I finally heard from my friend in Richmond, Virginia,
whom I had asked (e-mail) about the outcome of that storm.

They had freezing rain that fell for a long time, which froze ...
they are measuring the ice in inches of thickness.
As in, three to four inches of solid ice on a typical driveway.
One gentleman cleared his driveway using a pickaxe, a sledgehammer, and finally a snow shovel, or so I am told.

I think ice storms are the worst.