(MCT) — RALEIGH, N.C.—Hurricane Sandy’s ghost continued to haunt the Appalachians with snow and the Triad and west with some wind Tuesday, but its impact was diminishing in North Carolina even as it intensified for most of the Northeast.

The Triangle and central North Carolina avoided the stormy extremes that prompted Gov. Bev Perdue to issue an emergency declaration Monday for 24 western counties, where forecasters expected snow up to 12 inches and winds up to 65 mph. Perdue had taken similar action Saturday for 40 eastern counties, as Sandy approached along the coast.