LENOIR, N.C.--With freezing rain and sleet in the Christmas Day forecast, many people in the mountains were taking precautions on Christmas Eve.
The kerosene pump at the local Fastop at Highway 321 was so busy there was a line! " If the electric heat fails then I have a nice backup with a space heater that throws out some nice BTUs," Robert Hayes told us, as he filled up a gas can.
"We get the ice, it knocks out the power. You've got be ready," Tony Calloway said. "If the power goes out, we have a portable heater, so we just needed the kerosene for that. If the ice comes and makes a mess, we’ll have some heat on Christmas at least," his wife Teresa chimed in.
The Hickory Boulevard Lowe's manager told Newschannel 36 ice melt and snow shovels were sold out. Generators were also a hot seller in the final hours of December 24.
Road maintenance crews across the area may spend Christmas laying sand and salt on slick roads. Caldwell County Department of Transportation crews were set to begin a 12 hour shift at midnight Christmas Eve. At last check, Boone's Director of Public Works had crews on standby.
After the heavy snow that blanketed the area last week, many North Carolinians in the foothills and mountains are not anxious for more winter weather--especially if it effects Christmas plans.
"This is family reunion and we come together every year for this," Deidra Bowers told Newschannel 36. "We are not wanting the ice."
