Coated in sleet
Plus: Follow storm developments and aftermath with Ledger live weather blog
Good morning! Today is Sunday, January 25, 2026. You’re reading a special installment of The Charlotte Ledger’s Weekend Edition.
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Icy precipitation begins to fall across Charlotte
by Ashley Fahey
Precipitation began to accumulate across Charlotte overnight, and most of the region is forecast to receive between 0.25 and 0.5 inches of ice. That’s a downgrade from initial projections, but it's still dangerous enough to cause widespread, long-lasting power outages.
Early Sunday, many major roads across Charlotte, including Eastway Drive, were coated in a layer of precipitation that appeared to be a mix of snow and sleet.
The National Weather Service in a 4:51 a.m. update today said wintry precipitation rates are expected to be highest early this morning, with another round this afternoon. The region’s Ice Storm Warning remains in effect until 1 p.m. tomorrow.
The key concerns associated with the storm remain the same — significant ice accumulation on lines and tree limbs causing power outages. Roads covered in sleet are expected to become treacherous, likely impassable, into early this week.
“Dangerously cold winds” are coming to our area tomorrow night into Tuesday morning, which could result in hypothermia or frostbite among those exposed to the elements, according to the NWS. It could also slow storm recovery.
Lows are expected to hit 11 degrees tomorrow night in Charlotte, with the wind chill at 7 degrees.
Outages tracked by Duke Energy this morning totaled just shy of 1,500 customers across the Carolinas, with 855 of those in the North Carolina mountains. In Charlotte, there are about 300 customers without power right now, with most of them in a single neighborhood off Pineville-Matthews Road.
The first local power outage of the winter storm happened last night in northeast Charlotte, according to a Facebook post by Steve Lyttle, a longtime Charlotte weather reporter. It occurred on Linda Lake Drive at 8:08 p.m. Saturday, and it was storm-related. That outage appears to still be affecting 21 customers, according to Duke Energy’s official outage map.
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Keep up with what you need to know about the storm with The Ledger’s Charlotte Weather Watch live blog
The Charlotte Ledger has been following the developments with this weekend’s storm — forecasts, closings, reactions, official guidance, tips — at our Charlotte Weather Watch live blog.
It’s one single feed, populated by Ledger editors Tony Mecia, Ashley Fahey and Lindsey Banks, and is intended to give helpful information, hourly updates and insights as the winter storm moves through the Charlotte region.
While we’re happy to share safety tips for using gas appliances if the power goes out, what businesses and agencies have announced delays and closures, flight cancellations, the latest weather forecast, and our streaming recommendations while you’re stuck at home, we want the blog to be a dialogue. So reach out to let us know what you’re seeing and what questions you have, and we’ll try to get answers. We also love receiving photos and videos of what you’re seeing — send those to us at editor@cltledger.com.
Check back often for the latest on what is happening.
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