Although some faculty chose to cancel Thursday’s early classes, the University stayed open, not letting morning snow and ice break up the normal routine.

According to Barrett Smith, a graduate research assistant in marine, earth and atmospheric sciences, the precipitation moved into North Carolina at about 5:30 a.m. between Charlotte and Asheville. As it moved northeast, the heaviest snow came on a line from Charlotte to Raleigh.

“The snow was of moderate intensity in the morning with a changeover to sleet at about 10:30 [a.m.],” Smith said.

The sleet turned into rain at 1 p.m., according to Smith, who said this kind of change is a slow one.

The University operated under Status 5 — normal operations — as David Rainer, the associate vice chancellor of environmental health and public safety, said conditions remained safe enough for travel as EH&S monitored the situation throughout the day.

“There were isolated spots, like the Pullen Road overpass, but we had people put salt down on it and get it taken care of,” Rainer said. “My opinion just driving around campus, is that things were kept safe.”

At the heaviest time of precipitation, Smith said the conditions could have been dangerous.

“But it’s not the kind of snow that caused the entire day to be dangerous,” Smith said.

According to Sgt. John Barnwell of Campus Police, things went smoothly Thursday with very limited dangerous conditions.

“Things didn’t really get slick until around 10:30 [a.m.], and even then it was only on hills,” Barnwell said. “It also helped when it started sleeting and raining.”

Although the main roads stayed clear of heavy precipitation much of the morning, Smith said conditions could still be unsafe if too many cars were out at the same time.

“It’s one of those things that as soon as the intensity lightens up, conditions improve,” Smith said. “But when a lot of people are out on the road, it kind of makes things worse.”

According to the University’s adverse weather policy, evolving conditions are monitored by the associate vice chancellor for facilities, Rainer, and the director of campus police. These parties are in discussion with the vice chancellor for finance and business throughout the day, who reports either to the provost or the chancellor.

The chancellor and the provost are the final authorities to determine the adverse weather status of the University.

For Rainer, the communication started early, as he told Campus Police Wednesday night to monitor the situation.

“They called me at 5 this morning and there was no precipitation,” Rainer said.

In the morning, members of the transportation department, including bus drivers, evaluated the conditions of the roads and bus routes.

“Throughout the course of the day, we are asking a lot of different people to report on what they see,” Rainer said.

EH&S is in constant communication throughout the day with Campus Police, facilities and transportation, as proper safety precautions must be performed.

“There is some dialogue that takes place, as precautions need to be made and areas need to be sanded,” Barnwell said.