didn’t get out to measure the snow, but said there was a lot. A resident in the Mill Creek area reported -11 degrees.
The actual temperatures in Robbinsville on Christmas Eve and early-Christmas morning hovered around zero and near record-breaking lows, according to Weather Underground statistics.
Robbinsville Fire Chief Jeff Millsaps said a malfunctioning space heater in a bedroom sparked a fire that destroyed a mobile home in the Long Creek community early Christmas Eve morning.
Millsaps said the domicile was a total loss, but firefighters were able to save personal belongings – including wrapped Christmas gifts.
Two residents were uninjured.
Also Saturday morning, a motorist lost control on a patch of ice and spun off the road, State Trooper Ty Gibbs said.
She was uninjured in the crash.
An unidentified woman was missing in the woods near Stecoah on Friday morning.
A Graham County sheriff’s deputy found her and was assisted by Stecoah Rescue Squad personnel to a Graham County Emergency Services ambulance, which took her to the hospital, Stecoah Chief Lynn Cody told The Graham Star.