RICHMOND, Va. — As the weekend winter storm came to an end Sunday night, CBS 6 Chief Meteorologist Zach Daniel delivered his final Facebook LIVE update with surprising, and welcome, news.
Despite concerns over widespread power outages from heavy ice, only about 5,000 customers across Central and Eastern Virginia were without electricity.
"I am as shocked as I am happy about it,” Daniel said to those watching his Facebook update. "You talk about a head-scratcher here… we were up against a major power outage situation and it didn’t happen."
He said most forecasters had agreed earlier in the day that the last wave of the storm, freezing rain and sleet, posed a serious threat to power lines and trees. But according to Daniel, conditions in the lower atmosphere played out differently than models predicted, allowing ice droplets to refreeze mid-air before hitting the ground.
"What happened is several thousand feet up off the ground you had this warm layer… about 3,000 feet up, it was 53 degrees," Daniel explained. "But between that point and the ground, we went from 53 degrees down to 16 degrees in just 2,000 feet. That rapid cooling meant sleet pellets could refreeze before impact, instead of forming the glaze of ice that typically brings down trees and power lines."
He said that forecast models “typically do not do a really good job with the low levels of the atmosphere,” and in this case, underestimated how cold that lower layer actually was.
Zach's updates and the surprising outcome drew praise and relief from viewers on Facebook.
“WTVR did an awesome job of keeping us so informed,” Kathy Shook wrote. “Thanks Zach and the entire staff for delivering us the news!”
Paul Mackey added, “I was so happy and relieved that we mainly had sleet for about 12 hours rather than a crippling ice storm. Thank you for your updates.”
Jenny Smith wrote, “You have done such a great job with this event and keeping us updated. I think you will gain a lot of new followers — definitely me!”
Brenda Crawley Haskell commented, “Your team was spot on by checking the maps, the roads and making sure we were safe. We thank God for his protection and keeping the power on.”
While the storm did leave a layer of ice atop existing snow and sleet making roads slick and turning streets into “like an ice rink,” Central Virginia avoided mass power outages.
“It’s good that we are done with this event… Sleep well tonight," he concluded in his video. "Hopefully everybody’s got their lights on and nice and warm.”
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