A powerful winter storm has punched its way into the Southern U.S. on Friday, prompting the National Weather Service to issue winter storm warnings from Texas to South Carolina.
The storm buried some places in unusual amounts of snow and snarled travel and schooling for millions.
Almost 10 inches of snow fell in Little Rock, Arkansas, a city that usually receives less than four inches of snow a year. More than 7 inches fell at Memphis International Airport, which usually gets less than three inches a year.
The storm iced roads and dumped sleet in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Stalled vehicles temporarily blocked traffic on interchanges around Atlanta before they could be towed.
More than 100,000 customers were without power in Georgia as of Friday night.
The governors of Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas closed state offices in advance of the storm. For Kentucky, Friday is the second major winter storm to strike the state this week.
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“Kentucky has gotten through a severe winter storm this week without a single major injury. We have another round of rough weather moving in… so it’s important Kentuckians pay attention to their local forecasts and are careful tonight and tomorrow. Be weather aware, take it slow and look out for one another. We’ll get through this second round of storms, together," said Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.
A ground stop went into effect at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport early in the morning on Friday, contributing to more than 3,400 flight cancellations across the U.S.
Areas of Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia could see up to eight inches of continued snow accumulation through Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.
