KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Across East Tennessee, many schools are going on spring break. Students along with their friends and families were making plans to travel and enjoy a vacation.
However, winter weather dashed some of those plans. They could no longer hike in the Great Smoky Mountains, visit Dollywood or visit some of the many shopping centers in Gatlinburg. But on the other hand, some families did not let the winter weather prevent them from enjoying themselves.
Robert Merritt said he was heading to Washington D.C. from Chattanooga with his family, making a trek up I-40. He said they did not expect weather too severe on their journey.
"We ran into a lot of snow there, just before Knoxville, coming up this way," he said. "But overall, the roads have been good."
The Tennessee Department of Transportation said they prepared for weather like this, pretreating roads and sending out crews to make sure they didn't freeze over. Mark Nagi, a spokesperson for TDOT, said crews arrived for work around midnight and headed out on their routes, working ever since.
Although the roads may be in good shape, some spring break destinations said they wouldn't open their doors. Dollywood pushed back their opening to Sunday, after announcing that Saturday would be the start of the season.
Pushing the date back could have a big impact on the region's economy, according to David Wear, the Mayor of Pigeon Forge.
"When Dollywood opens and all these other businesses gear up for spring break, it makes a huge impact in our economy," he said. "We had people coming in yesterday and they're enjoying their t-shirts and shorts and today they wake up and there are 4 inches of snow. What a cool spring break that would be, and then tomorrow it's going to be cold, but it's going to be beautiful."
He said he hopes that visitors to Pigeon Forge are getting an authentic experience of what East Tennessee weather can be like.