Snow, sleet and Arctic winds have plunged the Deep South region of the United States into an unusually deep freeze, closing airports, highways, schools and government offices in usually sunny Southern states.
After blanketing Texas and the northern Gulf Coast with record-breaking snowfall, the major winter storm moved east on Wednesday, hitting Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and even Florida — also known as the Sunshine State – Governors had to declare a state of emergency.
At least three people have died due to the extreme weather, including two in Austin, Texas, and another in Georgia.
After closing or suspending flights Tuesday, Jacksonville Airport in Florida, Louis Armstrong Airport in New Orleans and both airports in Houston, Texas, were planning to reopen during Wednesday.
But as of Wednesday morning, more than 1,300 flights to or within the US were canceled and more than 900 were delayed.
The airport in Charleston, South Carolina, was also closed, as was the massive 2.5-mile (4-kilometer) Ravenel Bridge, which provides a bridge between Charleston and areas up the coast for about a day. Carries 100,000 vehicles.
unfamiliar winter wonderlands
Still, the rare cold weather also led to some unusual scenes across the region as residents swapped out sun loungers for toboggans and built snowmen instead of sand castles.
The heaviest snowfall was recorded in Mobile, Alabama, where officials asked people to stay off roads that were covered with more than five inches (13 cm) of snow.
With experts predicting that this winter storm could break a 130-year-old record for snowfall in the area, schools and some workplaces were also closed, giving people some extra time for snowball fights.
In Tallahassee, Florida, where snow hasn’t been seen since a light dusting in 2018, Lina Rojas said she’s never seen anything like it.
“I don’t even know what to call it!” she said, as she wrapped her dachshund Petunia in a warm dog-coat and put little gloves on her paws.
In the “Sunshine State”, inflatables are commonly deployed in swimming pools or at the beach. But in Pensacola, they proved equally useful in six-inch (15 cm) deep snow in Bayview Park.
“Believe it or not, we are mobilizing snow removal equipment across the state of Florida,” Governor Ron DeSantis said, as the white sand beaches of popular summer vacation spots were covered with snow.
In Houston, people took advantage of the snow to go sledding on the banks of the Buffalo Bayou River, while unprecedented blizzard warnings were issued for several coastal counties near the Texas-Louisiana border.
It’s been more than a decade since it last snowed in New Orleans, but Tuesday’s snowfall set a new record.
Ten inches (25 cm) of snow fell in some parts of the city, far surpassing the record of 2.7 inches (6.8 cm) set on New Year’s Eve, 1963.
“Wow, what a snowy day,” the weather agency said in a social media post. “It’s safe to say this was a historic snowfall for most of the area.”
In downtown New Orleans, the city’s central Bourbon Street became a venue for urban skiing, while priests and nuns engaged in snowball fights outside a suburban church.
Others went sledding down the snow-covered Mississippi River in kayaks, cardboard boxes and inflatable reptiles.
“It’s a white-out in New Orleans, it’s a snow-a-can,” said local high-school teacher David Dalio as his two daughters slid down an embankment on a yoga mat and a boogie board. “We’ve had plenty of stormy days but never a snowing day.”
MF/JCG (AP, Reuters)