PICKENS COUNTY — Falling snow, icy roads and frigid temperatures shut down much of the Upstate over the weekend and left thousands without power.
The snowstorm, which caught many off guard after a particularly mild December, accumulated as much as 6.2 inches in the Northern parts of the county, making it the largest January snow in the past decade, according to the National Weather Service.
“We were without power for all of Friday, all of Saturday and most of Sunday,” said Kim Holloway who lives in Dacusville. “Luckily, we had a generator and a wood-burner when that ran out of gas, but I don’t know what the people did who didn’t have those things. It would have been a cold weekend.”
Duke Energy and Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative reported that on Friday there were nearly 3,000 people without power throughout Pickens County. The number one reason was falling trees damaging power lines.
“I didn’t see the tree fall, but I heard it,” said Hank Spurlink of Pickens who had a tree take out his power lines. “It sounded like a bomb went off. But I live in a wooded area. These old trees get all that ice on them and they come down. I’m just glad it missed the house.”
Spurlink’s power was restored the next day.
Others throughout the area made good use of the unexpected snowfall. With schools canceled and many businesses closed due to the weather, kids all over the Upstate spent their time sledding, having snowball fights and building snowmen.
“It’s his first time playing in the snow,” said Holloway about her 2-year-old son Lee. “We didn’t really have snow pants and all that, but we made do.”
Others spent more time indoors.
“My 11-year-old daughter played outside a little, she was excited. But my son, who’s 15, was kind of over it,” said RaSheda Williams of Easley. “Javon (Williams’ son) was ready to go back to school on Monday, but then they canceled it. ‘We’re just going to have to make it up when it’s warm,’ he said. He’s always been very studious though.”
Three snow make-up days are already built into the 2015-2016 school calendar: Feb. 26, March 25 and June 2.