City Employees Reflect on the 2002 N.C. Ice Storm

Published on December 04, 2024

By Maranda Whittington

In 1988, current Charlotte Water director Angela Charles had just joined the City of Charlotte’s street maintenance team fresh out of college. She needed a job and knew it was only temporary. 

“It was only going to be six months,” explained Charles. Then, in 1989, Hurricane Hugo happened. “I really think that was a turning point for me.” 

By 1990, Charles moved over to Charlotte Water. She had no idea she’d be working on another big storm.  

“We did not know the severity of the ice that we would be experiencing, but I do remember weather forecasts being out there and stating that we were going to be in for an ice event,” said Charles.  

In early December 2002, a cold front began moving across North Carolina. The National Weather Service forecast office in Raleigh alerted the area to brace for what would soon become a historic ice storm impacting much of central North Carolina.   

Barney Clay joined the Charlotte Department of Transportation (CDOT) as a street maintenance crew member nearly one year prior to the storm. “I really hadn’t experienced working in a storm,” said Clay. “I didn’t know what to expect.”  

Clay was part of the Emergency Relief Division, where he knew all hands would be on deck. “Me being new here, I was excited about being able to help out, [but] I didn’t know the intensity of how much work had to be done,” he said.  

CDOT employees used city equipment, such as this slag truck, to clear the roads of ice.

The storm hit central North Carolina the night of December 4. By the end of the next day, much of the region was left with up to an inch of ice accumulation. Over a million people were stuck in their homes without power. While they waited, essential workers across the City of Charlotte’s many departments were out working.  

“I can remember being out on Marvin Road in the Grier Heights area with my crew chief at the time, and we were putting salt down on Marvin Road,” recalled Clay. “I had to actually get up on the truck and break the salt clogs down.”  

While Clay was working twelve-hour shifts salting roads across the city, Charlotte Water was handling numerous water main breaks.  

“I remember stories about our guys having icicles coming from their hands,” Charles shared. “I remember asking the guys ‘why do you have icicles coming from your hands?’ and it was because when they’re down working, making repairs, they need their fingers to be able to tighten up the bolts and fittings.”  

While the work was nonstop and heavy, Clay was excited to be in the thick of it.  

“The adrenaline was there, and it was a rush,” he said. “Me being new I was kind of excited about having this challenge in front of me to get this work done, and then make my employers proud of me for having hired me to work here.”  

The storm came and went in a matter of days, but there was still plenty of work to be done before it was truly over. Duke Energy restored power across the central Carolinas within two weeks. The N.C. Insurance News Service estimated property damage to be around $113 million.  

“Once the roads were decent enough and safe enough to go out, we would get in our city vehicle, we would go out, and we would literally drive quadrants of the city looking for damage that was still there [and] hadn’t been handled,” said Natasha Warren of the city’s Landscape Management division. 

She had been working with Landscape Management for several years when the ice storm hit, so she was tasked with surveying tree damage across the city. “We would note addresses and what we had seen,” explained Warren. “That is something that can be a real hazard, especially if it’s over a sidewalk or hanging over a street.” 

This work took days to complete. “I mean it was not just this simple, ‘we’re going to do this for three days and it’s done,’” she said. “Meanwhile, at the same time, [you’re] doing your regular work, and then you would go out and spend maybe half a day doing window surveys in different parts of the city to make sure everything was clear.” 

This commemorative hat was given to Landscape Management employees who worked during the 2002 storm.

When reflecting on the storm, one thing stood out among city employees: technology. These days, when a storm hit, technology plays an integral role in aiding and assisting recovery efforts. However, back in 2002, that was not the case. 

“We were using pagers back then and two-way radios,” described Warren. “A lot of folks might say ‘windshield surveys, why are you doing that?’ Maybe people don’t do that anymore, but back then that was what was needed.” 

Charles is proud of how far Charlotte Water has been able to progress with its technology in the past two decades, and she admitted that the lack of such technology made navigating the 2002 ice storm difficult.  

“It was hard,” she said. “We had maps, and when I first came over, we had microfiche. We had our system on microfiche.” Microfiche became map books, then map books became laptops—an evolution Charles truly appreciates. “I have witnessed all of that.” 

“What I like about the organization is that we have improved,” Charles continued, “and we have increased efficiency because we’ve embraced the technology. It helps you respond to events more readily and more efficiently.” 

For many who lived through the 2002 ice storm, the memories of it are negative. For Clay, however, he credits the storm for helping to shape his career with CDOT, where he worked his way up from crew member to field operations supervisor. “Because of my hard work and putting forth my best efforts in every job I’ve been assigned to, it got me to the level that I am now,” he explained.  

While each of these employees has experienced more severe weather events in the past decades, they all agree that this one left a lasting impact.  

“This storm, it does come up,” said Warren. “There are these little things, funny things like outtakes, and it comes up. People will be like ‘you remember when da-da-da the ice storm.’ It’s just interesting.” 

As for Charles, she hopes that reflecting on this storm will remind people just how hard employees from across the City of Charlotte work to make sure the city continues to run each day.  

“I hope that my story and this story gives hope and encouragement,” she shared. “Know that we have the skills, the talent, the ability, the equipment, and technology to keep this community working, and that’s on a day like today or an ice storm back in 2002.” 

CDOT employee plows North Church Street.

We want to thank Angela Charles, Barney Clay, and Natasha Warren for sharing their perspectives on this historic storm with us. The City of Charlotte is proud to have so many talented employees serving our residents on a daily basis. Thank you to everyone who keeps Charlotte going, through good times and hard times alike.