Winter Weather Hits 13 Southern States as Major Cities Face Snow, Freezing

Winter weather will bring snow and cold temperatures to 13 Southern states this weekend as a winter storm moves across the U.S.

Why It Matters

Millions of people are preparing for dangerous winter weather as a storm takes hold over much of the Southern and Central U.S. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued myriad warnings and advisories on Thursday warning of the treacherous conditions, including a winter weather advisory, winter storm warning, winter storm watch and a freeze warning.

What To Know

The U.S. Census Bureau considers 16 states and the District of Columbia as Southern states: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas.

Of those, the following 13 are expecting either freezing weather or snowy conditions this weekend.

Texas

The northern half of the Lonestar State is under a winter weather advisory, with major cities like Dallas and Fort Worth under a winter storm warning. The alerts warn residents that heavy mixed precipitation is likely to occur through noon on Friday, with snow and sleet expected. Accumulating ice could worsen travel conditions, which are expected to be treacherous.

A winter weather advisory is in place for a wider area, including San Antonio, where freezing rain is the biggest threat.

A stock photo of Dallas, Texas, after receiving snow. A winter storm will impact Texas and many other southern states later this week. Gabriel Cano/Getty

Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana

The entire state of Oklahoma is under either a winter storm warning or winter weather advisory, with meteorologists warning of heavy snow up to 4 inches. Oklahoma City is under the winter storm warning.

Nearly the entire state of Arkansas is under a winter storm warning until Friday night. Little Rock and Hot Springs are expecting around 6 inches of snow, with meteorologists urging people to delay any travel until conditions improve.

Northern Louisiana also will be hit by the storm. The biggest impacts are expected in the northwest corner of the state, including Shreveport. Up to 6 inches of snow is possible.

Mississippi and Alabama

The northern third of Mississippi and Alabama will be clipped by the winter storm. Some major impacts are expected, with meteorologists warning of 4 to 6 inches of snow through Friday, with effects on travel expected.

Kentucky and Tennessee

The entire state of Tennessee is under a winter storm warning, as is much of Kentucky. Nashville, Tennessee, could see 4 to 6 inches of snow, and Memphis is expecting major impacts from the snow. Louisville is expecting to get hit with an additional 3 to 6 inches of snow only days after the Kentucky city saw significant impacts from a winter storm last weekend.

Georgia

Georgia is largely affected by a winter storm watch, with a freeze warning in the southern parts of the state. Atlanta is under a winter storm watch that warns of 2 inches of snow and sleet from Friday to Saturday morning. The snow, sleet and freezing rain could be heavy at times, meteorologists warned. Ice could accumulate up to two-tenths of an inch.

Florida

The Sunshine State will likely escape winter storm impacts, though temperatures in northern Florida are low enough to prompt meteorologists to issue a freeze warning. The warning will go into effect overnight Thursday, and temperatures will plunge as low as 28 degrees.

Virginia

Southwest Virginia is under a winter storm warning, and a winter storm watch is in place for southeast Virginia. Much of the rest of the state has no weather warnings or alerts in place.

South Carolina

Northwest South Carolina is included in the winter storm watch, including Spartanburg. Heavy mixed precipitation is expected from Friday morning to Saturday morning, including accumulating snow and ice up to one-half an inch and two-tenths of an inch, respectively.

North Carolina

Much of North Carolina is under a winter storm watch, including Raleigh. The storm will bring impacts from Friday afternoon to Saturday morning. Meteorologists warned of mixed wintry precipitation, including snow up to 3 inches. The highest amounts are expected along and north of Interstate 85.

What People Are Saying

NWS meteorologist Allison Santorelli told Newsweek: "It's more south, but most of these locations do receive snowfall during the winter season, so it's a pretty run-of-the-mill winter storm that's going to be ramping up this afternoon and especially this evening."

The NWS office in Fort Worth, Texas, said in a winter storm warning: "Roads, and especially bridges and overpasses, will continue to become slick and hazardous. Travel could be very difficult to impossible. The hazardous conditions could impact the Thursday evening and Friday morning commutes."

The warning added: "Persons should delay all travel if possible. If travel is absolutely necessary, drive with extreme caution and be prepared for sudden changes in visibility."

What Happens Next

Most of the impacts from the winter storm will move out of the U.S. by Saturday morning. However, cold temperatures are expected to persist across the South.

The NWS Climate Prediction Center anticipates below-average temperatures from Texas east through the East Coast over the next six to 10 days.