Strong winds have brought down trees and caused widespread power outages across the High Country Thursday morning, disrupting school and county operations. A High Wind Warning remains in effect until 4 p.m, with gusts more than 70 mph reported. This has created hazardous conditions across the region.
Ashe, Avery and Watauga county schools are all closed today due to high winds and downed trees. Watauga County Schools reported three of their schools are without power along with multiple homes throughout the community.
The Avery County manager has announced that all county offices will operate on a 2-hour delay due to ongoing power outages across the county.
As of 8 a.m., more than 3,300 customers have lost power in the North Carolina with the majority of those outages in Western North Carolina. Mountain Electric Cooperative posted that they are aware of widespread outages and crews are working as hard as they can to get power restored.
Mountain Electric Cooperative on Power Outages/
High Wind Warning Details
Where: Avery, Ashe and Watauga Counties
Wind Speeds: Sustained 25-35 mph, Gusts more than 60+ mph
Hazards: Downed Trees, power lines, and difficult travel conditions, especially for high profile vehicles
Stay indoors and limit travel if possible. Avoid areas with downed power lines and trees. Temperatures will fall through the day with subzero wind chills down to 5 to 10 degrees below zero overnight.
Get the latest updates on the forecast from the WCCB WeatherWise team by downloading the WCCB Weather App
