A common scene across Sampson County this week, as cars were coated in sheets of ice.
Winter weather puts brakes on schools, businesses in area
A frozen, slippery handrail and steps on a building in downtown Clinton made for treacherous walking Wednesday and Thursday.
The Suttontown area roads were icy Wednesday as shown in this photo submitted to The Independent’s Facebook page by Sarah Deaver.
An aerial photo of Suttontown Road submitted by John Thomas King.
Lillian Avery took this photo in the Salemburg area on Wednesday.
Alease Jackson shared this photo of a road in Sampson on The Sampson Independent’s Facebook page Wednesday. The wintry weather left its mark a few days before melting away Friday and Saturday.
Jack Frost coated Sampson in a slippery sheet of ice Wednesday, shutting down government offices, schools and businesses, some through the remainder of the week.
Sampson County and Clinton City schools closed to students Wednesday through Friday, with remote learning the first two days and a weather day for Friday, which was an optional day for staff.
The icy weather also forced business closings or delays for Wednesday afternoon and Thursday, with some local shops shuttering before nightfall Wednesday and re-opening later in the day on Thursday.
Sampson County Department of Transportation crews were ready for the weather turn, putting out 550 tons of salt and brine over the main roadways to keep drivers safe as the county experienced its second wintry storm blast of 2025.
Like a good neighbor, surrounding counties offered and provided help to Sampson, areas that were prepared for the frozen onslaught, but missed out on the weather.
“We received some help from other counties,” said Lance Eason, with the Sampson County Department of Transportation. “From Onslow to Pender and New Hanover, they all sent trucks, salt spreaders and snow plows. Anything we needed, they helped us out.”
Still applying salt on some roads Thursday and as late as Friday, NCDOT crews tackled the black ice Friday, and today Sampson County roads are expected to be in fairly good shape. But even as late as Friday morning, DOT officials here were warning drivers to watch out for some rogue slick spots of black ice that may still remain in shady areas, especially on bridges.
“There are still a few slick spots and will remain a few days, but overall we’re doing well,” reassured Eason. “We will be able to confidently clean up the remaining issues by the weekend.”
Although all of Sampson felt the cold, not every Sampsonian received an equal share of snow, freezing rain and ice.
The northern end of the county experienced more severe conditions than the southern side of Sampson, officials noted.
“We’re still working on the northern end of the county, but overall we’re lucky it wasn’t any worse,” added Eason. “North of 24, as you get close to Johnston County, there was a little bit more precipitation and accumulation.”
While the rural roads in the northern part of the county required more work, Newton Grove Mayor Craig Warren said thanks to the DOT, the town fared well during the storm.
“They (the Sampson County Department of Transportation) brined and did an excellent job,” explained Warren. “Our town streets were in good shape, based on what the police chief told me, because they got taken care of quick, besides sidewalks and parking. We had a lot of ice, and the banks closed, but we did pretty well, considering, thanks to DOT.”
Turkey Town Clerk Teresa Strack said the town closed Wednesday afternoon, and remained closed until Friday, but, overall, Turkey was in better shape than what was expected. She also thanked the DOT for their efforts.
“When the sleet started on Wednesday, I left,” said Strack. “By Thursday, the main roads cleared after lunch. And the roads are clear today thanks to the DOT, who did a good job, obviously.”
In Garland, Mayor Austin Brown noted there were a few side roads that were icy but missed the worst of the possible conditions.
“There was some ice buildup at places, but we seem to be thawing out now,” he said.
Clinton City Manager J.P. Duncan said the city held its own during the ice storm, “Everything was good here; we made it through without any major incidents. Overall, thanks to public works and public safety, everything went smoothly,” he said.
Roseboro Town Clerk Hannah Faircloth said they were fortunate, “The morning after the ice storm, the town streets were clear. Thanks to the brine placed by the DOT, we were in pretty good shape; no power outages. Our public works put out salt along town hall, but you couldn’t tell there was an ice storm. It was a lot worse last time; we were lucky.”
Teresa Smith, town clerk for the Town of Salemburg said there were a few minor accidents around the area, but no real damage in town.
“We still have icicles hanging from the building, but all good today. The roads are clear now,” she stated.
First Sgt. Kevin Pearson said the Highway Patrol stayed busy.
“We had 23 collisions investigated during the ice storm event, from start to finish,” he stated. “And all wrecks were minor.”
As for now, it looks like the warm weather is returning to Sampson County. According to the National Weather Service, Sunday will be sunny, with a high near 54; Monday will be in the low 60s, and it will gradually warm up as the week continues, with a high of 68 forecasted for Tuesday.