A historic winter storm is expected to bring rare heavy snowfall and ice to states along the Gulf Coast and could impact as many as 55 million people through midweek, according to national forecasts.
Houston, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and other cities across the deep South have begun bracing for the storm. Houston has already closed its major airports and plans to suspend flight operations starting at midnight Tuesday while governors in Florida and Louisiana declared preemptive states of emergency.
State leaders are advising residents to do what they can to prepare for the unusual inclement weather.
“It is extremely important to stay off the road,” Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said at a news conference. “Unless you absolutely need to be on the road, stay at home and stay warm.”
Landry issued a state of emergency ahead of the storm, and he wasn’t the only one to do so. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also issued an emergency declaration for the Sunshine State.
Louisiana could be slammed with unforeseen levels of snow reaching up to 6 inches, according to forecasts. Even New Orleans is under a winter storm warning — a phenomenon not seen since the last recordable snowfall in the city in 2009, according to 13 News Now.
Texas could also see up to 6 inches of the white stuff, while other states along the Gulf will see a dusting closer to 4 inches.
The Interstate 10 connection that leads from New Orleans to the Florida Panhandle will be hit with moderate snowfall on Monday night. Tallahassee and Jacksonville should also see icy conditions, but aren’t expected to get a heavy snowfall.
Most cities along the Gulf Coast aren’t as equipped to handle heavy snowfall compared to the Northeast, so states have been doing what they can to stockpile materials.
In Louisiana, the Department of Transportation and Development said it has 400,000 pounds of salt readily available to spread over roads and bridges to help melt the snow and ice, according to WDSU 6. State officials have also been mapping out plans for road closures, if needed.
Residual from the storm will inch up north and likely cause freezing rain in coastal Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, forecasters said.
Even after the primary storm passes, even more snow and heavy rain off the Atlantic Coast will hit the Florida Peninsula later this week.
While approximately 55 million people have been advised to batten down the hatches, another 214 million people all the way from the southern tip of Texas to central Florida are under cold alerts. They’ve all been warned that the temperatures in their areas will drop to anywhere between 20 and 40 degrees below their typical average, forecasters said.
For many areas in the South, the drastic drop will mean below-freezing temperatures expected to last longer than a day that could cause damage ranging from pipe bursts to cracked roads.
The impending temperatures stand to set cold records in Missouri, Texas, Louisiana, and Alabama.
The current coldest temperature record in Louisiana is -16 degrees Fahrenheit — and it was set in February 1899, according to Business Insider.
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