Weather conditions changed quickly this morning in Rowan County.

Wayne Hinshaw, Salisbury Post photography chief, reported at 9:30 a.m. that roads were in pretty good shape. “There are some slick spots, wet everywhere, but not bad. … But if the temperature drops … It’s just now beginning to sleet a little,” Hinshaw said.

Only a few accidents were reported by mid-morning.

Snow accumulation was less than two inches in most places around the county. But it was enough to change schedules of area colleges and postpone the Rowan County Quiz Bowl.

Catawba College is open today, although a spokeswoman reports some professors have cancelled individual classes.

Tonight’s Quiz Bowl has been postponed to Tuesday, Feb. 6, 5:30 p.m., in the auditorium of the Agriculture Center on Old Concord Road.

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College has cancelled all day classes. Staff is to report at noon. A decision about evening classes (classes beginning after 5 p.m.) will be made by 3 p.m. today.

Both campuses of Pfeiffer University are closed, according to Natasha Suber, director of communications.

Cabarrus County Schools have now closed for the day and scheduled Feb. 19 as the makeup day. Previously, Cabarrus County was on a two-hour delay. Kannapolis City Schools are closed.

Cabarrus County Transportation Services, which provides door-to-door transportation for clients who are elderly or disabled, is only providing service for dialysis appointments today. All other trips have been cancelled to ensure the safety of clients.

The Concord, Kannapolis and Mount Pleasant branches of the Cabarrus County Public Library will close at 5 p.m. today. The Harrisburg library branch is closed and will reopen Friday morning. The Bookmobile is not operating today.

All Cabarrus County parks are closed today.

The Associated Press reports snow began falling early today in western and central North Carolina as forecasters warned that it and eventually freezing rain could knock out power and make roads treacherous.

Classes were canceled across the state, and a winter storm warning was issued for most counties from Durham west to the Tennessee state line. Up to 4 inches of snow could accumulate Thursday along the western half of the North Carolina-Virginia border and the foothills, according to the National Weather Service.

Less than 2 inches of snow was forecast in other areas, while freezing rain was expected to cause problems in the Triad, said Scott Sharp, a meteorologist in the weather service’s Raleigh office.

“This (storm) will probably be much more significant than we’ve had in the past weeks,” Sharp said. “The main concern is that the freezing rain may last longer and be heavier than anticipated. We could get a pretty significant icing event.”

Freezing rain also could cause problems from Charlotte up through Raleigh, where salt trucks began coating roads Wednesday in anticipation of a slow Thursday morning commute.

Progress Energy said it was bringing workers from the coast, where no snow was forecast, closer to areas that could have power outages as ice builds up on trees and power lines.

Crews from North Carolina’s electric cooperatives were placed on standby as forecasters warned that the ice would be enough to bring down tree limbs and power lines. Progress Energy said its line workers were checking their equipment and preparing to deal with any outages.