Winter weather one week, spring the next.
That’s where we find ourselves after the area’s first bout last week with all of winter’s elements since early 2018. The snow, sleet, freezing rain and temperatures well below freezing give way to a glimpse of April in the coming days.
Winter Storm Enzo arrived in the area Tuesday evening, January 21 with freezing rain and frigid temperatures before departing less than 24 hours later. Left behind was snow on the ground which would hang around for a couple of days thanks to night temperatures as low as the upper teens and daytime highs struggling to reach 40 degrees.
According to the National Weather Service, Waycross received 4.5 inches of snow while Nahunta had 3.8 and Blackshear 3.2 The same storm dumped a record 10 inches in New Orleans and eight in Pensacola, Fla., the most ever recorded in that state.
Snowmen became a part of the landscape for the first time locally since January 3, 2018 when a couple of inches fell in most parts of the area.
Temperatures were as low as 17 Wednesday night and 19 Thursday night. Neither, however, threatened the record low for either day of 13.
Vehicles parked along Carswell Avenue (left photo) beyond the Post Office heading west are covered with snow a couple of inches thick Wednesday afternoon. Snow covers the roofs, yards and divides the highway. A truck with a blade anchored to the front bumper scrapes snow and ice off a parking lot at a business on Ossie Davis Parkway. Photos By RICK HEAD
Schools released students early Tuesday afternoon and remained closed until Monday, January 27.
Ware County Schools Supt. Dr. Lynn Barber said since these snow days are so rare, the district doesn’t have a plan for make up days in the school calendar. The system had already lost several days of instruction because of Hurricane Helene in late September.
Like the school systems, many businesses closed early Tuesday and either opened late the following day or remained closed until Thursday.
Area residents handled the uncommon weather well, government officials said. Citizens heeded calls to remain off the roads during the storm so public works departments could clear snow and ice from main roadways.
The storm didn’t depart without causing damage. The weight of the snow and ice caved in the roof of Taylor Pools on Knight Avenue. The business had moved to the location in the middle of 2024.
Relief started over the weekend and is predicted to continue according to the advance forecast.
The predicted high today (Wednesday, January 29) is 72 starting a run of temperatures in the 70s during the day for the next two weeks.
The lows during the period are expected to range from the mid-40s to low-50s with partly to mostly sunny days.
